Eremito By Design Hotels

Where do we put our phones aside these days? Well, at this amazing place filled with love and beauty. In all its purity. Surrounded by lovely people, nature, silence , books, stunning food and deep conversations. The staff is incredibly helpful. They all make you feel at home. It is a luxurious treat without losing sight of the essence. Eremito is an unique place in this world outside the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Hotel of the soul lives up to its name. I am very grateful for this experience!!

Let me start by saying that I was hoping for Eremito to be as perfect as it sounds and looks on the pictures, I was so excited about my first solo trip. I booked here because I read it's good for solo travellers, I saw they produce their own food or use only food from the region and I loved the nature aspect and the SPA looked so nice! Unfortunately my experience was quite different and I felt as though it's all just a marketing scam. In the following points I will call it a hotel just to make things easier even though they don't describe themselves as a "hotel". - You have to consider that you are paying EUR 270 pp/ per night - this is by no means cheap and yes the food is included but I have stayed in beautiful 3/4 star hotels in Italy paying EUR 150 - EUR 200 a night with breakfast and you can eat well anywhere for EUR 15/20 in Italy. This price is not justified in any way, if they talk about solitude I have stayed in beautiful mountain huts with nothing around for way less. There is no TV, no WiFi, not much electricity, no drinks besides water from the well (you can't even make yourself a tea), basic amenities (a little soap to wash your hands that has been used by everyone since pre-COVID probably) which is completely fine and I also didn't come here for TV or amenities but to be alone but it's just to say that the hotel doesn't have very many extra costs yet makes you pay a premium price for basically close to nothing. Funny thing though, they pretty much have no amenities but have a corner where you can buy their goodies (e.g. the Eremito Cookbook, Eremito Ceramics etc). - Something that I realised right away is that the hotel is full of young girls some of whom "volunteer" at the hotel. There is also a sign that says to approach them if you are interested in volunteering. These girls serve food at lunch and dinner, clean the rooms, teach yoga, work in reception etc and since they are volunteers get free accommodation and food. This part felt a little bit like a sect also because in the evening when Marcello the owner goes downstairs to sleep they all follow him and go away together. The vibe was just very strange. - The rooms are very basic (which was also totally ok for me but the price tag of them made me a bit mad when I entered my small room). There is a very uncomfortable bed with IKEA pillows, a desk made of stone and a bathroom that is divided by the room with a curtain. This makes the entire room smell a bit of bathroom. The bathroom itself was also quite dirty, the shower on the bottom was yellowish and the toilet had some dirty stains on it from the guests before me I'm guessing. Honestly, a hotel room like this in a touristy Italian city like Siena or San Gimignano would cost you EUR 50. - The food, which they claim is all made by them was also quite disappointing for me. At Eremito they like to sell you a story and a dream, they tell you that their vegetable garden gives them produce and the rest comes from the region. If