Grand Villa Igiea

Flying in and out of Palermo, we stayed here on the first and then last night of our trip. We liked this hotel and give it a 5/5 rating for sure. The question we leave with though is would we stay here again without exploring other options in Palermo first, and we both felt we'd have to give other places a look, just based on our thoughts on whether the property is worth the price. The service is top notch. Everyone is very friendly, warm and aiming to please. There is no doubt that there is great attention to detail when it comes to service for the guests. The hotel itself is historic and gives off Great Gatsby vibes inside and out. The property is for sure an oasis from what can feel like a seedy city, being tucked behind a fence and protected by a cliff into the water. Our room was old school but well maintained and charming. Standard room was a good size but views were of the front driveway so the other side looking at the water would be nicer. The hotel bar is a stunning room and worth checking out. The food there for lunch was also very good. You can eat outside on a giant terrace but it was very hot so we opted to stay inside, which may be worth it even on a cooler day, as the room is just so cool looking. The outdoor property is just sort of ok. The pool is fairly small and not at all becoming of a hotel of this price point. It feels much more like the pool you might see at a chain 4 star hotel in the Midwest than what you would expect here, other than again, the great service. No music. There's just nothing special about it and it doesn't seem like great effort was put in to beautify it. 2/3 of the view as you look to where the water is of a marina but 1/3 is of some kind of stone pier or breakwater that had active work going on with heavy machinery. Needless to say, this was a little noisy on a weekday, although there was no working being done on Sunday. Always loathe to mention things through the lens of cost, as different price points can mean vastly different things to different people but this one feels very expensive for what it is. All in all we liked this hotel but for what it costs per night for a standard room, we felt it doesn't justify the price. We've stayed in many 4.5 star places in Europe for less than half the price that we thought were significantly nicer hotels that didn't have the same level of service per se but not half the service either, and enough other 5 stars to know when we are in a remarkable place. That said, if this is the nicest hotel in Palermo, regardless of price we'd gladly stay again, but we'd want to look around first and know what else is out there.

I organized a birthday dinner on the private terrace of the Florio restaurant, and I do not regret it! The setting was perfect as we were welcome for drinks on the Villa Igiea terrace before being ushered for dinner to our private external space. Thanks to Davide who organized it all for me, the setting was even better than expected. Dinner service (for 12) by Cinzia was excellent, thanks to her great skills and friendliness. A great venue, awesome food for a fantastic evening. F

We had the pleasure of experiencing a splendid tasting of Marsala wines at Villa Igiea, accompanied throughout the experience by Mauro, who proved to be an extremely helpful, courteous, and professional person. His preparation and passion made the tasting even more special: he explained the characteristics of the wines with great competence and clarity and told us the history of the Florio Winery in a truly interesting way, making us appreciate every glass and every pairing proposed even more. We also particularly appreciated his kindness in accommodating our request to visit the splendid Villa Igiea. Mauro accompanied us to discover the property, showing us the various rooms and areas of the hotel and telling us the history and characteristics of the various spaces with great helpfulness. It was a truly pleasant and complete experience, made even more memorable by Mauro's professionalism, kindness, and attention. A person who knows how to convey passion and competence naturally and who contributed to making our experience at Villa Igiea simply unforgettable. Thank you Mauro for the wonderful welcome and for accompanying us on this beautiful journey!