Preface: I am a seasoned traveler in Italy and understand the culture very well. I do not expect the level of service or quality of hotels that some US tourists expect. I speak the language fairly well and try to honor their customs. I am a patient, quiet person, with a fair sense of the fact that things can and will go wrong at any hotel. The following review of this hotel is my best attempt at describing a very strange experience. Property: The property was nice, but not outstanding. There was a lot of construction going on out front. Location: The drive to the property is daunting as you have to get clearance from guards to drive through the castle and the shopping district filled with tourists to get to the hotel. There are many other hotels on the other side of the guards that would be easier to base from. Once through the castle confines, the location is quiet. Service: This hotel must have been the basis for the song, “Hotel California”. The staff initially greeted us with smiles and welcomes. In fact, they were always smiling and welcoming. They just never were willing to serve us. They watched me and my daughter carry our bags up the stairs to the lobby, and THEN said we should have asked for assistance, thus avoiding actually carrying the bags themselves, trying not to feel guilty about watching us do it on our own. They did this both coming and going. I ate dinner there with my daughter and was deserted by the staff during dessert. They just packed up and went home without saying anything at 11pm. Apparently, their shifts were over and no one was assigned to finish serving us. We had no idea about this and waited for over 20 minutes for someone to come back to offer us the traditional espresso and digestive, but we finally gave up, went to the lobby, where they told us it is typical of Italian hotel restaurants to just leave dessert on the table and go home without saying a word to the guests. I have stayed at many hotels in Italy and knew this to be false, but it was obviously not going to be heard so I quietly listened in shock to their defensive lecture. Check out was horrible. I came down to the desk to request baggage assistance, and I was patiently waiting alone at the counter, face to face with the hotel clerk, who was on the phone making a reservation. He hung up the phone, saw another woman come up behind me to the counter and without a word to me, waited on her. As I stood there trying to be patient, two other men came up behind me and the clerk began to take care of each of them, one at a time, never acknowledging my presence! It became clear that he would not be waiting on me, so I left to get my daughter and our bags unassisted. I never got a chance to say a word to the clerk! We came down with our bags to the counter, and another clerk was there. He expressed surprise that we did not ask for baggage assistance! Billing: The billing was the next issue. We were told we could have breakfast in our room (which was included in the hotel price) for no extra charge. I asked the clerk how to do this and was told I should fill out the breakfast card. The card had prices on everything, so asked the clerk what was included in our rate. He said “anything”. My daughter and I had hot drinks, fruit and eggs. At check out, my bill had an extra 16 Euros on it. The clerk told me we ate extra items that were not included in the price. After a little discussion, he took off the extra charge as a “courtesy”. As my daughter and I struggled with our bags and left, I was glad to never have to see this hotel again.

The Olivi is an attractive hotel; our room was nicely furnished and comfortable. The breakfast was quite good, with a large selection of foods, including delicious apple turnover-like pastries. All in all, the hotel was a very good value, given the fairly modest rates. The one warning I would give to anyone staying here, or at any hotel beyond the castle walls in SIrmione, is to make sure you do not arrive on a weekend day, when the town streets are filled with visitors and the short drive to the hotel becomes nightmarish.

Superb hotel, outstanding location, rooms with charm and character. The hotel is 5 minutes walk to the village centre, not on the lake shore, but with wonderful views over the lake. The drive through the narrow village streets is hair-raising and you have to explain to the muncipal police at the entrance to the village that you have a reservation at the hotel to get through. We had a suite, which we found wonderful, with a charming sitting area in the mezzanine. This is up a narrow spiral staircase and could be difficult to access if you have difficulty moving around. The room was beautifully decorated, with much charm and the hotel is totally peaceful. You are 5 minutes walk from the village centre and about 2 minutes from the thermal spa. We didn't use the hotel restaurant, except for breakfast, which was a copious, typical italian breakfast. Plenty of restaurants in the village. We didn't use the car at all whilst there, doing everything by foot, so it stayed in the hotel carpark. Staff were helpful and friendly at all times. Sirmione was a delighful place with plenty to see and visit and everything easily walkable. We stayed just before Easter, when everything was quiet and peaceful. I suspect in the high season the whole place gets much more crowded.

The Olivi is in a quiet location with lovely views across the lake. We chose to take public transport as we find it more interesting and so caught the bus from Brescia Airport (11eu rtn), train from Bresica to Desenzano (4.90eu rtn) and boat to Sirmione (5eu e/w). Great fun if you have time We stayed on the top floor and had a great balcony which we did use to sun ourselves - creaky small lift! They were a bit mean with the toiletries considering its 4* rating and didn't provide bath robes and far too few towels We loved the evening dinner (booked half board) with really great, interesting Italian food in a bit of a stuffy dated restaurant, and the wine was reasonably priced, but our waiter was terrible - threw wine at me on 3 occasions and missed the glass. We did feel we were left till last as we appeared to be the only non Italians. A very nice stay but I would say overpriced but presume all hotels are a bit expensive on Sirmione as its such a lovely location. I think I would choose to stay in Desenzano next time as much more accessible if you don't want the stress of driving in Italy

My family of five spent two nights at the Olivi, which was our spurge hotel, meaning we exceeded our usual budget signficantly. For this reason perhaps we had higher standards and were set up for some disappointments. we also had a different perspective as a family with preteen children and might have had a better experience as an anniversary destination. First the good stuff: 1) The location itself is amazing, though of course there are many neighboring hotels to choose from which were much less costly 2) the rooms were decorated to the hilt and were quite luxurious 3) The breakfast was quite impressive and the tea time also enjoyable. 4) The grounds were well manicured, albeit somewhat less spacious than I had expected. Now the negatives: 1) Even though I had booked as a family with 3 young children, we were assigned two distant rooms on different floors. when I complained I was offered a small discount but was shocked to find that the hotel would not allow me to cancel my reservation. The staff was not very warm or helpful in this regard, even though I speak fairly fluent Italian. 2) Access to the hotel is quite hair raising by car, due to the narrow and crowded streets. 3) The guests (mainly older Brits) were not welcoming of our children, and in fact we would not recommend the place for young children overall. 4) Overall the staff was helpful but not especially jovial or enthusiastic. In any case, many folks would appreciate the elegant ambiance and might not be surprised by some of the shortcomings. The town certainly does merit a visit. Good luck and buon viaggio!