Grand Hotel Fasano & Villa Principe

We stayed for 2 nights at this hotel and we were quite disappointed especially when it’s €1000 a night, we expected much better. The hotel’s location is lovely, views over the lake are stunning as are the grounds and also a reasonable spa area. We were kindly given an earlier check in time of around 2:30pm but unfortunately due to traffic we weren’t able to take advantage of that. Upon departure we were denied an extended 1 hour late check out time which I think for this type of hotel with a check in time of 4pm is poor. I was told that the next people were arriving immediately after us so they couldn’t accommodate which I thought was strange because when you contact the hotel for an early check in, you’re told it’s not guaranteed and only upon availability. The noise in the hotel from other rooms both upstairs and downstairs continued for most of both nights until late and started again early in the morning. This obviously didn’t make it that relaxing. We thought the food choices in the hotels Mediterranean restaurant were limited and not great, nor did it change daily which again is disappointing for a hotel of this standard. Because of this we ate in the room both nights, again very small/limiting menu which was the same menu as the bar downstairs. There was no option for a simple cooked white fish and this was a bit of battle upon calling room service to order the second night. The first night the bread was stale and hard. Not what we find acceptable. We are use to and fortunate to stay in 5* hotels often internationally and these sorts of minor requests should not be a problem for the hotel to arrange for guests. Breakfast was perhaps the best meal of the day, however not sure how fresh some of it was, again the bread seemed like shop bought and the berries weren’t that fresh. The rooms were nice, albeit a little small (superior lake view), it was clean but the shower water pressure wasn’t very strong. Overall we didn’t really enjoy our stay that much, unlikely to recommend or stay again due to it being very over priced for what it was. The previous hotels we’d come from in the Dolomites far exceeded this one, which was a shame to end our trip on.

WORST HOTEL EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE We spent over €40,000 booking 8 rooms at Grand Hotel Fasano to celebrate a milestone birthday with 13 friends, expecting a 5-star luxury experience. Instead, it turned into the worst hotel stay of my life, and most importantly, we felt unsafe. To be fair, the hotel has positives: the setting on Lake Garda is beautiful, the spa is lovely, and one front desk staff member was kind and empathetic. Unfortunately, none of this outweighed what happened next. The most alarming issue was how the hotel handled severe, medically documented allergies. Two of our guests had life-threatening conditions: one with celiac disease (gluten) and another with a deadly coconut allergy. We informed the hotel at booking, at check-in, and before every meal. Despite this, mistakes were constant. The guest with celiac disease experienced gluten shock at some point during the trip, ultimately felt unsafe eating anything at the hotel, and left a night early to seek medical attention. The coconut-allergic guest was served a smoothie containing coconut milk at breakfast and received no apology—only a dismissive “I told you so.” Shockingly, the next day staff even tried to serve it to our table again after we had explicitly forbidden it. When we raised these issues, the hotel refused to refund the guest’s last night, accused us of submitting a fake doctor’s note, and then ignored all follow-up calls and messages. Their stance was that because no ambulance was called to the property, they bore no responsibility. That reasoning is outrageous. We were simply lucky the exposures were small—had they been larger, the outcome could have been catastrophic. At a supposed 5-star resort, the bare minimum is to know what will or will not harm a guest. Beyond the allergy failures, other areas fell short. The Michelin-starred dinner was painfully slow, dismissive, and poorly executed, with food that tasted subpar. I recognize that large groups are harder to manage, but that is no excuse at a Michelin-starred property, especially when entrusted with a milestone birthday. The rooms also disappointed: in the most expensive suite, you walk in and are greeted immediately by the bathroom—an unpleasant and unwelcoming design for a hotel in this category. Grand Hotel Fasano has incredible potential thanks to its location, but management’s negligence, defensiveness, and lack of professionalism make it unsafe and unworthy of its 5-star label. Until this hotel takes guest safety seriously, I would strongly caution anyone from staying here.

We were a group of 7 adults (from the USA) on a family vacation to Italy (parents, kids aged 27, 24, 19 plus two of their friends). We reserved 4 rooms at the hotel and stayed for 5 nights. We had an exceptional stay. The hotel is beautiful. Perfect mix of relaxation and sophistication. Concierge team was great and arranged a boat trip around the lake, and some dinner reservations, which was invaluable as we were a large group and none of us spoke Italian. Would highly recommend this hotel.

Beautiful hotel. Great service, on the edge of the lake. Very nice reception. Very accommodating with rooms. Great food. Lovely spa. Nicely renovated with charm. Stunning views. Room simple, recommend lake view. Rooms very well taken care of.

We had a wonderful stay in Gardone Riviera. Our room was modern, large, comfortable, and offered stunning lake views. The pool and spa facilities were excellent, and the outdoor casual bar was our favorite spot to relax in the evenings. The on-site restaurants were fine, but the outside bar stood out as the best dining option. The only drawback for us is that the hotel is within walking distance (20 minutes) of just one small area with only a few restaurants and shops, so having a car is helpful if you want more variety for dining or exploring. You can walk to the ferry port, which is a great way to visit other towns during the daytime along the lake. The ferry does not run into the evenings. Overall, an excellent stay in a beautiful location.