Jo Teal
This hotel is really beautiful and spotlessly clean, the cleaners do an excellent job. We booked a superior room and the bed was huge, the view from the balcony over the park area and sea was lovely. The coffee machine and robes were a nice extra touch. I liked the go green incentive - if you don't have your room cleaned daily they give you a 5 euro voucher to use for each day. They still come in and make bed etc it just isn't a full deep clean.
The rooftop bar offers amazing views and the DJ and saxophonist one night were so good - what let it down was that there was not enough staff up there and a really long wait for drinks, they make excellent cocktails but having one person serving was not enough.
The breakfast is so busy we went at different times throughout the week and it was pretty hectic at most times, I think this is because they are the site for people staying at the sister accomodation to have breakfast too, the staff do an excellent job keeping everything stocked and clean.
The pool area is too small which is shame because it's also beautifully well kept. There is no issue with people 'reserving' beds there just is not enough for the size of the hotel.
It's worth noting the hotel is not adults only as I've seen on so many booking sites when I researching, there were a fair few children of various ages around. Not a lot of groups staying which is a risk in this area, lots of couples which gave the hotel a relaxed vibe.
Overall a lovely hotel, very clean, polite staff and excellent location, close to beach.
Jan Hartmann
I spent one week at this hotel and, overall, the experience was average. The hotel itself was clean, and the staff was generally polite and professional. However, several aspects left me disappointed, especially considering the price.
The main issue was the room category. I specifically booked and paid extra for a sea-view room, but the reality was very different from what was advertised. From the balcony, the view was mostly of a road and a nearby building, while the sea was only visible far away from a side angle. On my first day, I even asked at reception whether I had been assigned the correct room because it did not match my expectations of a sea-view room, but this did not work.
The breakfast was decent but not exceptional. For a hotel in this price range, I expected a wider selection and more local Portuguese specialties. Another disappointment was that nobody informed me that a breakfast box could be arranged for guests leaving early. As I had an early flight on my departure day, I missed breakfast despite having already paid for it.
I chose this hotel because the photos and presentation made it appear authentic and worth paying a premium for. Unfortunately, after a week-long stay, I do not feel that the overall experience justified the price. Not a terrible hotel, but there is definitely room for improvement, especially regarding transparency and value for money.
Sue Norton
Nice adult only hotel, although can be prone to groups of "grown up children" on stag parties who can get noisy . Pool area lovely and clean, plenty of sunbeds, rooms well equipped and cleaned daily. Good breakfast, and lots of pool bar snack choices. Well positioned for the Strip if that's your thing, bus no. 2 goes to Old Town if you're looking for something a little quieter.
Stephen Huison
The hotel is spotlessly clean, very airy and spacious with excellent facilities. Our room with a sea view balcony was exceptional, the huge bed was very comfortable. The breakfast was exceptional, including the cooked items, with plenty of choice. The steak evening meal offer is a must, steak dinner for two which was absolutely delicious, also includes a bottle of wine for 45 Euro is a great deal.
All was well until the Thursday when a group of 16 hen party 'invaded' the pool area setting up camp behind our sun beds, followed by a separate group of adult males on Friday who were very loud, intoxicated and foul mouthed, compounded by yet another group of loud, intoxicated and foul mouthed adult males who set up camp by the pool. Some of these individuals were staying in the nearby sister holiday residence which allows them access to Aqua Pedra dos Bicos Hotel, but only to use the restaurant and pool bar, but not the pool or sun beds (A HUGE MISTAKE ON THE PART OF THE HOTEL MANAGEMENT). The nearby holiday residence has its own pool and restaurant. The prospect of facing the same situation during the second weekend of our planned stay forced up to check-out of this hotel and move elsewhere. 'An ideal hotel in Albufeira for couples and friends seeking comfort and tranquillity' and 'a hotel offering a serene and comfortable stay, ideal for those seeking peace by the sea' (Both quotes from the hotel website) IT IS NOT (certainly at the weekends).
Such a shame for an otherwise excellent hotel, clean and well furnished in a great location for Albufeira, except at weekends in high season.
Steve Taylor
The hotel was great, clean tidy and very unique inside. We had a premium room with great views of the pool and sea, the balcony was a little small but worked ok. Bed and towels were great, massive comfy bed. Breakfast menu was superb and no massive queue for coffee and tea etc. we had the half board option and the food was good and varied, but we noticed it repeated every 7 days, the waiting on staff were super attentive (maybe too much so) but very friendly and polite. The pool area is quite small and most of the sun loungers around the pool are bagged early on, but we never struggle for a sun bed and put them on the grass area, so no complaints. The pool bar and food was again excellent and cocktails around 9.5 euro. The internal atrium was impressive and the singers on twice a week were really top class, the lady had an exceptional voice. The only slight negative was near the weekend when some quite large groups of lads showed up and were a little noisier than the rest of the week. Plenty of bars, supermarkets 2 mins away and the strip 5 minutes walk, and old town 4 euro in a uber (watch taxis for ripping you off) The true test is would we stay again ??? Yes we would definitely
