La Brisa Boutique Hotel

I feel completely mis sold by the manager Marisda regarding this properly as well as reading various incorrect reviews in Food and Drink magazine and the Guardian. After spending several weeks in 5 star hotels in Corfu, Albania and Paxos , including IKOS we could not wait finish our holiday in Dhermi at La Brisa. I had spent the previous 9 months communicating with the manager to ensure we were booking the right hotel for our family with the correct room and location. We required an adjoining room for myself and my husband and our two children. The manager Marisda sent me numerous e mails and what’s ap messages showing me the side view rooms with partial sea views. The communication was extensive. The rooms and the view looked lovely and we were assured via e mail that we would be reserved a top floor room with partial sea view. We were also assured that there would be a note on our booking to ensure that our room was not changed. For two nights the total cost was well over £1000. Not the cheap Albania we had heard about but as the WhatsApp videos looked so nice we decided to go with and spend the money. I can honestly say this is the worst hotel we have EVER stayed at and it almost ruined our holiday. We kicked off to a bad start with the receptionist telling us we didn’t have an adjoining room then eventually finding we did and then telling us it was on the first floor, despite all the promise of a top floor. Conveniently the Manager is not in the hotel due to sickness but she did e mail me to apologise and we were offered an upgrade for one room which was absolutely pointless as our children need to be next to us in case they wake up during the night or become sick. They need to feel safe which is why we booked an interconnecting room so that we were all in the same space. We were left beyond frustrated and disappointed. The location of the hotel is so awful that we toyed with leaving Albania early and heading back to Corfu but the logistics with the kids was just too much for the end of our holiday On arrival at the room we found our balconies faced a carp park / building site. One of the reasons we booked the hotel was so that we could have a relaxing drink on our balcony with a lovely view after our kids went to bed! This was not going to happen. I also need to add at this point that Dhermi is horrendous. You could be anywhere, magaluf, falaraki, blackpool, Ibiza on speed!. Three bars outside the hotel are all competing to have the loudest music and the result is a baseline drone that you cannot get away from. It’s not even good music and you can’t decipher one from the other! Our ears rang for days after we left. There is no peace to be had anywhere. The music does stop at 12am but by then everyone is over tired and grumpy. It picks back up in the morning and gets louder as the day progresses and as I mentioned it’s impossible to escape noise from one end of the strip / promenade to the other. I don’t know where

We had high expectations for La Brisa, which markets itself as a 5-star hotel. Unfortunately, our experience was anything but, and I would strongly advise others to think twice before booking. We reached out to the reservations team requesting two rooms for two families of four. They sent a quote, which we accepted, and we paid the required deposit. However, upon arrival, the rooms were not set up correctly — one was prepared for just two people, the other for three. Towels and bedding were missing, and we had to chase staff to get the basics sorted. We initially assumed it was a simple oversight. But the real issue came at checkout. We were informed that the reservations manager had “made a mistake” in the original quote, and we were expected to pay several hundred euros more per family. We explained that had we been quoted this higher amount from the start, we simply would not have stayed there. Still, the reception staff insisted we pay the difference — becoming increasingly rude and aggressive in the process. It completely soured the entire stay. Beyond that, the hotel is poorly managed and in need of serious attention: The rooftop pool is in visible disrepair. Toilets by the beach and pool were dirty and lacked toilet paper. The pool bar was closed for the entire duration of our stay. The beach bar played loud trance music all day, despite the beach being mainly used by families with children. It was intrusive and gave us headaches by the end of each day. There was a strong sewage smell near the restaurant that made meals unpleasant. Our room overlooked a noisy construction site, which had not been disclosed at the time of booking. Breakfast was very poor in both quality and variety — and a proper coffee (like an espresso or cappuccino) came at an extra charge, which felt excessive given the already high prices. Customer service across the board — from reception to beach staff to waiters — was dismissive and unprofessional. At no point did we feel like valued guests. This is not a luxury hotel. We paid more than we agreed to and received far less than expected. We will not be returning and would strongly recommend booking elsewhere.