Can't beat the location and price

Two couples stayed for 2 nights at the Baia and we found the hotel comfortable and convenient. The staff was competent and helpful, if not effusive and outgoing. The view from our balcony room was unreal---the sound of the waves all night making up for the noise from the street at 7 am. Morning breakfast was quite good. The price of the room was exactly as promised.

All in all, we found this to be a good hotel, in an excellent location at a very reasonable price. I am just glad we had none of the bad experiences of other travelers.

Fabulous Views

We had a beautiful room overlooking the beach in early October. Our room was recently renovated and had a balcony from which you could throw a rock and hit the sea. My wife loved the waves lapping the beach at night and she slept like a baby. There is a great wine bar to the side of the hotel. Everyone was nice and the breakfast was typical European. The location is great, one of the closest hotel to the parking facility. The weather was beautiful, but I wondered about air-conditioning in the summer. We were on the first floor (really the second) and our room was not air-conditioned. I was informed the second and third floor rooms were air-conditioned. I would highly recommend this hotel and Monterosso as the place to stay in the Cinque Terre. The only drawback is that it gets pretty noisy around 7am. If that bothers you, you may want to be away from the front of the hotel.

In one word, fantastic

Forget the stories about thieves and betrayal. The Baia simply is a fine place to stay. It's situated right at the beach and only a few steps away from the railway station. You fall asleep with the sound of the waves. What more could you wish? Well, perhaps a good breakfast buffet included in the price. You get this at the Baia Hotel. And... the Baia is the only place I've ever seen that gives you 5 % discount when you pay cash. And if you're looking for a fine restaurant, avoid the Moretto and go to L'Alta Marea.

RUDE IS RIGHT

I guess everyone's experience is a bit subjective, however after staying in 5 hotels across Italy, the Baia is the ONLY one I have negative thoughts about.

First, the positives, just so that I don't appear like a complaining American from New York. The location is awesome, right on the beach, steps from the train station. The website is not misleading, the views are beautiful. Use of the beach was free as along as you didn't want to use a beach chair or umbrella. Our reservation process went smoothly and politely, and the room was as promised.

Now to the complaints. The staff was rude, bottomline. EVERYONE (four different people I think) whom worked their was rude to us. It was as if they were pissed off that we were staying at their hotel. Their elevator (actually its more of a lift) is ridiculous, so hard to use they have instructions posted allover the place saying how to use it and what to do if something goes wrong. We called down one afternoon for the hotel to secure us a dinner reservation at Miki Restaurant. They never did. Only after checking with them a few hours later did I find this out and make them call the restaurant in front of me. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the area, there are always people walking in looking for a room for the night, so their terrible service will not hurt them, they have the prime location.

Upon checkout, I had a simple question about my bill that was met with rudeness and sarcasm. When I replied that "I had simple question, there's no need to be rude," she started to call me names in Italian under her breath. Luckily, I understand Italian, so I gave her a piece of my mind, threw the signed credit card slip on the desk and left. It hurts me to even think that those people received ANY of my money. Nice hotel, terribly run. I am going to write to Rick Steves and tell him to remove it from his list of recommendations in the Cinque Terre. WOULD NEVER STAY HERE AGAIN. There's plenty of other choices in Monterosso.

We'll be back!

This is a lovely, clean, spacious, and fairly quiet hotel ideally situated in Monterosso. It is close both to the car park and the train station; some other hotels require quite a trek. Access to the beach is right across the street. The breakfast is good and the air conditioning is very effective. We had adjoining rooms overlooking the ocean, which were ideal for our family of four. The more senior staff can indeed be quite grumpy to deal with but we found the younger ones quite pleasant. (For us, it just added to the ambience!) We wouldn't hesitate to stay here again.

Loved Baia

My husband and I have stayed at the Baia Hotel four times in 2002 and 2003 and had a wonderful time each time. The location on the beach is superb, the breakfast is very good and the rooms are clean and pleasant. The people at the desk can be brusque, and are not particularly friendly or indulgent, but, for example, when I asked for another cup of cappucino at breakfast, they were happy to serve it. Our bill was always what we expected. (There are cheaper hotels in Monterosso, not as well located, noisy, so not real bargains.) The Baia staff were honest in our experience. We love Cinque Terre and plan to return to the Baia.

Horrible Customer Service

We stayed at the Baia for three nights. Every person at the front desk we came in contact with was rude and obnoxious. They could have cared less that we were there. (They became irate when we did not understand the elevator mechanism among many other things.) Then to top it off, we inadvertenly left a bag in the lobby. We had two hotels attempt to get them to help us have the bag sent. Both hotel personnel indicated the Baia contact was rude and basically said they would be of no help. We were finally able to get a courier service to go by and retrieve the bag. The rooms were adequate right on the beach, but that is the only positive thing we can say.

Pleasant stay

We enjoyed our short stay at the Hotel Baia. It was clean and comfortable, great beach location, and the included breakfast was very good with a wide variety of items. Our bill was exactly what was quoted and the price was quite reasonable.

Thieves and Liars Run the Hotel Baia

After choosing to stay at Hotel Baia based on it's location and appearance, we decided it was the worst mistake on our entire 2.5 weeks in Europe. The staff is extremely rude and stole expensive items from our room. After bringing it up with the lady at the front desk, she proceeded to call us every horrible name in English and Italian and then we were kicked out of the hotel and told that we were not wanted in Italy. She would not return our passports until we signed the credit card slip for over twice the amount initially quoted. We tried to file a police report but soon found that none of the policia spoke any English. DO NOT STAY HERE!!!

Great location, average hotel

The Hotel Baia is one of the larger hotels lining the beach in Monterosso and is generally clean and comfortable. Nearly every wall and piece of room furniture is whitewashed. It is located in the "new town" section of Monterosso a few hundred yards from the train station (to the right when you exit). The old and new sections of the town are generally divided by the railroad and you must walk through the large railroad underpass to go from one to the other. The largest beach is located in the new town section; at one end is a large car park used primarily by day-trippers to the Cinque Terre. Beach loungers, umbrellas and chairs are available for rent on the section of beach immediately in front of the Baia. Continental breakfast is included with the room. We have stayed twice at the Baia, the last time experiencing a little difference in what we thought was the quoted rate and what was actually billed. I presented the desk clerk a copy of the faxed (to us) reservation confirmation, and the bill was then corrected, so watch your billing when checking out and bring a copy of your reservation. The hike between the five small villages in the Cinque Terre is arduous and takes the better part of a day. If you're not in great shape or visit in mid-summer heat, it's probably prudent to take the local train between the villages and then take short hikes to viewpoints above each of the villages. For dining, I would recommend either the Trattotia del Capitano or Trattoria Franzi on either side of the harborfront in Vernazza. We were served at the del Capitano by a fluent English speaking waiter who told us he had retired to the Cinque Terre after 20 plus years as a steward for Costa cruise line. Make sure to order pesto; it was invented in Cinque Terre and watch the sunset from your alfresco table. la dolce vita