I stayed at Il Borgo - part of the Gole Alcantara resort with my fiancee for 5 days. We chose to stay here to save some money as it is peak season in Taormina during August and the hotel prices are very expensive. Staying at Il Borgo was great value for money - I think we paid less than £40 per night B&B.
The first thing to note if you decide to stay here is that a car is essential. It is right in the country side and Taormina is about a 20 minute drive away. However if you decide to hire a car you then have to deal with the stress of crazy Sicilian drivers and the narrow, windy roads with huge cliff drops! There aren't really any decent restaurants or shops nearby so if you don't eat in the hotel you will have to make a bit of a journey for some food.
The hotel was a complete pain to find - we had a sat nav which did not recognise the official address so we drove about the area until we found signposts - then we were told that we were in a different building over one kilometre away. Unfortunately the hotel do not tell you prior to arrival which part of the resort you are staying in so it's pot luck really whether you find the right one or not straight away. Luckily we arrived during the day so it wasn't too horrendous though...
Most of the guests staying at the hotel were Italian and there were a few Germans - so the staff didn't really speak English - however they were all friendly and we got by ok.
The food wasn't amazing - we had dinner the first night there as we were too tired to drive somewhere else - it was a barbeque night and was quite average really. The bread was rock hard and inedible! Breakfast was a 'continental' buffet - again wasn't great - was mostly bread with some meats and yoghurts, cereal etc. Get there early or it all goes!
The rooms were very spacious and air conditioned - the shower cubicle in the bathroom was very small but everything was clean and worked so no complaints really - again considering how cheap it is it's good value.
The public areas are very nice - pool area was often empty so had it all to ourselves and the restaurant was a lovely room.
Overall we had a great time - I probably wouldn't stay there again as I would prefer to be in Taormina so all the restaurants are nearby and there are no traumatic driving experiences to cope with! Villa Antonio in Taormina was the best restaurant we ate in all week - fantastic food, attentive staff and a beautiful setting with a 360 degree view from the roof terrace of the area.
