Hotel Astor

I would expect more for the rate paid but this is Genoa and is great located. Excellent located, you can just park the car and forget it, making it easier to explore this city by taking the train (train station is very close) to downtown or as a base to explore the Ligurean Riviera. Nearby there is a seaside promenade, nice to have a walk if don’t want to go far. Rooms are OK, simple, good sized bathroom (with tiles that remind the 60’s 70’s) we had one with balcony, just OK. Breakfast is served in a main ground room, the basics and most are packaged products (biscuits, jams, toasts etc.) Very good the position and the hotel if not demanding in category, style and service, but I think is pricey for the product offered.

We found this hotel in the evening (early November) after driving from Lake Como via Milan on our way to the Cinque Terre the next day. Anyway check-in was smooth the night clerk was gracious and everything seemed fine. Our room was sparely furnished but elegant with a small patio. However in the morning after my girlfriend went to breakfast, just a few minutes later someone briskly opened our room door with a key, I was still getting ready so greeted him with a surprised “Hello!?” he (a well-dressed fellow appearing as a hotel employee) said “Scusi” (excuse me) and quickly left. I thought this was just an honest mistake and went to breakfast myself a few minutes later. We were gone for over an hour as we took a walk to the beautiful seaside promenade before returning to the room. I mentioned the incident to my girlfriend but it was her first time to Italy/Europe and this was a 4* hotel so we weren’t too concerned. Later that day after we had checked out and driven to La Spezia, my girlfriend realized that her small purse with about $1000 in cash was missing. We looked everywhere and could only think that she might have left it at the hotel but she called them and they didn’t have it. I remembered that it had been sitting on the table next to the TV along with her passport. So our best guess is that the thief may have returned while we were both out of the room. We checked our belongings and did not find anything else missing. Before you think I am being overly suspicious let me say my girlfriend is half-Sicilian and has told me stories about her father having keys to every newspaper box/vending machine in the neighborhood and raiding them for pocket change as a kid. So beware of thieves at the Hotel Astor, in Italy, and everywhere else !! There was a safe in the room but we had been having a wonderful trip until then so our guard was down. I have more to say about the Italian Riviera (remember to stamp your train ticket before boarding!) but will save that for another time.

We stayed here for a week in September. We wanted a base to explore the Ligurian Riviera and this proved to be perfect. Our room was on the small side and a little dated particularly the bathroom but it was very clean and the small balcony which overlooked the village and the surrounding countryside got the late afternoon sun and sunsets. The breakfasts were ok choice of cooked meats and cheese cereals,fresh fruit and cakes breads and pastries. There was scrambled eggs and bacon although not on our last morning for some reason. We had dinner in the restaurant a couple of times and the the food was very good and prices reasonable. It was nice to be able to sit outside on the terrace. The hotel seemed very quiet and seemed in the main to be used by business men.This meant the hotel lacked atmosphere. Staff were pleasant efficient and helpful . The hotel is only a few hundred metres from the railway station which meant it was perfect for trips to other places along the coast. We loved Nervi itself not at all touristy we felt and full of local charm. We will definitely return to Nervi and would choose this hotel again.