Porta Do Vento

I spent a week at Porta de Vento and ended up not wanting to leave. St Maria is beautiful. The hotel is quiet and clean, seven minutes from the beach, and the dinners were fabulous. Kamila was very helpful. The area around the hotel seemed a bit rough at first, but it grew on me. You can rent a scooter or squad just around the corner, and the city centre is 300m away. There are about five scuba diving centres to choose from. I suggest not paying for two or more days upfront. I always paid on the day of the dive, after we'd agreed on the location. Some friends I met there weren't as lucky: having paid for their dives, they ended up going to the same dive spot six times. The centre blamed weather conditions and took them wherever suited them.

After the first night, the host told us our room price had doubled. We explained we'd already paid in full through the third-party app. Camilla then said she didn't know how to process a refund and told us to pay cash or leave. My family and I didn't feel comfortable uprooting in the middle of our holiday, so we paid. We're still waiting for the refund, and I doubt she'll "work it out."

A horrible first stay for us. It cost €50 a night, and we were restricted about coming and going at night. Then she raised the price. The breakfast wasn't fresh, and beyond being within walking distance of the beach, I can't recommend the place. It had very bad vibes, and I have never experienced such disrespect or such a language barrier. None of the girls working there speak English, which is essential in a tourist area to prevent misunderstandings like the ones we had. The customer service and the place were horrid. Never again. It doesn't deserve even one star!

The location is close to Santa Maria and within walking distance of all the main spots, and the service was friendly. But this was a very bad hotel, and if I could do it again, I'd stay somewhere else. There was no air conditioning, though they did give me a fan. WiFi only worked at reception, not in the rooms. Every time you went out, you had to leave your key at the entrance. That felt scary with my passport in the room, since anyone could access it. There was insect spray in the room when we arrived, and I saw a lizard in there twice. Breakfast wasn't up to par at all, and the bedding was hard.