Residence Fenicia — Hotel in Crabonaxa/Villasimius

Villasimius has 3,000 population in winter rising to 70,000 plus in the summer. Luckily we were there before the crowds and just as the weather turned from winter to summer in the last week in April. 20-22 degrees most days. Before we arrived there'd been a big storm with the result that the beach was covered in sea weed. So there was no direct access to the sea and the beach had not yet been laid out for summer. However a walk along the beach revealed some sand and access to the sea (if you like your water at 14 degrees!!!).||It's quite a pretty village with a long main street. The residence is a 20 minute walk along a pedestrian way to the main street, although there are a couple of restaurants even closer.||The residence is very well presented with covered parking spaces and the small houses and flats set on the hillside overlooking the area. Not all the accommodation had the view from the website, but luckily we did, and it was magnificent to look over the bay each day.||The pool was about 15 metres long and well heated. Here everyone had a view to die for, looking over the day, whilst sipping something suitable. There were plenty of loungers and chairs, even with the residence probably 70% full.||Lots of nationalities, Dutch, German, French, Polish, Italian etc with English the common language. When we were there it was really friendly with everyone acknowledging each other in various languages.||Breakfast by the pool side was good, with a variety of often replenished food and coffees.||Staff were excellent, always ready to help, and with a smile.||There are many beaches of top quality, just a 15 minute drive from the residence with supermarkets, shops etc in the town. A car is really essential to get around.||At the height of the summer Villasimius would be a bit busy we would think, but when we were here it was just right, although many of the restaurants, both in town and on the beaches, had not yet opened.||The residence was perfect for us, although when its busy, it may be a little hectic. Noise insulation in the rooms, luckily didn't affect us, but could be a problem as the walls are quite thin.||Overall a fantastic...

I’m surprised by the number of positive reviews. But please believe the ones that say the place is run down and air conditioners don’t work.

We booked for 5 nights, and unfortunately cut our stay down to 3 nights due to being uncomfortable.

Cons aircon was ineffective, particularly at night time bad smell (damp/rotten fruit) in apartment very small shower that didn’t drain - had to turn off shower every 2 mins to avoid overflowing, wait 2 mins for shower to drain overall lack of care for guests budget cuts in all areas - 50euro to have rubbish removed (!!) only 2 rolls toilet paper provided for 5 night stay, extra 1 euro each no direct beach access as advertised, shuttle available but need to walk down and around to access (if you stayed in town centre, would take same amount of time to get to beach)

Pro beautiful gardens and view great customer service from bar/reception staff

To elaborate on air conditioner, it was on the heat setting, the first night was humid and hot in the room, hotter than outside. Given the number of cats, it’s not an option to leave door open. We told staff, and they said “we just turned it on so should work now” (assuming they centrally control thermostat). The aircon then worked better but would become hot at night (?)

In terms of customer service: , we booked direct and had to follow up for confirmation 1 week after funds were taken no manual or information in room originally we emailed about aircon given it was when reception was closed / no response or follow up when I checked out (I think it was the owner) seemed incredibly disinterested and when I raised it was 2 days early, remained disinterested with no inquiry to why we left early

All other staff were lovely on the grounds.

If you are booking a beach holiday, you want to be relaxed and comfortable, the setting is beautiful, but the room is uncomfortable - alike to staying in a cabin at a camp ground.

I was blinded by the views when booking, if you like comfort on your holidays… this isn’t...

Hotel lovely but very ‘DIY’. It’s obvious that once you’re here, the hotel staff don’t want much to do with you, no one is really about to talk to and if you’d like a drink you can find yourself standing at the bar looking for someone to serve you for 15 mins. |Food is horrendous, not much choice, I know we are in beautiful Italy but there isn’t an English menu to read, you have to go up to the board and use your phone to scan a QR code to get the English menu, no one should have to do this. Limited food, pizzas that are very watery and absolutely no flavour, salads that are thrown together in a glass bowl that look unappetising, and a bit of spag bowl they do for the kids. |Breakfast is served 8-10am, if you arrive at 9.45 there is nothing left! We asked for a little bit more egg and the ladie/s looked at you as if you asked them for a chicken to be delivered to your table! In theory if breakfast is served until 10 then everything needs to be topped up.. until 10!! |No shade around the pool, we asked for an umbrella stand as we had bought our own umbrella (I am 25 weeks pregnant and need shade!!) but were told ‘no umbrellas by the pool’ and I had to take it down!! |Beach lovely, very sandy and clean although nowhere to get a drink or toilet on the beach apart from a vending machine that’s 200 years old and the cans get stuck every time you put 2 euros in the slot! |Rooms ok.. clean but very very basic. |For €170-€200 euros a night it’s an absolute rip off. You’d find a lot nicer places for your money. |We’ve had a nice time as we laughed and made the most of it, but would not come here again!! Staff make your stay feel like a chore to them and there’s a lot of...