Pousada Amendoeira

The location was the only good part. Don't spend your money here. Ten friends booked five rooms, and every room had an issue during our stay. Nothing got resolved. My room's lock never worked, and the doorknob came off every time I opened the door. One friend got stuck inside until someone came to let her out. We told the owner within about five minutes of arriving, I think. He said he'd add a little latch later, acted like he'd fixed it, and left. The door still wouldn't close, so two women slept with it open for all seven days, with our things inside. His response was, "Don't worry, nothing's wrong here." In another room the light never worked. He kept putting off fixing it, and it still didn't work. Then there was the bed that broke in half three times, starting when a friend got up for the bathroom at 3 AM. The owner kept trying to fix it, but it broke again. I mean boards snapped in half. For two nights, people had to sleep on their mattresses on the floor. One room was even worse. The damp smell was unbearable, and after going in once I felt really sick. The people staying there couldn't sleep because they felt they were suffocating. That is a real health hazard. There were also at least eight cockroaches, on the floor, in a suitcase, and among the clothes. The owner blamed a nearby "lake." Whenever anyone complained, staff brushed it off with promises to handle it, but no solution or compensation ever came. Breakfast was meager. The only halfway decent item was an egg sandwich made by the only employee who was attentive and caring. The others were disrespectful and rude to guests. We feel like idiots for putting up with it. We understood the trip and the relatively low price might mean service wouldn't be great, but this was too much. The only thing we asked at the end was an extra hour and two rooms on our last day. After everything we'd tolerated without a word, you'd think the owner would just agree. Instead, they first tried to charge us 200 reais per room for one hour. Then he came over playing the victim and let us stay. We left very upset by the staff's opportunism, their attempts to take advantage of us, and the poor treatment. I doubt they'd have treated us this way if we'd been a family. We were extremely respectful throughout the stay, something their employees could stand to learn.

It was a really bad stay. The place was dirty, and the rooms and towels smelled. On the first day, the shower and toilet didn't work. We were moved to another room, but its lights and air conditioning were broken. The property isn't maintained, and breakfast is very basic. Not worth it, there are nicer places for the same price or maybe even less.

The photos look old or edited, so don't trust them. Our room was hard to breathe in because of the musty smell, and the bathroom tiles were old and moldy. Cockroaches showed up every night. When we told the staff, all they offered was to spray Raid, but more kept appearing. Breakfast was very limited. The coffee tasted like dirty water, and the cookies seemed like a bag of Bagley brand crackers. They did always have the house specialty, a ham and cheese toastie, but it was the same every day. I wouldn't rent here. Pitching a tent on the beach and sleeping there would have felt more dignified, and cost us nothing.

The location is hard to beat, close to everything but still peaceful, so it was easy to relax and enjoy the area. We had a lovely stay at Pousada Amendoeira from start to finish. The staff deserve a special mention. They were kind, attentive, and always ready to help, and made us feel welcome. Breakfast was another highlight, fresh, varied, delicious, and very complete, with everything presented beautifully. We'd happily return and recommend the place. Thanks for such a lovely stay!