Grand Hotel La Pace

My wife & I, and 2 children ages 4 & 11 have just returned from a wonderful 5 day stay at Grand Hotel La Pace. I was a little concerned about what to expect having read some of the negative comments on here, however we found the hotel & staff truly superb, everyone was friendly and helpful. We stayed in a suite with lovely rural mountain views, the bathroom was marble with a vaulted ceiling, everything was very ornate. THIS IS NOT A CENTRAL SORRENTO HOTEL, so if you come here don't complain about the location. For us we enjoyed the peace & quiet after the crowds & fumes of Sorrento. The hotel provides a free shuttle bus about 7 times a day. Please note if you are asthmatic, bring plenty of medication, as the exhaust fumes in Sorrento are pretty bad. The buffet breakfast is very good, with bacon, scambled eggs, sausages, fried eggs, omeletes, cereals, yoghurt, meats, cheeses, cakes, etc. you certainly won't be going out on an empty stomach. We ate in the hotel restaurant twice and found the food to be of a much higher standard than the usual tourist fare in Sorrento, and good value for money at 25 euros for a 4 course meal, be warned though, that the starters are the same size as main courses. The wine list was very extensive & again good value. Also the drinks were not as expensive as I expected, it wasn't unreasonable. 8 euros for a beer & coke is a lot cheaper than you would pay in most 5 star hotels. It is possible to walk into Sorrento from the hotel, (best done via the back lanes) & takes 20 - 30 minutes. The walk from St Agnello Station is 8-10 minutes & not nearly as steep as some suggest, and it is lit at night. To sum it up, we all really enjoyed staying here and would definitely return.

Had a really lovely time here in Sorrento - mostly due to the hotel and its staff. Unfortunately, the week we visited the weather was horrendous for most of the week, wet, windy, cold ... even a thunderstorm .... but I have to say the hotel and its staff were great, friendly ... calm and serene even when dealing with unreasonable guests. Would recommend to anyone.

The website is glitzy, but the lobby is much more gaudy than you could have ever imagined! This hotel claims to be a 5 star but is really more of a glorified Wyndham with way too much Murano glass and shimmery tile. We were somewhat mislead by the website and some of the traveler reviews as it turns out- the dining room made us feel as though we were on board a 1920's oceanliner, service left something to be desired, and wow is it difficult to find especially after doing a few laps on the Amalfi Coast road. The selection at breakfast and at the bar were both average, and the front desk staff all seemed like they were on their first real day at the job or else still in training. The redeeming quality was the room- we booked a suite and althougn it wasn't extremely spacious, it was well appointed and decorated in rich fabrics and cherry wood furniture with two balconies framed by French doors. The rooms were totally contrary to the flashy decor of the public areas which was a bit strange. We had a wonderful time in Sorrento, but should have stayed elsewhere.

We have just returned from 4 days at the very Grand Hotel La Pace and cannot fault the service provided by the wonderful staff. We got the Curreri bus from Naples airport to Sant Agnello for 6 euros each (About 1 hr trip). We then had to walk uphill for 10 minutes to reach the hotel. It is set in a residential area, well back from the main road. When we finally got there, the maginificent hotel was like an Oasis in the desert!!! (Note that this hotel's location is probably unsuitable for those with walking difficulties). The decor is fabulous. All marble, glass and very Elton John!! However there are a couple of gripes: One was that we were under the impression that a courtesy bus ran to Sorrento from the hotel, but unfortunately this service is not provided out of season. Secondly, the food in the Hotel Restaurant was nowhere near as good as the food in the places we ate at in Sant'Agnello/Sorrento. We had one meal here and were terribly disappointed with the standard. (Although the head waiter made sure part of our bill was reduced) The drinks in the bar are a little bit expensive, but then it is a quality hotel, so no suprise there. The staff in the breakfast room were superb. Eggs were cooked to order and plenty of pastries, toast, cheese, yoghurts, meats, cereals and fresh fruit in abundance. We were even served champagne with our breakfast, which was a lovely touch. The rooms are very well appointed and clean. There is individually controlled airconditioning/heating. While we were on our trip the weather was awful, raining and cold, so we were very glad to be able to turn the heat up in the room !!! We were also left a basket of fresh fruit and a bottle of the hotel Asti, which was very nice. The hotel was very quiet, due to the fact the season doesn't really start until easter, although we had the full Sorrento Football Sqaud arrive the day we left . The bus to Sorrento takes about 10/15 minutes from Sant Agnello and costs 1 euro. You MUST buy tickets in advance from the Tobacco shops. You validate the ticket once on the bus and the same ticket can be used all day, so fantastic value. I recommend Crawfords Restaurant, just round the corner from the bus stop in Sant Agnello (I think the road is called Crawford). It is family run and serves lovely fresh cooked food at great prices. The brother of the owner even gave us a lift back to the hotel after the meal!!! (A taxi would have been 10-15 euro or a 15 minute walk uphill in the pitch black!!). In Sorrento, I recommend Sorrento Inn, which is off the main square in Sorrento, in one of the many narrow streets Via Fuoro 19/21 80065 Sorrento. The food is excellent and the staff wonderful. My husband had a seafood linguine, cooked with all fresh fish/shellfish from the window and brought out on a huge platter. The bruchetta is to die for and the wine very good value. I would love to go back to Sorrento when the warmer weather comes and would definitely stay at the Grand Hotel La Pace again, but only when the Courtesy bus is running. The walk up that hill is a nightmare!!! (Don't forget that the Curreri bus will take you back to Naples Airport from Sant Agnello for 6 Euros. Ask the reception staff for the bus times and allow at least an hour/hour 1/2 for the journey.)

We stayed five nights, would have stayed longer but they were full for the weekend so we had to hit the road again. First class service & fine food in luxurious surrounding, all at a price which won't combust your credit card. Room very fairly large with all comforts, kept very clean by a very tidy staff,. Nice surprise in our room on arrival a bottle of Italian spumante and fresh fruit Wonderful hotel in a great location! Would love to return this year and for longer.

We went to Sorrento after many recommendations and this hotel was lovely. They upgraded us to a suite, which is always nice, even though it was the smallest one. It was very quiet and relax. The staff were helpful and gave us plenty of local information. The shuttle bus was very handy. Shame the bar didn't stay open late.

I've never been to a 5 star hotel that is more rigged up than this place! The lighting and AC turns off as soon as you leave the room or take your key out of the socket in the room. The buffet is fair....but nothing compared to a spread you would get at a US 5 star hotel. The location stinks, in the middle of a beat up neighborhood that has a funny smell to it. The shuttle bus drops you off in the middle of town, which is nice. However, the times around dinner are poor. You can take the bus into town at 5:45 and 8:30pm. So are are stuck if you prefer to eat sometime in the middle. I would not stay at the La Pace again.

decor lovely, but rooms very small comapared to photo's, bathroom extremely small and most only have shower no bath, rooms generally clean, but bed linen changed only3-4 days, not what you expect for 5* at these prices, towels changed twice daily. air con often switched off and unable to manually alter. tiling floors mean you can hear all from room above you. views at front of hotel good, but at back really bad, view of shack with family in it. no facilities in room, no iron/trouser press/tea/coffee. need to send out laundry or ironing at 2 euro for 1 pair knickers! room service very expensive 18 euro for sandwich. bar shuts early. pool rarely open and not heated. breakfast cold if youre not there for 7am! dinner poor quality & choice everything served with aubergine! service poor unless you are american who appeared to get best rooms and service, see american reviews and compare to u.k ones, note the difference! staff treat you as though you are a bother to them, don't dare ask for extra pillow you only get 1, they huff and puff and finally took from another room. our chambermaid was great, and tried to help. hotel seems to be trying to cut overheads by cutting service, i have to say they seem very biased to u.s.a visitors who seemed to be the priority, one u.k couple when we stayed were left standing for over 15 mins while usa tour group given breakfast first, they were an elderly couple, we gave up our place for them as man could not stand for long, that is bad for 5* hotel at over £2000 for 1 week stay (hotel only for a couple). would not reccomend hotel for anything other than a couple of nights stay and put on an american accent if you want good service.

As organiser of an incentive trip to the Amalfi Coast we chose the Grand Hotel la Pace and found it to be an excellent choice. From the moment we arrived to the moment we left there was not enough the hotel could do for us. We were a group of 31 persons who were in the Amalfi Coast for 6 days and we stayed at the La Pace for 5 nights. All though expensive a Hotel of this type will usually charge these amounts but the personalised service is excellent and that is what you are paying for. The location is outside Sorrento (2 km’s) but a regular a punctual shuttle coach brings you to and from the centre. We found the food in the hotel to be above standard with an excellent breakfast spread unequalled in any other Italian Hotel I have stayed in. Put quite simply this Hotel delivers value for money and a standard not seen in many hotels in the region. I can only give it my highest rating and would return in the morning. Alan

Good points were the food (excellent choice for breakfast), location (out of town but was very quiet which we liked away from all the scooter noise in Sorento), the rooms were nice (we had a lovely view over the pool), the pool area (lots of space and quiet again). Points to note which we were not so happy about were the gym opening times (it did not open until 9am, which was far too late seeings breakfast finished at 10am, we expected far more flexibility from a 5 star), lac of entertainment (there was a beautiful bar inside the hotel, which unfortunately was never open). A point worthy of particular note for all travellers choosing to use the public bus back to the airport, is the bus time table. Take no notice of the expected arrival time at the airport. The trip is supposed to take one hour. Our trip took two hours, which meant we missed our flight back. We were told at the airport that a two hour travel time from Sorrento is quite good, and can take longer. The hotel, although handed out the timetable to us, did not warn us of this fact, which I would have expected from a 5 star. Be careful when using the bus, I personally would use the hydrofoil next time, although I don't think we would bother coming back to this hotel. If you really want a 5 star, then go elsewhere.