Monaci delle Terre Nere

Wonderful
Traveller Type: Traveling as Couple
  : Hotel is an amazing place among the vineyards

Good
Traveller Type: Traveling as Couple
  : A couple days before check-in, I saw reviews about bad service so I was pretty concerned but the service was mostly outstanding- Anita particularly was excellent. we arrived via the wrong entrance so they collected us, drove our car around for free and they were very apologetic, and upgraded our room for free. Not sure why they upgraded if it was because of how we arrived or if they just were overbooked on the cheaper room but that made our stay very special; we had a private pool and a massive room. The food was absolutely delicious and it was great they had both tasting and a la carte options. I had seen complaints about a 6 euro cover charge but you do get bottomless tasty bread and an amuse bouche. I also saw complaints about walking around the estate- we were very close to the main building anyway but they also now have golf carts to pick you up and ferry you around whenever you want. Also, its a pretty beautiful estate to walk through. Eating fresh fruit from the property at breakfast and in our room was a really nice touch. The views and the beauty of the location speak for themselves- not many places you can wake up to a sea view at sunrise.
  : Although the property was fantastic, I dont think it works out as good value for money. Unfortunately, we booked with the intention of doing lots of the activities but when we saw the price lists (105 euros each for a 1 hour yoga session!) we just got the feeling of being ripped off. The wine tasting was quite pricey even for their own wines, and the meal was good but at the expensive end of our meals in Sicily. We looked up tours of Etna like they offer via Jeep and found similar options for about 1/3 of the price. When staying at similar places in the past, we have found that the high room rates usually are justified by really reasonable (and still top quality food)/ complimentary vineyard tours and It just feels like Monaci are trying to squeeze as much money out of you as possible and its a shame because for that reason we wouldnt return or recommend it to family or friends. But if you are happy splashing cash and just want a relaxed time, definitely the place for you. A few other slightly annoying things were that the Wifi was down a lot (probably not their fault), they messed up our dinner reservations both nights (wrong time first night, not registered 2nd night) -we still were sat immediately but the maitre d' seemed irritated at us. Our room had a bottle of red wine in the fridge instead of a rose. We took the red out and left it on the side as a hint but it was just placed back in the fridge. We also drank a bottle of white and it wasnt replenished in the room. We could have asked them to replenish but due to the Wifi issues we couldnt get much response from them so didnt bother. The other thing was getting a drink by the pool was a challenge as the bartender was never there. Even for our free drink on arrival, we waited 20-30 mins to be served which we later discussed would have been very annoying if you just wanted to get to your room and use the loo!

Very Good
Traveller Type: Traveling as Couple
  : our room was great private & large , gardens are fabulous, the staff were all excellent and went out of their way to make our stay a very happy time. they are all a credit and example of excellent service
  : the breakfast overall was very poor in terms of breadth and quality. the bakery was dreadful the bread/ bakery needs to improve. The rooms need to be maintained to a higher standard. looking a bit shabby chic on close inspection. sun bed mattress dirty and hard. small details but for the price which is high should be easily rectified but again the staff made up for these shortcomings to make our stay memorable.

Good
Traveller Type: Traveling as Couple
  : Stunning views
  : Breakfast service and food was poor - definitely stood out for the wrong reasons - not 5 star

Pleasant
Traveller Type: Traveling as Couple
  : tranquility
  : when it rains there is nothing to do unless you spend a great deal of money. activities and food are eye wateringly expensive. you need a car. there are no decent restaurants nearby so you are trapped! not suitable for those who arent mobile or children.

Wonderful
Traveller Type: Family with Young Children
  : The excursions and activities were great. Making pasta, wine tasting and cocktail making was fantastic. Much more informative than others ee have done. Trip to Etna was very good and again very informative.Breakfast was amazingly good with plenty of fresh produce...more than anywhere else we stayed. Overall the place is very rustic...using natural elements to make stairs, pathways, etc.
  : The bed and lounge chairs were uncomfortable for us 60+ year Olds. Our room a/c broke but the staff took care of it right away.

Pleasant
Traveller Type: Traveling as Couple
  : situation and views terrific. as it is on Etna there was a minor earth tremor at 6.45am!
  : breakfast chaotic, we were unlucky as the next table had three badly behaved screaming kids. poor choice and no fruit on offer, butter and fresh milk almost unobtainable.dinner in restaurant a minor disaster as really loud bad jazz piped over music system and sommelier asked us three times what we wanted, we told him the same each time but it never came. we gave up asking! the second night we decided to go to the nearest seafront to a fish restaurant but that was 40 minutes on the terrible roads!

Wonderful
Traveller Type: Traveling as Couple

Very Good
Traveller Type: Family with Young Children
  : The property was magical. It is absolutely stunning (at least what we saw of it) and restored in the best way possible. We loved the gardens, the propertys authentic restoration with designer finishes and flare and the comfortable appointments.
  : The one issue we had was lack of staff. The staff there was very nice, but often inefficient and quick to say they will call someone, yet no one would show up to help.

Wonderful
Traveller Type: Traveling as Couple
  : Floor to ceiling windows on three sides of top floor of the property in a secluded location in the vineyards with tremendous views.
  : Its the price to pay for a secluded setting but you have fairly lengthy buggy rides back and fro to the restaurant, pool etc