24/05/2025: Beautiful lake view location. Elegant and refined atmosphere. One of our favorite restaurants. Excellent dinner. Excellent raw seafood. Delicious Sardinian fregola and Catalan prawns. Excellent desserts. Important wine list. Service up to par
22/05/2025: We stayed at Villa Baroni for three nights in early May for our wedding, and overall it was a pleasant experience. The location by Lake Varese is sublime — with beautiful views and a well-kept, presentable hotel both inside and out.
We had both breakfast and dinner during our stay. The food was of very good quality with well-prepared dishes, though dinner prices felt slightly high considering the setting. Still, it was convenient and enjoyable, especially when with family or for a special event.
We were given three rooms for our families. As bride and groom, we stayed in the largest room (EUR 200/night), which was spacious, vintage in style, and had two large windows. We appreciated the in-room tea and coffee maker. The smaller rooms with direct lake views were charming and suitable for a weekend getaway.
Unfortunately, certain behaviours affected our stay. A lady (possibly the owner?) let her dog roam freely throughout the hotel and restaurant — at one point even jumping on a dining table. Her friends also brought dogs to dinner, which barked frequently. This was inappropriate and unhygienic for guests, especially since booking platforms (Booking.com, Trivago, BringFido) state that pets aren’t allowed. The inconsistency in policy was disappointing.
Rooms are on the first floor, accessible via a staircase next to reception. There’s a large fridge at the bottom for water bottles, but no door separates the floors. As a result, we could clearly hear guests leaving, bottles being handled, and bins being used between 11 p.m. and midnight. Most disruptive was the dog barking loudly for 15+ minutes around midnight, waking my toddler. Instead of moving the dog to a quiet room, the lady shouted at it — making things worse. I love dogs, but there are limits in shared spaces.
The Wi-Fi was another issue — weak and unreliable in the rooms, only stable on the ground floor. A more consistent connection would be expected at this level.
Our room, while not bad, could use an update. The red-brown carpet is dated and would be better replaced with wood flooring. There was visible mould between the wardrobe and window wall — clearly cleaned periodically, but it needs deeper treatment, which is understandable in lake settings.
Some furnishings felt mismatched or flimsy: a beige leather sofa clashed with the vintage decor, a round table with a heavy oriental lamp was unstable, the desk chair was wobbly, the headboard outdated, and the shower door didn’t close properly. The wall-mounted hairdryer was very noisy, and the small TV high on the wall looked out of scale. Several extension cords and loose sockets gave a cluttered and unsafe impression.
On a positive note, Alina at reception was incredibly kind and welcoming, and the cleaning lady was thoughtful and made sure our room was ready for the bridal party.
In summary, Villa Baroni has great potential, thanks to its stunning location and kind staff. However, pet management, noise control, Wi-Fi, and room maintenance need improvement to match the villa’s charm.
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