Amalfi Hotels..which of these two??
 

I am looking for opinions of anyone who knows either the Residenza del Duca or the Luna Convento in Amalfi.

Luna Convento has double rooms with tax and breakfast for 220E; their deluxe rooms carry a 60 Euro supplement. All rooms have sea view and the hotel has a pool. If anyone has stayed in the basic rooms, how were they? Worth the supplement to upgrade?

Residenza del Duca has a room with small balcony available for the first 3 nights of our stay; for the subsequent two nights, we can move to a larger room with terrace. The price is about half of the Luna Convento... There are 70 steps to reach the rooms.

I would love to hear opinions from those who know either of these hotels; I have read the TA reviews and am having a hard time deciding between these two very different properties.. We plan to travel the last week in April/first few days in May.

We stayed with our party of six in three standard double rooms in Luna Convento. The rooms were differently decorated, but each room was very nice. Beautiful tiles in the bathrooms and on the floors. Expect mediterranean style. 4-star level. I think the deluxe rooms are larger and more lushly decorated.

I can highly recommend the Luna Convento. Location is very good - spectacular views and a short walk into town. Food is very good - expect very fresh fish and tasty lemon sauces. Service is good (valet parking is invaluable). And the public areas are breathtaking - especially the courtyard (the former cloister) with fountain, lemon trees, flowers etc.

I have visited the website of Residenza del Duca. It is certainly a class beneath the Luna Convento, but does not look bad.. The rates are a bargain. However, I have not been there and cannot tell how it is in reality.

Traveller: Thanks so much for the response and the information.

Two questions: Did the standard rooms at Luna have nice sea views? Terrace or balcony?

I keep reading bout the walk into town, but exactly how far is this..a 10 minute walk? Further?

I am also wondering about swimming in early May..my guess is that the pool will be too cold(??)

The Residenza del Duca gets phenomenal reviews on TA but the thought of all of those steps is a bit off-putting.
And they say the views from the rooms are of "town or sea."

View: No balconies or terraces. It is an old building with small windows. Yes, we had sea views, but the windows are small. When you lean out of the window it is certainly spectacular.

The view from the restaurant is great, and also from the pool terrace.

On the hotel's website I saw pictures of rooms with balcony. These should be the deluxe rooms. On reservation, ask the hotel for a room with balcony.

We stayed in beginning of April in Amalfi and it was way to cold for swimming. The pool was closed (as far as I remember they planned to open it by mid-April). I had also been to Positano in May, and it was still too cold for swimming in the sea. But maybe it was just bad luck.

The way into town is 300 meters. If you are a good runner you can make it in 40 seconds - otherwise 5 minutes.

Judging from Google Earth, the Residenza del Duca is right within a sea of houses - a densely built area. Maybe they have one or two rooms right under the roof with a glimpse of the sea - but certainly no unobstructed sea view.

To be frank, it depends on your budget.

Residenza del Duca has good rates and, judging from the TA reviews, appears to be a decent hotel. You will use the hotel for sleeping and otherwise you will go out for eating, sightseeing etc. As it is located in the middle of town, you have a wide choice of restaurants in the immediate neighborhood. If you need a hotel for sleeping and if you are otherwise on the way, it seems to be a good place to stay at very reasonable rates.

Luna Convento is different. This is a place where you can spend a good part of the day - relaxing in the courtyard, on the pool terrace etc. When we were there in early April and we had pretty cool weather, we enjoyed to relax in our deck-chairs in the courtyard, which was wind-protected, sip our limoncello, enjoy the smell of lemon blossoms, watch the turtles frolicking in the fountain and look forward to a great dinner. A piece of garden Eden. When you get a room with balcony, you will have a spectacular view, too.

Traveller1959, thanks very much, again.

You spelled it out very well and I am leaning toward the Luna Convento; there is at least one other poster here who loves that hotel.

The deluxe rooms are about 60 Euro a night more than the standard but the idea of a terrace is enticing, even though we will likely be on the go much of the time. (Want to visit Cetara/Vietri/Paestum on one day and Pompeii on another)

We would probably not have much time for lounging around and swimming anyway, as we only would have 5 nights/ 4 full days followed by two in Naples. (Of course I could eliminate Naples on this trip; I have been twice but it has been a long time..)

We will not plan to eat at the hotel and would take the B&B option. So feel free to chime in with restaurant tips if you have the time...

Oh, one more thing..any advice on which floor to request, or anything else I should know before booking the hotel?

Many, many thanks!

Why not rent an apartment in Amalfi? This company is located in the heart of town, it is operated by wonderful young women who do their best to accommodate. I would contact Rosella.


http://www.altracostiera.com/company

Sea Urchin: Thanks..I think with only 5 nights we would rather be in a hotel..but the apartment idea does sound tempting. But I like having the front desk staff around to give advice and assistance. And also to have the convenience of the teephone, but I suppose the apartments would have phones..right?

I will take some time to look through the various apartments on the site you linked..

Anyone else want/care to give opinions? Thanks!

Re the apartments, you won't have to compete for a room with a view, all your rooms will have views and balconies or a patio. If you choose that type of apartment. There is a nice helpful tourist info office in Amalfi. I take a cell phone.

Have fun planning.

Thanks, Sea Urchin. I thought you had stayed at the Luna Convento. I know there is someone else here who loves the place but I cannot remember who that poster is at the moment..

I did look at the apartment site but nothing appropriate for two people really grabbed me...

There are so many rental options in the area, try some other rental agencies (if you want). I have been to Luna Convento but never stayed there. I stayed in an apartment in Amalfi for two weeks and many times I have stayed in Positano and Praiano (in apartments). The only hotel I have stayed in was Villa Franca in Positano and I loved it.

Are you still planning on Luna Convento?

We stayed there for 3 nights a while back and plan to return in the autumn.

We enjoyed the views, the relaxed atmosphere, the dining.

We are paying the supplement for the sea view for this trip.

Annw: Thanks so much for posting about this. I have not yet made up my mind but should do so very soon.
Would you mind sharing on the subject of which rooms to book at the Luna Convento? I had reserved the basic room at 220Euro..(with sea view) any comments on those?

Since we chose the place for the sea view I would hope that these rooms have a nice one, even if the windows are small...

I would love to read any comments about the hotel. The fact that you plan to return is certainly a plus!

Just topping this..if anyone has thoughts on which room to book at the Luna Convento..

bkmk.

We arrived home last night after a blissful 5 night stay in Amalfi and two wonderful nights in Naples. I will write a trip report very soon, but just wanted to bring this thread up to thank all who were so helpful and let you know the resolution of my Amalfi hotel dilemma.

After deciding against the Residenza del Duca due to the many (about 80) steps, we went back and forth about the Luna Convento. We did take a look at the property while in Amalfi and it is truly lovely. Based on our view of the beautiful public spaces, and our brief exchange with the gracious staff, I would not hesitate to stay at the Luna on a future trip.



After obsessively reading the Trip Advisor reviews, we
eventually decided to save a few euro, and booked the Hotel Floridiana, which currently holds the #1 spot on TA. The price for a superior room with terrace but without sea view (there are none in the hotel) was 140 Euro.

I will give more details in my report, but for now I will say only that on price/value scale, the Floridiana ranks right up there with the best I have experienced.
Over and over, we commented to each other how pleased we were that we had selected Amalfi, and the Hotel Floridiana, as our base on the coast.

http://www.hotelfloridiana.it/

Eks,

Welcome home! Can't wait to read all about your trip - after all the planning. Hoping for lots of food pictures!

Sorry I didn't see your note in time to add comments on the LC, but I look forward to reading your trip report!

From the hotel's website, I would say that Floridiana is very good 3-star hotel.

From our stay in Luna Convento, however, I would say there IS a difference between 3 stars and 4 stars.

And there IS a difference between 4 stars and 5 stars - however Santa Caterina was beyond our budget.

Of course there is a difference..we opted to stay in the less expensive place; I was concerned, too, by the bad reports about the Luna on TA. The biggest difference, of course, is that the Luna faces the sea and that they have that glorious courtyard filled with lemon trees. The Floridiana has no public spaces that can compare to those. Their (the Luna's) pool was not open yet, by the way. We also looked at the Santa Caterina which is lovely but very expensive and also quite a bit of a walk from the town. Their pool was open.



For the money, the Floridiana was fantastic. The staff are exceptional and really made us feel as if we were in a private home. Since the Floridiana is not on the sea, you have to walk the 3-4 minutes to the main beach and rent chairs.

Either the Luna or the Floridiana would be a wonderful choice based on my experience. And we were SO pleased that we had chosen Amalfi as our base..

Dayle, thanks! I will get to the report, with lots of food information, very soon!

Traveller 1959, I just wanted to give you a thanks for the help you gave me about the hotels... I did not mean to dispute you in any way. The price difference between the superior room at the Floridiana (140) and the LEAST expensive room at the Luna (220) was just too big to ignore..

no, I did not means this as a dispute

These hotels are a nice example that stars, price and quality are in perfect order - and that we have identified the best hotels in their category.

ek - did you have one of the newer suites or the 2-level room with the small balcony?

Can you comment on the difference between the room-types, and how was the beach?

I would be happy to wait for your report, but my wife and I are now trying to choose between Floridiana (and the 2 room types) and Hotel Margherita in Praiano, and any info. that you could provide now would be especially appreciated.

Many thanks.

Nevertold, we had Room #1 which is a superior room with a balcony overlooking the street. I did not see any of the other rooms, which are on two floors. I highly recommend Amalfi. Although the Floridiana has no beach or sea view, it is only about 2-3 minutes walk to the largest of two town beaches. The main beach, where we spent one day, is lovely and quite large. There is sand which changes to one band of rocks near the shore (or at least that was the situation last week). You would not need water shoes to enter the sea or to walk on the beach, but you might find these comfortable. The sea is sparkling clean and the water is clear and tinged aqua near the shore.

We rented beach chairs and an umbrella at one of the restaurants..10 Euro for two for the day. There is a shower and changing rooms, too, although you would not really need these since the hotel is so close.

I thought Amalfi ws a stellar choice, with much more to do than in Praiano; it is also a ferry and bus hub.

I am happy to answer any and all questions. As long as you know that the hotel is not on the sea, you cannot go wrong there.

Our room was quite large, with tiled floors and a king sized bed. The bathroom is also large, with a (fairly small)stall shower. There is air conditioning.

The owner will go out of her way to assist in every way.

..sorry: Our room was on one level. Also know that there are steps to enter the hotel; if that is a concern I will describe the access in more detail. The staff will meet you in the square and carry your bags; they will carry them on checkout as well.