Cefalù Sea Palace

I feel a little cruel rating this place a 3 out of 5 because it was one of the cleanest hotels I’ve been to and the reception staff were always so welcoming and friendly. The reason for the three stars is purely because the hotel itself is SO DATED and you feel like you’re stepping back in time with the decor. To get in the room you need to insert a key card & chip into a slot in the wall. But taking the rest of the hotel inti consideration, I can imagine this was top notch tech when chip and pin bank cards originally came out. This card then had to be used for the electric/air con in the room and they only gave us one key so we were unable to leave the air con on when we went out. We also tried to turn it down to 16°c as it was still quite hot when we went but it never really got any lower than 21°c. It didn’t seem very powerful at all. We went Bed & Breakfast. There wasn’t a great selection of food - Mainly cakes and pastries. And some pancakes that were just left on a plate (not being kept warm). If they ran out, they ran out. I had yogurt and some granola every morning. Which isn’t the end of the world or far from what I’ve have at home but o would have had something different every morning if there was the choice. Going back to the building, the restaurant was on the top floor which was like a UPVC conservatory type building - which didn’t hold water. We had a torrential downpour on one of the nights and a storm which left the floor littered with their branded beach towels at breakfast. Every few steps you’d walk past another saturated beach towel on the floor collecting the water falling through the ceiling. The views of the horizon and Cefalu town from the top floor at breakfast however were beautiful. Also, the restaurant was home to one of the best book swaps I’ve ever seen on holiday! Like I say, I do feel cruel giving just three stars but it was perhaps a 5 star hotel way back in the 70’s. It is in serious need of renovation and modernisation. Sorry ‍♀️

Lovely location, but could be so much better! Positives: location, 5 minute walk to the beautiful Cefalu. Fantastic views from the roof-top restaurant. Beach with free sun beds just across the road. Friendly reception staff. Large clean rooms. Negatives: they have a kind of outside club night out front on a Saturday (and some Fridays) - if you have a bedroom near this you will get NO sleep until 3am! It is ridiculous and would completely stop us returning to this hotel. Jet 2 and possibly other holiday providers do not tell you about this. We did get a free evening dinner from the hotel (which was very good) as a good will gesture but you can’t get your sleep back! All the other negatives are mostly to do with lack of staff and lack of attention to detail. Breakfast was ok, but there weren’t enough staff - no one refilling empty items because they were making coffees for example. There was a poor selection of fruit (some of it gone by 9am), but the cheese was excellent. Also slightly strange that the hot goods were not kept on hot plates, so were often cold. There are eggs cooked (begrudgingly) for you which were nice. Also, with only 2 waiters lots of the tables were left messy and used plates etc aren’t taken away at breakfast. Just not as good as it should be. There is a nice pool area, but again some lack of attention to detail because of lack of staff. So, the ladies’ toilet by the pool had no hand wash/soap for several days. Surely it shouldn’t be up to a guest to inform reception of this, it should be being checked. Just a couple of examples. We felt like unlike other similar star hotels we missed the personal Touch - we didn’t get to know any of the staff for example, I think because they were all so rushed! The rooms were good and large but definitely need some updates. The lack of sockets is a real problem. Cleaning and fresh towels seemed to be pretty good. Basically this hotel could be so much better, with a few easy changes.

I had a lovely week in October at this seafront hotel in the charming town of Cefalu. There is a short promenade to walk to the centre of town. The hotel is comfortable and well appointed with friendly obliging staff. The roof top restaurant has stunning views matched to an excellent menu. The breakfast is buffet style with freshly made coffee as requested. Lunch and snacks are available at the pool bar. Dinner is served in a peaceful ambiance with the Maitre taking your order and served by the friendly waiters. The food was well prepared and served attractively. Rooms are clean and comfortable with balconies. Large bathrooms with walk-in shower. Fridge. Safe.

I stayed here as a solo for a week and can`t praise the staff enough. I had a sea view room booked, but didn`t expect the carpark as well. Without hesitation I was given another room, far in expectation of my needs and then with the help of the housekeeper, provided with a few extras to make me more comfortable.. I found all the staff to be helpful and polite but Daniel on reception is amazing. On arrival, my luggage disappeared inside while I was paying my taxi, and then, with such patience, he helped settle me into my alternative room. The hotel is spotless, elegant and calm. Only one grumble, the towels were a disappointment, but it is the end of the season, so I imagine that everything gets upgraded for next year.