Bayview Albufeira

We stayed in apartment 503. The owner was friendly and willing to help, and we had privacy in the apartment. It’s handy for the centre, grocery shops, the beach, the bus stop, and the city tourist train. But the place is over-promoted, and there are a lot of issues to sort out. The mattress was the worst part. It dips into a V shape when you lie down and needs replacing right away. There was only one large duvet; two singles and some extra sheets would be better. There weren’t any coat hangers by the entrance, and the kitchen had no large pots. The faucet was very wobbly and needs repair. Ants were everywhere, so the apartment, or perhaps the whole block, needs deratizing. The kitchen and shower drains also need cleaning. The first aid kit was unusable, with everything in it past its warranty by several years. Some spotlights didn’t work, which was a problem because the apartment’s lighting was already quite poor. The windows and balcony doors were hard to open because they had no handles. You’d need a strong man to manage them, and women with long nails definitely won’t get out to the balcony. The windows aren’t soundproof either, so you hear everything outside: workers mowing grass between the tiles at 7.30, rubbish collectors at night, and the church bells next door ringing every hour from 8.00 to 22.00. The pool wasn’t usable for swimming during our stay. The water was icy, and people were in it all day, so there was no hygiene. The surrounding area was in a catastrophically neglected state, with old, dirty, worn-out loungers, a children’s pool that didn’t work, a broken shower, and a general mess.