Estalagem Da Ponta Do Sol

This hotel setting is incredible however be prepared to walk for ages and take up to three lifts to get to your room! Reception is after the lift from the car park entrance and is manned by good friendly professional staff. Breakfast is up one floor from there and was ok without being exceptional. The second lift takes you further up the cliff(with lovely gardens) , across a walkway and onto the third lift to the room. The room was a good size, functional,as was the bathroom. Both could do with a little tlc. Two single beds, pushed together, made the double. They were firm but relatively comfortable. Porto do Sol is very nice with a great array of good restaurants. We ate twice at the Caprice ,which was excellent. Parking is in a small narrow car park and is not nearly enough for all the guest rooms. Roadside parking is also available but on a road frequented by large truck traffic, through the day. Finally the views across the ravine and down to the sea are what makes this hotel stand out as do the sunsets which were amazing.

This was our fourth visit to Estalagem, and it felt like we returned to familiar surroundings. Since our last visit there has been a new steam room and outdoor jacuzzi installed which are welcome additions. The breakfasts are of good quality (other than the cooked items which don't appear to be cooked to order), and drinks in the bar are very reasonably priced and generous measures. Evening meals were of good quality, but more expensive than most other restaurants that we ate at. The unreliable lift has been replaced and was in working order all week. The two log burning fires are great to sit by on chillier evenings (in January). The hotel was clearly stylish and well designed when open, but it is now showing signs of wear-and-tear and really ought to have an upgrade. Examples of some observations: ceiling damage in the restaurant patched up with a piece of paper; missing slate upstand in our bathroom; WC seat not fitted on straight in our bathroom; shower door ill fitting leading to daily leaks; damaged mirror panelling under sink in our room; stained furniture in the bar; all areas in need of painting and decorating; some disrepair to outside pool; damaged table tops in restaurant. On one day after our room had been cleaned we were left with 2 extremely dirty wine glasses (they were unused before the room was cleaned) - I suspect that cups/glasses are rinsed in the bathroom basin and wiped with a dirty towel. In a hotel such as this it would be appreciated if shampoo/conditioner/body lotion are provided in addition to the shower gel. In summary, we felt that there was little checking/auditing of standards. However, our biggest disappointment was the introduction of 'Purple Fridays'. We received an invitation to a 'vibrant, electrifying event for locals, guests and the digital nomad community' which are held each Friday evening. During the day much preparation was done to set up an outside bar, and we were informed that limited drinks would be available in the main bar. Those attending the event would need to purchase a plastic 'glass'. During the afternoon non-residents began arriving that were very different to the hotel's normal clientele. I was told that several hundred non-residents attended and think it highly unlikely that many, if any, residents took part. Being of a certain age, I could not describe the type of music the boom boom boom was that we heard from our room, but the day after I was informed that it was VERY 'techno, techno TECHNO' - completely inappropriate for the residents, and clearly aimed at non-residents as a money-earning event. Cordons were set up to direct guests away from bedrooms, but we were still aware of people exiting late at night. Late into the night we heard trolleys passing our room as staff were clearing up after the party. In the morning there was the usual detritus evident after a party - lots of cigarette ends etc despite staff busily trying to clear up. It was such a shame - a very in

Loved everything about this hotel. Simple, clean rooms, large comfortable bed. The best thing is the location with stunning views of the ocean everywhere you look. Most rooms also have sea views. Best thing is the sound of the ocean to fall asleep to. Breakfast & dinner delicious. Very easy to walk down to the village below with a few decent restaurants and a rocky beach where swimming in the sea is possible with a breakwater to make it safe. Hiking was the highlight of this trip & the hotel provides transport to the start of some fabulous walks & there is a great Levada walk you can do from the back of the hotel.