I just got back from five nights here. I booked on relatively short notice, and this was one of the few properties in Costa Smerelda (and the only of the four Starwood locations) available. (See my note at the end regarding minimum stays.)

Costa Smerelda, and Porto Cervo in particular, is one of the most upscale places you will ever see. The Porto Cervo development is a promenade consisting of international-brand luxury boutiques, some local shops, and disappointingly few restaurants and bars. The hotel anchors this area and is integrated into the terraced environment.

The hotel is so-so in my opinion. The best part was the concierge service -- they were all very knowledgeable and helpful, steering us to places that exactly met our expectations. They seemed to get me into restaurants at the last minute that were packed. All of the service at the hotel in general was pretty good. The bar, which spills outside onto the terrace, is an ideal setting and features a good selection of drinks, including some Sardinian wines. I didn't eat at the restaurant besides for breakfast, which was adequate. (Platinum amenity was daily breakfast for two, which of course was a good deal given the price of breakfast.)

The room was basic. Mine had a terrace overlooking the pool outside the sleeping area, then a step up to a small seating area with desk in the back. The bathroom was small, with a tub with one of those horizontally-swinging glass half-partitions and standard Sheraton toiletries. The guy who escorted me to the room proudly claimed that it was a Platinum upgrade (which he said was rare during such high season), although my original booking included a "jacuzzi," which this room did not have.

The main challenge was the beach. It's a private venue for the hotel only, in an inlet about a 15-minute boat ride away. This aspect is good, although the shuttle runs only eight times per day, with one to 2.5 hours between runs. This was a repeated source of frustration for me, having to watch the clock. I don't know why they don't run the boat back and forth constantly. The beach has a lot of space by local standards, with nice chairs, a grassy area to sit, and a dock for swimming. On the downside, the beach has few services -- there is no food available (the hotel will cater a "lunch box" on request), and only water, cans of beer, and Coke/Diet available for purchase. There is an outhouse but no shower or any covered facilities (it seems that something is under construction). They told me that the area is protected, and there is no electricity, hence the limited amenities. Still, I thought that a simple bar would be a feasible addition.

The beach itself is one of the poorer ones in Costa Smerelda -- which is to say, still very nice, but lacking the white sand and really turquoise waters of others. The water line is rocky. (From the hotel beach, you can take a grueling 20-minute hike on a dirt/rock path over the top of the little peninsula to the other side, where there is a public beach with much nicer water and sand.)

My only other comment is that some of the amenities, like the beach shuttle, were a little thin. For example, they don't give you a beach bag (or even a shopping bag) in the room, which is a must for going to the pool or beach in my view. Plus only two (not very large) bath towels in the room for two people, which was not enough in a place where one is likely to return to the room and freshen up during the day. There is apparently no valet parking, so you have to bring your car to the parking lot behind the hotel and ring a bell to get in; the walk back and forth got a bit tedious.

You have to have the right expectations to come here. Costa Smerelda is a wonderful destination, and the Hotel Cervo is a solid, four-star-type hotel. Not luxurious at all, but with competent service. The area is not for everyone (if I came back to Costa Smerelda, I would definitely prefer Pitrizzia, which is an absolutely stunning area, or Cala di Volpe).

You mean per (minimum) stay. It's Cat. 7, so 35K points per night. There was a five-night minimum stay here, so, with stay-4-get-1-free, it would be 140K for a five-night stay. I think that there was a seven-night minimum stay at the other three SPG properties.