Relais Santa Chiara Hotel - Tuscany Charme

What a great find. Toscana is not a place where a great hotel room is what you look for, as most of your time should be spent outside! having one with spectacular view from out private balcony was defitively a great perk. Small but wonderfull and very, very affordable. Maria hosted our chek in, friendly and “bella” she was a treat, along with everyone in the hotel. Friendly and helpfull in every step. Breakfast was very well thought out. Private parking and close to the towns wall so we never needed the car. Only for the wineries. Stay here, highly recomemded.

The hotel has a perfect position in the Tuscan countryside and the view is spectacular. The staff are also kind and welcoming. The breakfast is quite diverse and you can have it right in front of the pool area so you can enjoy the marvelous view. Unfortunately, the rooms aren’t quite so comfortable and they could use some remodeling. All in all it is a very nice place to enjoy a Tuscan escape.

Lovely small hotel within easy walking distance of San Gimignano. Good sized room with sofa, small balcony and views across the pool to the Tuscan hills. Air conditioning wasn't terribly effective but not too bad. Friendly and helpful staff and a decent breakfast to set you up for the day (mainly fruit, pastries, cold meats / cheeses and cakes). Pool area and sun loungers were not too busy and easy to relax after a day signtseeing. Car park was full but plenty of free parking spaces nearby.

Sadly there is little I can say to recommend this hotel. Having said that I will start with the good parts. Although very tired looking and in need of some investment (bedrooms & bathrooms) it is kept clean. The gardens and pool appear well maintained though we never used them during our stay. The veranda to our standard double bedroom was larger than the room itself and had a beautiful view of the Tuscan countryside which was stunning . On arrival Marco (on reception) tried to book us a taxi to a local vineyard tour we had booked on impulse a day earlier . Sadly seems a taxi service in this more rural location is scarce. Marco was a real star and explained the vineyard was on his way home and since his shift would be finishing soon he would take us. This was so kind of Marco who refused any payment from us. Thankyou Marco . Now for our not so complimentary comments regarding this hotel . The standard double bedroom Is tiny even by Italian standards. It was really awkward for two adults with cases to move about the room without bumping into one another. The bathroom was clean but in need of modernisation and was accessed by a sliding door .The shower was one of the smallest I’ve seen with a shower door that was would fall from its rollers at every opportunity. The shower tray looked stained yellow and dirty. See pictures. The bedroom appeared to have a triple mirrored sliding door wardrobe but it quickly was evident it was actually a partition between our room and the next incorporating the sliding door to our bathroom … bit weird. Sound proofing was awful. We could hear our neighbours on the toilet and showering , together with other night time noises I shan’t detail in this review. I doubt any money has been spent on our bedroom since the 1980s. There were no tea or coffee making making facilities in our room but there was a small fridge contains 2 glasses and 4 bottles of water. Breakfast was OK but not great and the waiting staff were not particularly welcoming . All in all I felt pretty disappointed with this hotel . It’s the 4th we have used on our current trip round Italy and is by far the worst . I don’t honestly see how it has 4* on this site .