Baga Baga

While the Hotel Baga Baga also has good points, I want to concentrate here on the negative points, as the good points have already been mentioned by other guests: The beautiful cove on the photo of their website is a remote cove on the Isola Asinara. I doubt that any hotel guest has ever been to this cove. The room is dark. There are not enough lamps. (There are quite a few light switches on the wall, but as far as I can tell they don't do anything.) The bedside tables smell really musty. There is little shelf-space / space to put things, both in the main room and the bathroom. One picture was half hidden behind the cupboard. Is it art? The toilet corner is rather tight. (Despite plenty of space in the bathroom otherwise.) When it's windy there is an annoying knocking sound from somewhere in the building. The cleaning lady once left the door to the garden open. Once there was a big wedding at the hotel. We were not informed beforehand. There first was only one chair. There is no kettle. There are no coat hooks. Outside, both sides are constantly illuminated during the night. There's a towel rack with the theoretical possibility to heat. It was never hot. Guests can't turn it on or off. You can't tilt the bathroom window (anymore). In the shower there's nothing to put your shower gel, shampoo on. Wifi had no internet connection. Breakfast is good, but not very good. There is no variety. There are no home-made things. There are already opened jam jars on the tables. There's a lack of "warmth / personal care / familiar atmosphere". During our 8 night stay we were, e.g., never asked whether we enjoyed our stay, whether everything was alright etc. Even though the hotel only has 10 rooms.

Beautiful hill top location, wonderful views, great breakfast, plenty of parking. Ground floor rooms have limited view. Hotel pool is fabulous, surroundings lovely. Castelsardo is a lovely town for a few days visit.

I really wish a 3.5* rating was available to me to award to this very likeable hotel…frankly, it does not deserve 4 but given its lovely location and kind staff, I feel bad about giving it a “3”… Good things first: Nico at reception could not have been kinder and more helpful; he is a true asset to the Baga Baga. Not only is he efficient and speaks excellent English, he is also always at hand with assistance and honest advice for excursions, attractions, which places are worth a detour and which are best avoided no matter how keenly your guidebook praises them (eg Pelosa beach in Stintino is so packed you will be lucky to find standing room on the beach, even in mid-September, let alone a parking space anywhere within a two-mile radius. Thanks to Nico, we knew to pick one of the smaller beaches south of La Pelosa). There can be no doubt that the views from Baga Baga (especially the restaurant and various viewpoints in the hotel grounds) of Castelsardo are stunning; the swimming pool is lovely albeit a bit on the chilly side; there are plenty of sunbeds for all guests (although the area is a bit wind-exposed and sun umbrellas get blown over regularly). The restaurant is good if very pricy (separate review). The not-so-good: Baga Baga only has 10 rooms. They are located in one building, five of the rooms are downstairs with little garden areas, the other five are upstairs with balconies. We had booked a “sea-view room with balcony” via Ebookers as we absolutely love sitting out on a balcony in the evenings to enjoy the view. In fact, we had booked the Baga Baga mainly based on its amazing views of Castelsardo’s old town and castle and I had emailed the hotel twice before arrival asking for an upstairs room with panoramic views. I never received a reply. On our arrival, we were allocated room 101 on the ground floor with a little garden area and no view of Castelsardo. In fact, we could not use the garden or deck-chairs in it due to the fact that the trees were shedding olives everywhere and you couldn’t go outside without stepping on dozens of them. When requesting a move to an upstairs room, we were told that they had all been booked by people paying for a “superior room”. Allegedly, this is only possible via the hotel’s own website. The rooms Baga Baga sells via booking sites are only the “standard” (ie downstairs) rooms. We were extremely disappointed. If the hotel had bothered replying to one of my emails asking for an upstairs room to explain that we needed to pay extra for that room category, I would gladly have done so. As it was, we missed out on the one thing we had most looked forward to in this hotel. Instead, we were stuck in a dark downstairs room which definitely affected our enjoyment of our four-day-stay. Rooms were not usually cleaned until the afternoon. There was no complimentary water, no kettle/tea/coffee-making facilities, no make-up mirror in the bathroom and no toiletries except shampoo. The wifi was extremely slow and sketchy, especially in the evenings. Breakfast was rather disappointing when compared to the other Sardinian hotels we were staying at. There were some cold cuts and cheese, a couple of rather unappetising quiche-type offerings, a small variety of cakes and cereals. You could also boil your own egg. The selection never changed in the four days we were there. Most disappointingly, the hotel charged for coffee. Not just for fancy cappuccinos or espressos, but ALL coffee. A cup, no matter which type, cost 2 Euro. That is ridiculous and greedy, and totally unnecessary. In fairness, staff were embarrassed by management’s pettiness and we got a discount on our breakfast coffees when paying the bill. Still, it is little things like this that can’t be offset by a great location and friendly staff. A real shame as this is such a charming little place, let down by greedy management and issues that could so easily be addressed with the right attitude.

Castelsardo is a beautiful hill top town in the north of Sardinia, and Hotel Baga Baga is a five minute drive away. The panoramic views from the hotel are stunning. There are only 10 rooms, they have either gardens or balconies, we had a balcony and the views were breathtaking. The rooms are on the large side and spotlessly clean. The bathrooms are also a good size, although the showers could do with upgrading! The breakfast area is lovely, airy and again with amazing views. The breakfasts were good. Plenty of choice, cereals, fruit, pastries, fresh rolls, eggs, cheeses and meats. The restaurant is a gem. Food and wine both to a very high standard. The suckling pig and seafood platter were particular favourites. The two brothers that run the restaurant are real characters and add to the experience. Nicola on reception deserves special thanks for his extensive knowledge and tips. The pool, although small, is a great place to unwind after a day of discovering the area, and many of the beaches are incredible, with turquoise water that is really clear. The one downside to the hotel, and it is only a small one, is when it is being used as a wedding venue it is difficult or almost impossible, to get a drink without feeling like an intruder at the wedding. The reception is held in both the restaurant and main lounge/reception area. As much as it was lovely seeing the Sardinians celebrate the special day it felt like we were encroaching. All in all, we loved our stay, and would thoroughly recommend.

The hotel is located within a short distance of the picturesque town of Castelsardo. Fantastic views to the sea and Castelsardo. The hotel has only 10 double rooms, so no crowds for breakfast or dinner. Rooms are nicely decorated and are a normal size. The bathroom is large enough. Each room enjoys a small terrace or balcony with two comfortable chairs and coffee table. The dinner was of good quality. Breakfast was average, could do better! The restaurant is used by locals as a place for celebrations. That speaks for the good food and the great, friendly service. Only critic is the sight of what seems to be something like a waste-water purification plant, which is also quite noisy.