We selected The Hotel Caesius Thermae spa hotel having read many of the positive reviews on trip advisor and were not disapponted on arrival. The hotel, the accomodation, the facilities and the staff were all excellent but the food and service in the restaurant was superb. The flavours and the choices were great certainly not the usual buffet affair you get at many hotels. The walk along the lake to Bardolino was really enjoyable particularly in the evenings, some lovely sunsets. We had the good fortune to be there for the Bardolino wine festival which despite the wet weather was an unusual experience! We went on several excursions, the lake tour was well worth the money. We also visited Venice and Verona and the wine tour which was we thoroughly enjoyed. It was a modern plant with young enthusiastic people showing us around. The weather was not particuarly kind so the indoor pool and spa were perfect for the odd wet afternoon.

Stayed here for a week at the beginning of September 2007. The previous week had been a bit rainy but we had perfect weather, warm enough to swim in the outdoor pool and sunbathe in swimwear!

We had trouble deciding which room type to go for - so many choices. We chose to pay the extra supplements for a main building pool view. We think we got the room they advertise on the hotel website (must be the best room!), we could see the lake as well (but I think we were very very lucky, because most of the lake is obscured by tall trees. ). It was amazing! Our room was above the bar, which didn't bother us because we would be either in it, or sat on our private balcony listening to the live music below drinking our cheap beer from the supermarket!

The other possibilities for rooms are:

Main building (no pool view) - they do not overlook a busy main road, but may be over the carpark.

Annex - the annex was a bit strange. Part of it looked as though it was maybe used for business conference guests. It was tucked away around the back of the hotel and I would have been very disappointed if I had stayed there. I am not sure what the rest of the annex is like.

The food was one of the highlights of the holiday. The four course waiter served dinner every night was fantastic (starter, pasta, main, dessert). There were a few different pasta dishes to choose every day and I don't think they were repeated the whole week we were there - I didn't know so many different pasta dishes existed!

We went to the lake view restaurant once (had to book in advance, set menu). We booked for 7.30pm (I think) which was the first sitting, and my boyfriend reluctantly agreed to get there 5 minutes early so we could get a good table. It was lucky we did, because I think only a couple of tables have full view of the lake (because of the trees). We were first in the restaurant and got the best table!!! However, it did go dark part way through our meal, so couldn't see the lake anyway!

Location of hotel good, nice walk to Bardolino or Lazise. Went on lake tour with Thomsons, which was well worth it and paid extra to go on motor boat around Sirmione!

Indoor pool etc was very good, and free to use sauna, steamroom, jacuzzi etc.

A really lovely hotel, excellent pools with a great spa pool with lots of jets which worked wonders on my tight shoulders!!! We had a junior suite which gave us lots of extra room - saying that seeing the standard rooms they were lovely as well. The restaurant was a great standard with a good choice of wines, you have the option to eat in one of two restaurants - we enjoyed both.

We stayed in the Caesius in the first week in September.
Overall the hotel was fine. The room we had was nice modern and spacious on the same level as the reception with a "Pool View". The pool could not really be seen so unless the cheaper rooms are small it's not really worth paying the significant additional premium for a pool view.
We arrived on the Saturday night to loud music below our balcony (we were more or less above the bar). Fortunately the music finished at 22:40 and subsequent entertainment was more low key.
In general the food in the hotel was good, particularly the pasta dishes although the sweets showed a lack of variety.
As you may have read tables are designated for the duration of your stay. We were given a table "through the back" along with all the children and had to ask to be moved in to the main restaurant area.

Yes there are cakes in the afternoon. The cakes are OK and we either had a cup of tea in the lounge or took the cakes up to the room and made tea.

The walk from the hotel to Bardolino is easy and relatively quick and there is a longer walk to Lazise. There is access to some routes on the lake ferries from Cisano rather than having to walk in to Bardolino.

We had been to Bardolino a few years ago staying at the Gritti and still believe this is the best resort.
We made our own way to Riva, Sirmione and Limone and did tours to Venice and "Bolzano and Renon". We had already been to Venice and the latter was a pleasant surprise. Renon was "Alpine" with some breath taking scenery. If you do decide to do this trip avoid the "scenic railway trip". This trip was a disgrace.
People were packed in like sardines and there was zero chance of seeing much more than someone else's armpit!