In Mountain

Update: They never returned our €50 deposit. I’ve contacted them many times and they ignore me, so I don’t recommend this place. The grounds are large and beautiful, and the pools look very inviting. The cottage, though, was extremely humid. Wet clothes wouldn’t dry, and clothes that were dry became damp overnight. Insects and lizards also got inside through the panoramic windows or doors, which weren’t properly sealed. There’s potential here, and the renovation underway seems like a good sign for future guests. During our stay the roof started leaking, with a major leak as well. Staff fixed it quickly, which we appreciated, but they didn’t help clean up or give us supplies to do it ourselves. We hope the finished renovation makes the place more comfortable.

The place was freezing, with no way to heat the rooms, a serious issue up in the mountains. The pool listed as heated was icy and unusable. We also arrived to a very dirty apartment and found cockroaches inside. The kitchen was missing many basic utensils and other essentials, so cooking was difficult. The advertised gym was a few old items that couldn’t be used, nothing like the listing suggested. Even the fire extinguishers were expired. We recently stayed here in Madeira, and the house didn’t match its Airbnb description at all. The actual conditions were far below what was promised, and the whole stay was deeply disappointing. I can’t recommend it.

The room was much smaller than the stated size, and its windows were covered with black film. They also charged for the air conditioner remote control. The hotel sounded like it would be very nice, but it wasn’t. The property owner was very aggressive when trying to charge a city tax and deposit that Booking.com had already charged.

We were turned away at 7 PM after the owner had confirmed our Booking.com reservation by WhatsApp that morning and reminded us to arrive before 8 PM. Nothing suggested a problem, but on arrival we were told there was no reservation. The owner said he’d cancelled all Holidu bookings, a third party on Booking, weeks earlier because of a financial dispute. Nobody had told us, and the stay was already paid for. Neither Booking nor Holidu knew about any cancellation until we contacted them. We eventually received our refund a week later, but had to find somewhere to stay at the last minute. Later, the owner messaged again as if our earlier conversation hadn’t happened, then offered us a one-night stay. We declined because we didn’t want to pay him anything more than we already had. Reviews describing deposit problems made that seem like the right decision. This could all have been avoided if he’d told us earlier that day. It was extremely unprofessional, and I strongly advise against staying here. If the owner responds with accusations, we have the full WhatsApp conversation showing that we were turned away because of their negligence.