Quinta Splendida Wellness & Botanical Garden

Getting away from the bustle of Funchal is easy here, and Garajau makes a lovely sanctuary. If the weather's poor, the spa and massages are excellent. The staff were friendly and attentive, and if you book a massage while not staying at the hotel, you can use the spa and pool all day. Isabella was amazing. Strongly recommended.

The gardens and views are superb, and we had a great week. Everyone on staff was helpful and friendly. We also spent a day in Funchal on the service bus, which stops almost right outside the hotel. It cost 2.6 euros per person each way. The ride up and down the cliff roads was great, though a little scary. We didn't take any excursions. We had the Spa Suite package, but at first we didn't understand all its benefits. The a la carte arrangements were explained when we ate at the Galeria restaurant on day two. Maybe reception could give guests a full written guide at check-in. The Spa's indoor pool was a bit disappointing because the water was very cold, almost as cold as the outdoor pool. We'll definitely come back, perhaps in October next time, since November was windy.

The sea view was beautiful and we still had a great stay, but our last interaction left us disappointed. We'd have come back for sure if that hadn't made us feel so fooled. We stayed seven nights in a SPA Suite Sea View. The room was clean, the staff friendly, the buffet tasty, and the garden beautiful. I also had a really great massage. At check-in we got a quick introduction to the hotel and spa. We didn't understand what came with the Suite, so the next day we asked reception. The friendly receptionist said we had half board with restaurant specials, a bathrobe and slides, and free spa access. On our last breakfast, a friendly restaurant crew member told us we could also get à la carte dishes, including specially made Cappuccino. It turned out we had special meal conditions that we'd paid for but hadn't used because we hadn't been properly informed. At checkout, we explained what happened when asked if everything was okay. The response was just, “oh, so sorry to hear that…” We weren't offered a voucher or a discount for a possible next stay.

The garden is beautiful, but the stay wasn't relaxing. The room was below expectations and so noisy at night because of poor sound insulation that it was hard to sleep. Reception didn't feel welcoming. After check-in, no staff member was available to show us to the room, so we had to find it ourselves. The whole thing felt rushed and impersonal, more like a high-volume chain hotel than a 4-star property. They also kept our passports and told us to collect them later. No other hotel we stayed at in Madeira required that. When we went to pick them up, the staff member asked only for our room number and briefly gave us passports belonging to other guests by mistake. The process felt poorly managed.