The first thing to mention is that the Ariston, Neptune and Importanne Resort are all the same Complex sharing the same facilities eg swimming pools, restaurants, gymn etc with one Reception/Check-in area. I still don't know what the difference is when you book one or the other.My advice is to get the best deal under any of the three names as you will use the same facilities anyway !
There are 3 x swimming pools ie two saltwater pools by the rocks at the sea edge ( one is for toddlers ) and a small infinity freshwater pool which we preferred as it was quieter.You can get free pool towels, loungers and umbrellas every day at all the pools.
The hotel is in a great spot on the Lapad peninsula with a lovely walk at the rear of the complex along the coastline into Lapad with nice cafes, restaurants etc en route.The number 6 bus can be caught outside the front of the hotel to take you into Dubrovnik Old Town - it takes about 15 mins and although the buses get crowded you are getting on at the terminus and so are always sure to get a seat. It is better to buy your tickets from the hotel reception as they are cheaper than buying from the driver.
There are so many excellent restaurants in the area and the Old Town that I think you would be seriously missing out if you booked full or half board.I would strongly recommend booking bed & breakfast only.The breakfasts are fine i.e. the usual array of cold meats, fruit, plus eggs, bacon, sausages etc but my only gripe is that it is the same every day and so can get a little boring after a while.The rooms are nice and unless you are on a strict budget I would strongly recommend paying the extra for a balcony with seaview as the views are excellent.The hotel staff are fantastic and nothing is too much trouble.They all speak excellent English. We found that simply learning the Croatian for thank-you ie ....Hvala .... goes a long way ! There is free Internet access via two computers near the Reception area.
As far as restaurants are concerned you must go to Lady Pi Pi just off the Stradun in the Old Town - but get there by 6.30pm for dinner or you will not get in ! ( they don't accept bookings ) - people queue for a table to become available. Apart from the novelty of the name and location the food is excellent and great value for money.
There are several nice boat trips you can go on from the harbour but some of the boats are quite small and take some time so consequently my favourite was the Dynamite Powerboat ride to Lopud which takes only 20 minutes - it was fantastic !
Also worth doing is a day trip to Korcula - we hired a car and then caught the ferry - much better than the organised tours I felt.
Overall I would say this is probably a 4-star hotel with the key factors being the great location and seaviews.Unless you actually want to stay within the walls of Old Dubrovnik you will struggle to find a better choice of hotel for the price in my opinion.
