Hotel "SAN Saena " in Vlore

Amazing view and nice pool, but the breakfast was infested with wasps and wasn’t fresh. We had breakfast somewhere else the second day. The road up to the hotel is very steep and badly paved, it was quite scary to drive. Make sure that you’re comfortable with driving on a road like that before you book it. A girl who seemed to be about 11 years old checked us into the hotel and was our main point of contact. She seemed to be the daughter of the owners, the owners didn’t seem to speak any English. She was very sweet and helpful but it made us concerned. The facility was okay and the air conditioning worked.

The road leading to the hotel is in terrible condition — full of potholes and loose gravel — and it honestly felt like we were risking damage to our car just getting there. The only truly positive thing about this place is the view of the sea, which is undeniably beautiful. And the pool was also fine.
On the first day, the young woman with a baby on her arms who welcomed us was kind and polite, and that gave us a good first impression. Unfortunately, that was the only genuinely pleasant part of our stay.
For the price we paid, things could have been better.

The breakfast was quite poor — very limited options and nothing particularly fresh or tasty. It felt like the bare minimum was offered, and overall it didn’t meet even basic expectations.
Also, it was surprising (and disappointing) that the coffee from the coffee machine wasn’t included in the breakfast — you had to pay extra for it, which felt unreasonable given the already limited breakfast options.

The hotel itself is quite old with a somewhat modern touch, which would have been fine, but there was a strange, unpleasant smell throughout — likely due to the age of the building. As soon as we turned off the air conditioner, the room became unbearably hot, making it nearly impossible to sleep. To make matters worse, even with the windows shut, there were still mosquitoes in the room, which made the nights really uncomfortable.

The dinner we had only one night at the hotel was extremely disappointing. The food was, quite honestly, very, very bad — it tasted like it had been prepared by someone with absolutely no experience or understanding of cooking. The flavors were off, the presentation was poor, and it felt like no care was put into it. What made it worse was the price — completely unreasonable given the quality. For what we paid, we expected at least something decent, but instead, it was one of the worst meals we’ve ever had while traveling. No one even cared to ask if the food was ok at the ''end of our meal'' (even tho we left the most of it on the plates). So even if you stay, eat out.
Also, make sure to wear a ton of mosquito repellent — you'll definitely need it.

As for the staff, we decided to check out one day earlier than planned and informed the staff the night before. We spoke to the young woman (one of the girls in the family), and she assured us that it was okay and we would be refunded for the unused night. However, the next morning, things took a disappointing turn.
We were made to wait for about half an hour, only to be told by another family member that they could only refund half the amount. The woman who had promised the full refund the night before conveniently didn’t show up, even though it was clear she had told us otherwise. When we explained what had been agreed upon, we were told that we had “misunderstood” — which felt like a way to backtrack on their word. It left a bitter impression, as it came across as dishonest and unprofessional.
Definitely never going back there again!!