Hotel Gran Roc

The skiing experience in the Vialattea ski area was fantastic, with such a wide range of pistes across different towns and great snow conditions for late March. The hotel however was rather average. 1. Rooms - The rooms were spacious in size and felt modern with great views from the windows. However the walls were paper thin and you could practically hear people breathing out on the corridor. The beds were very firm and most notably they were only made up by the cleaners in the day rather than having fresh sheets put on. 2. Breakfast & Dinner - On the whole breakfast was very good, there was a wide range of food available hot and cold to fuel you for a days skiing. Dinner on the other hand was hit and miss. Some nights the food was very tasty such as the prawn cannelloni, other nights the main attraction was poorly fried fish and chips. The food was also only lukewarm some nights. The waiting staff were very attentive and helpful however. 3. Bar - The bar only opened at 4pm, without even the option to have somewhere to sit during the day if you weren’t out on the slopes as the lights were turned off and the doors closed. A coffee machine was only provided for après ski hot drinks until 5pm when it was wheeled back into the restaurant. The barman also served me (an Irishman) Guinness with the largest head known to man and tried to tell me this is how they serve it in Ireland after I asked for it to be topped up. 4. Other general services - the hotel ran a shuttle bus between 9-10am and 3-5pm to the gondola and the main ski area in Sestriere to save you walking with all your gear. The boot room was also well heated so all equipment was warm and dry in the morning. Overall the stay was pleasant but probably flattered by the skiing experience rather than what the hotel offered its guests.

This hotel is close to the gondola and foot of the slopes and they provide a mini-bus to and from although you can walk it in about 10 minutes. It’s about 10 minutes walk into town. It’s a smart looking place and the staff are friendly enough other than the gruff chap on the front desk, who basically can’t be bothered with any requests whereas the ladies couldn’t be more helpful and polite. The rooms were clean and large and ours (203) faced the mountains. They were cleaned every day and have toiletries, a fridge and a kettle. Maybe a few more places to hang clothes etc. The bar area is nice and the bar staff were very helpful and polite, chose some good music and always found sport on the big screen. Not really sure what the bar manager does other than stand at the end of the bar drinking loads of beer, eating crisps and ogling women. The Guinness is a nice pint! The boot room is handy but gets very busy and could have been better planned out. The food was mostly decent but occasionally very poor. Breakfasts had a good choice as was the salad bar in the evenings. Some meals were only lukewarm and some were ridiculously small in size. However the staff were really helpful in advising us re our son’s peanut allergy as well as arranging something different to the menu for him. Overall a good hotel and nearly got 4/5!