Hilton Sorrento Palace – Italy - Part II – Amalfai Coast, April 21 – Executive Lounge Review.

Hilton Sorrento Palace, built in 1981, got a facelift in 2003, sits atop a hillside, in the Sant Agnello district of Sorrento, offering spectacular views of Mount Vesuvius, floating in the sapphire blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea.

We checked in roughly two hours ahead of the official check-in time, 3pm or 15:00. The vestibule is beautiful, vibrant, modern, clean and the check-in staff is very professional and warm. Upon arrival, we were greeted and were processed by the very same person, who personally walked us throughout the hotel, introducing us to each area and explaining how we can take advantage of their amenities. One of the great perks of being an Hilton Honors Gold is breakfast in Hilton hotels. We were offered a choice between their restaurant or the Executive Club breakfast on the seventh floor. An additional perk of the Hilton Honors Gold membership is a potential upgrade to a similar room on a higher floor, with possibly better views, always subject to availability. A fan of shoulder season, we were upgraded, and warmly welcomed to the Executive Floor, but how we got this, will be explained later.

Hilton Sorrento Palace is roughly a 10-15-minute walk from the center of Sorrento.

Along the way, you’ll stroll next to a charming valley and an orchard, you’ll be rewarded with the intoxicating scent of citrus all around you, not to mention the breathtaking views of post WWII southern Italy, sun-baked villas and apartment buildings with peeling stucco, covered in greenery balconies, elderly Italians, gazing down onto the busy street as Smart cars and mopeds are speeding by.

The Executive Club is on the seventh and tallest floor of the hotel, it is well appointed and is minimalist (but comfortably) in furnishing that is modern and clean cut, with a comfortable size terrace and an endless pool, that evidently has no life guard until the first week of May. Beware of Italian Pigeons and Seagulls, they will pick the food off your plate and leave a tip behind.

Guests can relax at this gorgeous escape, overlooking the citrus gardens and planted terraces of colorful homes carved into the hills of Sorrento. This hotel has its own herb and citrus garden. Do yourself a favor, go down and check it out. You’ll find some amazing beauty there. See if you can find the tree that grows oranges, lemons, and grapefruit, yes, all on one tree. This garden is a citrus canopy, thus, a reprieve from the hot and unforgiving sun of Southern Italy. Please don’t pick the trees.

The staff assigned to the Executive Lounge is curt and a bit abrasive. Some guests with whom we chatted, expressed their displeasure with the “rude” afternoon server who is “always moody, and often does not respond to simple questions, like where is the milk?”

Our experience wasn’t negative, and in fact, quite the opposite, pleasant to say the least. We ate breakfast at the lounge during our three days stay in Sorrento. Not an overkill, and certainly is not a typical American breakfast as we’ve gotten at the Embassy Suites. The Executive Lounge offered, delicious smoked Salmon, hard boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, bacon, link sausage, pancakes, and a variety of pastries and fresh fruit. Worth mentioning is their awesome fresh citrus fruit juicer; you toss an entire orange, unpeeled, and it squeezes the heck out of it, producing the most delicious orange juice. [Note to self: Find machine in the US and buy it.]

Snacks are available at the Executive Lounge all day and late into the evening. A variety of alcoholic beverages, water, beer, soda and alcohol, red, white wines and champagne. Guests are discouraged from taking beverages to their rooms, but you know how it goes.

Now onto the vital details, the accommodations and the numbers:

We are Hilton Honors Gold members by virtue of the Amex Hilton Co-Branded Credit card, aka: The Hilton Honors American Express Ascend Card, which came with a lovely sign-up bonus of 100,000 points, free weekend night after the anniversary of first year, and an annual fee of $95.00. We’ve been Hilton loyalists for well over a decade, in other words, we’ve accumulated and used points to stay at Hilton properties for years. This stay breaks down as follows:

60,000 HH Points for a garden view King room. X 3 nights = 180,000 points.

· We were upgraded to the King Executive Sea view, which goes for $398 a night, breakfast and of course Executive Lounge access. The redemption is a bit light at 2.2 Cents on a dollar, but the room and amenities are gorgeous and are well worth it.

· The Garden View King room goes for $291 a night.

The beauty of this hotel is not just in it's physical attributes, but it's location. It is a five start luxury on the Amalfi coast without the insanely expensive prices. You are in the heart of it all when staying at the Hilton Palace Sorrento. The hotel is conveniently located to the metro system, which we used to travel to Pompeii and Naples…but that’s in another installment.

* Executive floor upgrade is always subject to availability

*1 – Available only if the upgraded room is on the Executive Floor