Quinta de Barracuda

There’s no cafeteria, so you’ll need to cook in the room’s kitchen or eat out. This is a hotel condominium, with a nice swimming pool and a great location. A small gate at the pool yard’s corner gives you a quick 250 meters route to the beach.

The staff are genuinely friendly and helpful, and the beach is an easy walk away, close enough that you can hear the waves. Quinta da Barracuda sits in a quiet, scenic spot between the Old Town and the Strip, which makes it a distinctive place to stay. The furniture and amenities vary in quality depending on who owns each unit. There is a tumble dryer, which you don’t often find in local vacation properties.

The pool area is nice, though it can feel uncomfortable when people ignore the pool rules. There’s no management on site after 1pm or at all on weekends, so keep that in mind. The apartments are clean and mostly have everything you’ll need. Still, it’s a pleasant place to stay.

The location is still a strong point, and some apartments have good equipment, but after our third family visit I’m not sure we’ll come back. The place is looking worn, and things seem to get patched up rather than properly replaced. We first came in 2022, and it has definitely changed since then. The building could use a fresh coat of paint, and the pool umbrellas need replacing. They felt unstable, some wouldn’t stay up, and a gust could send them over. I was anxious about one tipping while I tried to keep my small baby shaded. A few looked as if they’d been filled with expanding foam. Our room was better than last time, but still needed work. I noticed dust and small dead flies behind the TV when reaching for the plug socket. The high chair we paid to hire had dried food on the outside. The bath plug didn’t work, and the pull-out fabric sofa bed smelled strange, a bit like sick. I wondered if it ever gets cleaned. I’d probably look for somewhere more modern that suits my family’s needs better.