Baia Delle Zagare - Handwritten Collection — Hotel in Mattinata

I had this location on my list to visit for the last 10years, and finally made it. I have booked it way advance via their online booking system which was a reasonable price for the experience I had.

I travelled with my wife and a 6year old son. Travelled at the end of May. I have taken public transport to arrive at the location, From Rome took a train to Foggia, and then a Bus to Mattinata from where the hotel has arranged a cab for our pickup. It was €30 for the taxi pickup which I paid on arrival at the hotel.

Beach:

We couldn’t wait to head to the beach on day1, late in the day, we arrived at the beach and was given a towel each and shown our Sun loungers and umbrella. Good finish to the day, with calm time on the beach.

We visited the beach everyday. There’s Kayaks which can be used for free, which we thoroughly enjoyed. Beach staff were very helpful. They sorted out the day trip onto the sea and caves which was amazing experience.

Room:

Rooms are pretty much standard, well maintained bathrooms, air conditioning and fans. A balcony. While booking make sure what room you are getting, I was given a garden room as per the email and booking, but we were put up on a first floor room with balcony, which I wasn’t impressed in the beginning.

Resort:

Resort is very scenic and nice ambience. Good views of the sea from the top. I could spend days there just looking at the endless sea. Full of greenery. There’s a tennis court that you can use for free, you just need to book a bit in advance, like a day. There’s a shop on the resort that will sell minimum essentials, and some clothing. Good quality stuff too.

Pool:

Pool was clean, though can’t keep it clean all time as the wind keeps blowing the leaves in. There’s a closing time for the pool in the afternoon, I think it is 3pm, not sure why. There’s a changing facility in there, toilets and a ice-cream shop.

Bar:

Bar served good cocktails, ok sandwiches. We bought drinks and food, took them to the sea views and enjoyed.

Restaurant :

Restaurant is very posh. You need to be at your best clothes for this, or they won’t allow you in :-). Said that, the day one I didn’t know, but the restaurant manager was kind and told us its ok as we didn’t know. You get various views from the restaurant, so big you have loads of choice. Great food, and very helpful staff.

Breakfast:

Breakfast is one thing I thoroghly enjoyed, besides beach. They have wide variety of food selection, my words won’t do justice. We ended up having pretty big breakfast in the day to keep us going for longer.

Food :

We arrived at the location at around 2pm, very hungry after all the travel. The hotel staff were very friendly, talked to the restaurant which was just closed for the afternoon, got a table for us, and prepared food for us. Interesting thing is you won’t know what they charged, all charged to the room.

It was all fresh fish from the sea, cooked to your order, so I was dying to know how much they charged so that I can decide on whether eat there or someother place for the rest of the holiday.

The same day evening I realised, we don’t have much option about food, as there’s a bar with 3 sandwich options or this restaurant which is too grand. If you want to eat out, you spend almost the €100 for taxi. So ended up eating in the restaurant couple of times.

We ended up having late, but enough at breakfast, delaying or skipping lunch. For lunch option, you have a bar&grill at the beach, which is a bit cheaper than the restaurant, however food is equally amazing. Again you won’t know the bill :-)

Ended up paying about €350 in total for 2 lunches and 2 dinners for 3 of us. Expensive compared to anywhere in Italy.

Overall it was a great holiday, enjoyed the location thoroughly. If I have to do it again, will do it, but will drive rather than...

I still have mixed feelings when writing about this resort. We had very high expectations and wanted the stay to be the most luxurious of our 3 weeks Puglia roadtrip. When we first entered the resort I was a bit shocked because it actually looked slightly run down or better said outdated. The buildings and most of the infrastructure must be dating from the early 80s which is not bad but we expected white, simple and modern buildings tucked away in a beautiful, well maintained lush garden. This is not the case and we obviously got fooled by the excellent presentation of the resort on the website. The buildings are old, not white washed and the building we were first in was facing a garden that really needed some love to say at least. We opted for an upgrade and were put in another room in another building which was nicer and had a less rustic view. The rooms were upgraded recently so no complaints there. They have everything you could wish for and have a nice design. What you also must know if choosing this resort is that you will have to dine every night at the A la Carte Restaurant if you don’t go out and like to drive at night. The restaurant is beautiful with breathtaking views (actually really, really beautiful and unique) of the ocean. The scenery at night sitting outside was one of the best experiences in a resort ever I have to admit. The food was also lovely although being a pure vegetarian would be an issue. We eat fish and yet choice was sometimes limited. For vegans it will be nearly impossible to dine there. The receptionist even said that we were the second vegetarians staying at the resort ever. This sounds crazy and I do not know if this is true but what I can confirm is that they mainly cater to omnivores and are not the most flexible when it comes to cater to other dietary needs. I also loved the Chef of the F&B team who was greeting and seating everyone at night wearing a white smoking. It was old fashioned but in a positive and nostalgic way. As for the beach and the sea they are the main attractions. Just be aware that the sun will go away around 3 pm (at least in September). You then have the beach nearly for yourself and can also enjoy a nice apero at the beach restaurant. We where the only guests there around 4pm and it became a little ritual for us during our stay. Overall, there is not much to do at the resort besides relaxing, swimming, snorkelling and eating. For us, it was perfect after all the driving during our Puglia roadtrip. Unfortunately, the reception was not very attentive. Upon booking I made a remark that we will be celebrating my birthday there. They did read it and also did not notice on my passport upon check-in. So no congrats or anything special on my birthday which left me a bit sad because I would have expected a more personal service in a luxury resort. I would not spend more than 3 days there because of the mixed feelings I described, but still recommend it for a luxurious stay on the...

READ THE FULL REVIEW! This hotel is set on one of the most stunning beach strips in the area. Our room was beautifully decorated and spotless, and the main restaurant offers breathtaking views of the beach through a glass railing.

However, our experience was significantly impacted by a clear sense of segregation based on room category. We had booked a more affordable room (which was around $350/night) with breakfast included, and when we reserved a table for dinner, we were told we could not sit in the front row of the terrace. The reason given was that "those tables are reserved for guests staying in suites, who paid more." When we asked at the front desk, they told us it wasn’t possible to reserve specific tables — yet the restaurant staff seemed to be making those decisions based on the room type, not order of reservation.

The beach setup follows a similar policy. There are two beaches, and your access is determined by the room you book — something we were not informed of in advance. We were assigned to the south beach, which has a steep and rocky entrance to the water and less comfortable sunbeds without cushions and without a proper beach cafe. In contrast, the north beach is sandier, with cushioned loungers, a proper beach restaurant with full service, and an overall more upscale, welcoming atmosphere. Once again, sunbed placement is based on your room — higher-tier guests are assigned to the front rows.

The hotel operates on a very limited and specific schedule for all food-related services. Since it’s located in a remote area with no nearby restaurants, missing the narrow lunch window at the beach café—when the full menu is actually available—means you’ll likely go hungry until dinner service begins at 7:30 p.m.

Service varied greatly across the hotel. The front desk staff, particularly the manager Rosa, were kind and helpful and spoke English. After we expressed our concerns, Rosa generously offered us access to the north beach (that's when I realized there's a difference between the two beaches) and a small gift from the hotel shop. While we appreciated her gesture, it didn't fully repair the overall feeling of being unwelcome and treated as second-class guests. Most of the other staff, especially at the restaurant and south beach, were curt and dismissive, and we couldn’t help but feel that being non-Italian-speaking tourists influenced how we were treated.

The food at the hotel’s chef restaurant was disappointing — the menu was very limited and the dishes tasted pre-made and simply reheated.

While the natural beauty of the location is undeniable, the tiered treatment of guests, lackluster dining, and inconsistent service make this hotel feel far from the luxury experience it advertises. In our opinion, it’s not worth the high price — the beach is the only truly...