OK its budget. It does seem to have gone a bit down hill since the winter olympics, judging by reviews.

Crystal were quite pathetic/non existant

Cant really fault the hotel staff, they did their best with raw chicken. If its a cheap lads ski holday to sestriere youre after and you dont mind a walk into town then this place is fine; basic, not the cleanest but otherwise tolerable and somewhere to sleep. Bit of a stroll to the lift though.

Top tip - fill up on the buffet starter, the main course aint worth looking at!

For those with families, look elsewhere for your own sake please

We have just returned from our stay here and I personally wouldn't stay here again or recommend it to anyone I know.

We booked through Crystal, and it was advertised as being family friendly, which is was most certainly not. Though some of the problems could have been aleviated if we ever saw a rep. Therefore we would also recommend that people do not book through Crystal as the rep didn't show, we only saw he on the airport pickups and dropoffs and then they were different people!

The rooms were spacious but basic in need so some modernisation. The travel cot we were provided was filthy and upon complaint they brought us another, which was just as bad saying thats all we have.

The hotels food was ok, but they would not provide me with a small childs meal, and not anything before 7.30pm in the evening which is too late for a baby under 12 months. Therefore my child hardly ate all week, as she was unable/refused to eat the food that I could offer her.

There was also an incident mid week where some people in our party were presented with chicken which was still raw.

The hotels's situation is not ideal as it is a 10 minute walk at least to the lifts, and the bus service is a little unpredictable.

If booking to go to sestriere I would advise travellers to look for a hotel up the hill into the resort nearer to all the main amenities.

We booked through Crystal.

This hotel is not very modern. Although the rooms have a bathroom, shower, bidet and a kitchenette (not operable in the winter), it is all in need of updating. However the rooms were clean, warm, functional and there was a good view from the balcony (if you were lucky enough to have one)

OK, the food.....

We stayed on a half-board basis. Breakfast was fine- Croissants, cereal, bread, cheese and fruit etc. Plenty of coffee and fruit juices available.

The evening meals were awful except for the salad buffet and the desserts.

The starters and main courses were inedible far too often, and it was the whole dining room, not just our table, sending plates back to the kitchen.

If you travel as a couple, you will have to join other people on the same table. We would have expected this in a chalet, but have never experienced this in a hotel 'restaurant' Actually, the people on our table were very nice but this was luck, we could have ended up with anyone. Something to bear in mind if you like your privacy I guess.

The staff were actually very nice and polite, although communication was a struggle at times.

Location....

The hotel is a good 10-15 minute's walk uphill to the main skiing area. There is a closer lift but this only serves a red run, which is not ideal for beginners. The bus service (5 euros for the week) is hit and miss at best. We only managed to catch the bus on 3 occasions and only ever up the hill. They are not frequent and sometimes fly past full, and even empty???

Overall, everyone we spoke to would have preferred to be situated closer to the slopes and was very disappointed with the evening meals.

If you stay here, we would advise storing your skis/ boots in a locker at the foot of the slopes, to avoid carrying them up a tough trek each day. Also, be prepared to eat-out a few times.

we booked this easter ski break at the last moment for our two families..chosen for a number of factors including;good price, short flight , short transfer and a desire to visit where the 2006 winter olympics had been held.
suffice it to say it was an overwhelming success for everybody(not only in our family group with a range of ages from 6 to teenagers to twenty year olds to middle age parents) but also seemingly for all of our travel companions at the cavaliere who were all a thoroughly decent lot,from expert skiers to novice families.
the hotel was indeed very comfortable,the entertainment was non existant (it was the last week in the season) but quite honestly ,we didn't really need it after dinner, and the teenagers who did found great fun at the dubiously named "irish igloo" bar.. . the resort was so safe and quiet that they were able to go there alone while we got earlier nights.
great idea of the previous reviewer to rent the lockers at the ski hire shop...well worth the expense, but if you don't want to pay out, the hotel's free ski bus did pass by at least every 15 minutes.
the skiing is magnificent! the "vialattea...or milky way "provides unlimited skiing for all abilities and means that if one lift closes because of wind or technical faults you are not grounded like you would be in cervinia or any other unlinked resorts.
the ski school in sestriere is the best in italy and is fully deserving of it's title.
food in the hotel was as good as any 4*... but we were told by the restaurant manager that he and his team had been drafted in from sardinia especially for the olympics...so we all were lavished with first class food and service during our stay.
hotel staff were indeed wonderful...faultless.
best (and most economical surprisingly enough) place to eat lunch were the two bars just beside the ski school as you leave the slopes, the pizza in the crepe bar was magnificent and only cost a couple of euros as did the french fries... cokes were more expensive, but the coffees and lattes incredibly cheap.
don't go to the supermarket at the foot of the hill!....the supermarket at the top in the piazza is half the price!
we would all definitely return , even if sestriere is not the prettiest of resorts unless it's covered in snow!