kem513

Hello. My fiance and I are planning our honeymoon, and we've decided to go all out and stay at the finest hotels. I know that in Positano this means Le Sirenuse...but we are having trouble stomaching the 780 Euro price for a room with a view. I know that views are the reason people go to Positano... but we were wondering whether it is worth it to stay at Sirenuse in a much less expensive room without a view (since we will be out and about and will have plenty of opporunities to see the vista). I guess our question is: Is Sirenuse without a view still worth it?

Grinisa

Depends on how much the room with no view is. If it's not much less than the 780, go for the room with the view. If it's about half, go for the no view room and enjoy the views from the pool, bar and restaurant. 780 is pretty high for a room though. I've stayed at the Sirenuse several times, all in double deluxe rooms with views. The last time was two years ago and we paid 500 or so Euro in July.

kem513

Rooms without a view and without a balcony are 420 euro/night at Le Sirenuse. This is significantly less, but still a lot for a room with no view! However, we have heard nothing but superlatives for Sirenuse, so we are torn... We have looked at other hotels such as Villa Franca, but people have told us they just don't compare.

beanweb24

I would personally not give up a "room with a view" in Positano. Le Sirenuse is certainly the most expensive hotel in Positano, but there are other fantastic hotels that offer rooms with views/terraces. True that you won't spend all of your hours at the hotel, but I guarantee you that you'll want the opportunity to relax on a terrace with a bottle of wine and your new spouse and just enjoy your surroundings in a private setting. Breakfast on our terrace in Positano (Miramare room 210) is still one of our honeymoon highlights!

TexasAggie

I've also heard wonderful things about the Miramare

Weadles

Did you try the Hotel Poseidon? It's just up the hill from Sirenuse, and has very nice jr. suites with terraces that offer sweeping views all the way down to the town below. We've stayed there a couple times and always hated to leave. The hotel is one of my favorites for its fine service, FOOD (!!!) and unbelievable views.

ira

>..we've decided to go all out and stay at the finest hotels.<

In which case you shouldn't balk at 780E.

Should you decide to change your mind, you might want to look at the AC portion of my trip report.
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34451044

TexasAggie

As just one more suggestion, we are staying at Albergo California Positano in a double room with sea view balcony and private jacuzzi for 165€ per night in Positano this coming May.

We stayed in hotels of this class on our honeymoon in Italy last summer and we were very pleased. We COULD HAVE paid much more to stay in the 5 star hotels, but by staying in nice but not outrageous places we were able to go to Germany for Valentine's Day and back to Italy for 2 weeks for our 1 year anniversary We were also able to do LOTS of shopping with the extra money!

Not said to deter you, but to offer a different persepctive...

kem513

Thanks for all of the suggestions! I actually stayed in Positano once before, a number of years ago when in my mid-20's and backpacking with a friend, and stayed at Villa Rosa, which was great. I remember how beautiful it was to wake up to the view and a balcony. I guess it's just that I'll be on my honeymoon this time, and so I feel like I should try to improve on that experience and stay somwhere nicer. But it's a tough decision if I need to give up the view to do it!

Grinisa

Kemf513, I know how you feel about wanting to splurge on your honeymoon. That's what we did, many years ago, and stayed at the Hassler, the Villa San Michele and the Villa d'Este. If you really want to do the destination hotel thing, then pay the 780. Sure, it's an unreasonable amount to pay for any hotel room, but that is what these places can get for rooms. The Cipriani and Spendido are even more. Or, you could book the no view room and then show up, tell them it's your honeymoon and they might just upgrade you. If you are going in June,July or August, there might not be any availability, but any other time, it's worth a shot. How many days will you be spending in Positano?780E will add up quickly, but if you are only staying two or three nights, you could bite the bullet, take the room with the view, and get slightly less expensive rooms at your other destinations. Where else are you going?

kem513

We are jumping around a bit on the honeymoon - starting off with 5 days in Santorini (staying at Katikies). Then one night in Athens (Hotel Bretagne), 4 nights in Positano, and 2 nights in Ravello (prob at the Palazzo Sasso). There is a chance we might do Capri instead of Ravello though. (Any thoughts?) My fiance has already been to the Greek Isles, and I've previously been to the Amalfi Coast, so we decided to split the difference!

coffeeaddict

kem513, we spent the last five days of our honeymoon in Positano, and it was the best part of our visit to Italy.

We, too, spent a lot of time mulling over the question you are now: Is the Sirenuse worth it? Back then (a year and half ago), a partial sea view was only (only!) 510 euros, but the dollar was also a bit stronger then. Also, the Sirenuse has a beautiful website, and I would literally check in everyday to look at the pictures, including the live cam from the hotel's website.

We did not make it to the Sirenuse. As with beanweb, we stayed in Room 210 of the Miramare.

You have been to Positano before, so you know how breathtaking it is. If you are you going anytime between now and late October, I think you and your spouse will want to spend many happy hours on a terrace, watching the views or enjoying breakfast or a drink. Nothing could be better.

On a dollar-for-dollar basis, I think the Miramare wins hands down. While you may give up some of the amenities that the Sirenuse has (pool, restaurant, bar, gym, spa), as a ROOM, 210 can't be beat. The best part: a grand, enormous terrace (probably a good 90 sq. ft.) with a table, two chairs, and two chaise lounges. The views are unbeatable. We paid 270 euros, I believe, and I think it had gone up only slightly since then. At the Sirenuse, even if you splurged for a deluxe full sea view room, the balconies are miniscule and, from what I could gather from looking over at the Sirenuse from our terrace, had no furniture. It seemed as if only the suites had sizeable terraces.

Keep in mind that your honeymoon, you'll want privacy as well. I'm not sure that I would have enjoyed our stay as much if we had to share our space with others.

I am all for splurging on a honeymoon--you only do it once--but the idea of paying almost three times more for a comparable room at the Sirenuse just didn't sit that well with me.

My recommendation--go over to Sirenuse for dinner or a drink, but stay at the Miramare. We had no regrets that we switched over from the Sirenuse.

For more details on the hotel and the room, check out my trip report:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34459078

Congratulations, and good luck.

kem513

Wow! Room 210 at Miramare must be great to get so many recommendations! I may call them up to see if it is available during our dates... Also, does anyone know anything about Villa Franca? Is it nice? It seems like a hike from the center of town... coffeeaddict - thank you for your especially good advice. It sounds like your thought process at the time was very similar to what we are going through now!

coffeeaddict

These are not my pictures, but a visual aid may be helpful:

http://www.pbase.com/bigsac/positano_2004&page=all

(I am almost certain that these are pictures of Room 209 at the Miramare--the one with the windowed bathtub.)

This picture shows you the Miramare from afar:

http://www.pbase.com/bigsac/image/37106662

(Room 210 is the one in the upper left hand picture of the salmon-colored building--the one with the wall of windows to the room and the chaises).

It's really all about the view and the terrace!

http://www.pbase.com/bigsac/image/37106398

(This really is the view from the Miramare's terraces--except that you have unobstructed views of the water to your right.)

europhile

Hi Kem513. Last summer, on our honeymoon, we also went to Santorini and Positano (among other places) and stayed in the same hotels you're talking about. See my trip report for lots of detail about the hotel experiences.
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34520103

In our experience, Katikies was the absolute best. We went straight from there to Sirenuse, and found that it seemed louder, more crowded, and more expensive by comparison. It also seemed overrun with Americans, who made it nearly impossible to get a spot by the pool by "reserving" lounge chairs all day with a newspaper (but sometimes only showing up for an hour to sit in them!). The pool area is small, relative to the number of rooms they have, and this turned out to be a problem if you didn't get up early enough to get a chair. We love Positano, and this was our second trip there. On our first trip, we stayed at the Miramare (yes, room 210). For our honeymoon we chose Sirenuse with a view for the same rate you were quoted. We had a good experience, but we both agreed it probably wasn't worth the money to us. We just weren't blown away by it like we were by Katikies (see the trip report for more on this). By comparison, we stayed in the honeymoon suite at Katikies for slightly less than our Sirenuse room, and thought it was SO worth it.

Finally- to chime in on your Capri/Ravello question- we LOVED Palazzo Sasso (not on our honeymoon but the year before). The setting of that hotel is stunning and it is quiet, romantic, and very honeymoonish. We loved Capri, but if I were going back I'd revisit Ravello before Capri. Good luck!

cheryllj

I will agree with the previous posters that you absolutely do NOT want to pass up getting a room with a view while in Positano. Positano is all about the view.

I would check out both the Miramare and the Poseidon, which are nice hotels but less than Le Sirenuse.

I was in Positano in September of 2004 and we stayed at the Villa La Tartana. We had a room on the top floor, and eating breakfast every morning on our balcony overlooking that incredible view of the Mediterranean was one of the highlights of our trip.

We also visited the poolside bar at the Poseidon and wanted to stay all night b/c the view was so spectacular! If I could afford the Poseidon that is where I would want to stay on my next visit.

WanderingTexan

I stayed 5 days last June. With the exchange it cost around $900 a night. I love this hotel, have stayed there 4 times, and will always love it, but that was just seemed too high. If you can afford it, you probably won't regret it, but I think next time I go, I will stay in a room without a view and enjoy the view from the many public areas the hotel has to offer. That said, if you want the finest, go there. I put my daugher and her husband there for the first two nights of their marriage and they really appreciated it. If you stay there, be sure and take the boat ride that is complimentary -- that is worth at least $100 - $200. Plan one special meal in the restaurant and then maybe eat at less expensive places to save some $$s there. BTW, the breakfast is so extensive, you won't want to have lunch so you save on lunch too! I think I am talking myself into going back again!

If you go for the view, be sure to specify that you want a Positano, sea view room. The view of Positano with the water in the background is what is so special.

awbaker

I also stayed at the Miramare and can highly recommend it. Also, you might consider their sister hotel, The Murat. It is much more luxurious than the Miramare BUT the views are not as good. IMHO I'd rather have an amazing view from my own room, alone with my new husband, than to stay at the top hotel with no view.

Another thing to consider is that the Murat and the Miramare also have a hotel boat which is complimentary for their guests. We had a fantastic boat ride -- went out to an island, swam for 25 minutes, got showered down by the captain -- no, he wasn't some young, handsome captain, BUT he did offer us fresh sliced fruit and wine for the ride back. Ahhh...

We also had a drink at the Poseidon. They have a gorgeous poolside terrace bar, and the hotel is lovely. I still think the views are better at the Miramare, though.

The Marincanto seems to have wonderful suites (with views!) at a fraction of the cost of Le Sirenuse.

kem513

Once again, thanks so much for the amazing advice! Europhile - you've made me very excited about Katikies and Palazzo Sasso! As for Positano... I contacted Miramare and, alas, Room 210 is already booked for the days we plan to be in Positano. Are there any other rooms at Miramare that compare to 210? As for the other recommendations: Murat I remember being lovely, but almost at sea level, so no views... is this true? And as between Poseidon and Villa Franca (my travel agent is pushing this one), any thoughts? What about Hotel Ancora?

coffeeaddict

Room 210 at the Miramare has the best terrace, although you really can't go wrong with Room 201 (which is directly below 210 and has the second largest terrace, I believe) or any of the other rooms. What you could do is contact Rosita/Niccola at the front desk and ask them, 210 aside, which available room has the largest and best terrace. They should be very helpful.

The Murat is above sea level, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't have unobstructed sea views like the Sirenuse and the Miramare. I think the Murat is set a little bit more back into town.

europhile: your honeymoon trip report was simply amazing.