5 stars for the hotel, 5 star for the staff, 3 stars for the restaurant. If you appreciate "barefoot luxury", this is your place - or "sandal luxury", more to the point. This convent was respectfully renovated in the late 90s (owned at the time by the village, with management by a well known family in the culture/fashion/entertainment business and local ties) and its initial spirit has been maintained by the current owners (a local family owning 4 hotels in the region).
I spent a whole morning reading on one of the loungers around the cloister, with the sound of trickling water, the orange trees, the jasmine, the whitewashed walls, twittering birds. Basic furniture, just mattresses and throws, simple industrial lamps.
Then I moved on to the pool corner and dozed off after a tray of lunch. Attentive staff will bring you drinks and snacks anywhere in the building with a big smile (call reception).
The restaurant is not tops, but if you stick to basics you'll be well served. The free range eggs were great, the steak was not.
When you order think: village products, no perishables unless cheap to replace or they'll be frozen; no complex preparation required or they will be pre-prepared. The regional cheese and ham on offer are world-class, although locals will tell you there are even better options (but won't tell you where find them!).
The dreadful, terrible, boring decor in the bar/restaurant area gives you an indication of the damage that current management could inflict on the rest of the building if they decided to "update" the rooms. Let's hope they don't.
The short wine selection is cleverly chosen; some are listed at over three times the retail price, but if you taste them you'll think they are worth it; they are; so note the names, go to a wine shop and bring a box back home.
