Cortina Italy hotel problems.

Just wondering if the Bellevue hotel in Cortina Italy has been replaced with another. It is my understanding that guests have been dissatisfied with the accommodations. Does anyone have any comments on this hotel or possibly a replacement hotel by Tauck.

Comments

  • thosbryan wrote:
    Just wondering if the Bellevue hotel in Cortina Italy has been replaced with another. It is my understanding that guests have been dissatisfied with the accommodations. Does anyone have any comments on this hotel or possibly a replacement hotel by Tauck.

    I have the same concern. Will Tauck staff please respond?
  • Cortina was not the problem the touristos were. It is Italy. It is a small town. No, the room was not fancy, but it was clean. People complained about the breakfast. It was Italian. Italian coffee is strong "American coffee". The bacon is a type of salami. I feel sorry for the hotel. We thought the Dorint Resort in Seefeld was bad. We were put in a hot room for dinner, had very bad cheap food, and uncaring wait staff. Worse than Dennys. June 11 depart.
  • Antoinette,

    Thank you for your reply. This is my first trip with Tauck although I had hoped it would be the first of many more to come now that I am retiring. One reason I chose them from other high end providers was what I heard about their excellent customer service. It is dissappointing that two customers have posted concerns about an upcoming trip on their website and a third has made specic allegations about a recent trip and yet they remain silent. Do they not monitor these forums?
  • yes they do monitor the forum and usually do comment. I was on a National Parks tour and even though the brochure said to not expect the usually hotel experience at the hotels there was still some people the complained. They were built for seasonal use many many years ago and were not built like the park hotels in Canada that were built for year round use and are much more luxurious.

    Sometimes we Americans can not just enjoy the experience. In Europe sometimes they are not the same and they should not be. Not sure about others, but I can stay home if I don't want to experience how others live. I do know in the summer in Europe they do not crank up the air conditioning to the point that some are freezing, which I am looking forward to. And If you go to Italy in spring and fall, even if it is hot they will not be allowed to turn on the air until a certain date and not have it on after a date that the government tells them.
  • I will agree with you that Tauck staff can sometimes be slow to address concerns on these forums BUT in reality these forums are for us to discuss upcoming trips amongst ourselves not to ask specific questions of Tauck staff. May I suggest you take the time to either give Tauck a call or send them an email. I live in Australia and I've had many email discussions with Tauck reservation staff about our upcoming holiday in 2014 and even though it is a slow process I can say that they always answer my questions and address my concerns.

    I'm sure an answer to your question is just a phone call away.

    Rod
  • nexttrip wrote:
    Antoinette,

    Thank you for your reply. This is my first trip with Tauck although I had hoped it would be the first of many more to come now that I am retiring. One reason I chose them from other high end providers was what I heard about their excellent customer service. It is dissappointing that two customers have posted concerns about an upcoming trip on their website and a third has made specic allegations about a recent trip and yet they remain silent. Do they not monitor these forums?

    Hello Nexttrip,

    Apologies for not responding sooner. According to the information that I have, this tour is still staying at the Bellevue in Cortina Italy. I have been waiting to hear back from the tour managers to see if this is being changed and be able to get you folks some rationale behind Tauck's decision making and also to make sure specific concerns are properly addressed. However, sometimes getting an answer can be a bit tough. Please bear with me as I try to get you an answer.

    Hope this helps,
    Emily
  • Hello,

    From Our Tour Management Team:

    We will Cortina hotel for the remainder of 2013 and 2014. Please note that Cortina is a world known winter resort town. Our hotel is a 4 start hotel, and is centrally located in the town, which is why we selected it.

    To help understand...please try to picture in your mind what a 4 star winter resort hotel in an Italian skiing town feels like. You might envision dark wood tones, warm cozy fireplaces, regional folk prints on the beds and windows…….all which plays into the ‘picture in your mind for a charming winter resort’ in the snowy cold of wintertime. It plays out much differently during the summer, when the weather is warmer, all that winter charm comes off a the hotel rooms being ‘dated’.

    We have had very positive reviews of this tour. I’ve attached a link to Bellevue Hotel as well:

    http://www.bellevuecortina.com/en/hotel/camere-a-suite-incantevoli.html

    Hope this helps,
    Emily

  • Actually this was one of my FAVORITE hotels - alpine style - just how I pictured an alpine hotel in an alpine village should be. My balcony view was wonderful. Plus the location was 1 minute from town - perfect for walking into town. In addition, the town was surrounded on all sides by mountains - what a great view.
  • Hello,

    From Our Tour Management Team:

    We will Cortina hotel for the remainder of 2013 and 2014. Please note that Cortina is a world known winter resort town. Our hotel is a 4 start hotel, and is centrally located in the town, which is why we selected it.

    To help understand...please try to picture in your mind what a 4 star winter resort hotel in an Italian skiing town feels like. You might envision dark wood tones, warm cozy fireplaces, regional folk prints on the beds and windows…….all which plays into the ‘picture in your mind for a charming winter resort’ in the snowy cold of wintertime. It plays out much differently during the summer, when the weather is warmer, all that winter charm comes off a the hotel rooms being ‘dated’.

    We have had very positive reviews of this tour. I’ve attached a link to Bellevue Hotel as well:

    http://www.bellevuecortina.com/en/hotel/camere-a-suite-incantevoli.html

    Hope this helps,
    Emily

    Emily,

    It does indeed help as do the comments posted immediatly afterwards. Thank you very much for your prompt and excellent response. My wife and I look forward to starting our tour next week.
  • I'll add our support for the Cortina Hotel and agree with Mary. The hotel was very acceptable despite the heat wave we experienced almost the entire tour.

    Cortina itself was very pleasant and the recommended Italian restaurant on the esplanade was great.
  • I too liked the Bellvue Hotel in Cortina. It was a true Alpine experience with the pine wall coverings and cozy country feel. They can never host another Olympics as there is no way housing and hotels can be built to accommodate large crowds in that area. Was it the Ritz? No, but that is not what I expected. I also warned my husband about Italian breakfasts, as that is his favorite meal and surprisingly it wasn't bad at all. The plus, the eggs were dry!!! It was clean, the staff were very pleasant and I loved the experience.
  • Regarding the hotel in Cortina, my husband and I thought it was very nice. We had two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a large living room, small kitchenette and two huge balconys. Obviously too big for a couple, but we are told it is mostly booked by families in the winter when they ski. The breakfast was just wonderful. And upon our arrival, we were offered prosecco, or a glass of wine or soft drink in a very nice bar area.
  • Just reading reviews from folks recently returned from this tour. They mention that the Hotel Alaska was a disappointment. Hotel Alaska??? What happened to Hotel Bellvue?? Last words from Tauck was that the Bellvue would be used through 2014. Have they now made changes to another questionable hotel?
  • Hello thosbryan,

    Those tours that mentioned that mention Hotel Alaska was for two departure dates in June 2013 because the hotel was closed. We are still using the Bellevue through out 2014.

    Hope this helps,
    Emily
  • Thank you for your prompt reply. Glad to see that the hotel we will be staying at will be the Bellvue. Looking forward to determining for myself if the negative reviews outdo the positive for this hotel, or vice versa.
  • We were on the August 8th trip of the Alps and Dolomites and in response to the hotel Bellevue I offer this-
    It was very clean and the staff was wonderful. The hotel is a few minutes walk to the town with lots of shops and restaurants. Our room was up and down stairs with two bedrooms, two baths a small kitchen, fireplace, etc.
    I agree with others that it was a little dark, but again clean and very comfortable. This was our second tauck tour and we would stay at this hotel again. The view of the dolomites from our hotel room balcony was simply beautiful at 7 a.m. with the sun coming up. Great for picture taking!!! No worries about this hotel, ENJOY!!!!!
  • edited October 2013
    Just returned from the September 18th tour. I agree with everythig that nome587 said about the hotel. Some new furniture and wall decor would do wonders for the room appearance. Might be OK for the young skiers but not for senior travelers. Hospitality welcome consisted of potato chips and green olives. Oh yes, plus some wine. Could have done better here. I think that Tauck should either offer improvement suggestion to management or move on to a better location.
  • This won't be of much interest to 2013 travelers since there are no more departures this year, but it might be for those contemplating a 2014 departure. We are scheduled for the 12 June 2014 departure so when I read this thread I did some research on Trip Advisor and other sites.

    If you do the same, I think you'll find the Bellevue Hotel comparable to other 4 star hotels in Cortina d'Ampezzo (our Small Group departure is scheduled to stay in the very similar Hotel Europa). Cortina lodging is used year-round (in the summer by tours like Tauck, Ford Cortina enthusiasts, bikers, you name it), but its big claim to fame is that it is a ski area so heavily used in the winter months with skiers as the hotels' target audience.

    After reading quite a few reviews including negative ones, it appears there aren't many, if any, better options and I think it will be just fine for the one night we are scheduled to stay there. Not every location has lodging equivalent to a US five star hotel.
  • Tauck listens- They have changed the hotel in Cortina d'Ampezzo for night 7. 2014 tours will stay in the Hotel Ancora, Hotel de la Poste, or Grand Hotel Savoia, depending on tour date
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