Residencial Real

The old building has been renovated really well, and the sea-facing location is great. There’s rooftop access, restaurants nearby, and the beach is an easy two-minute walk. It’s comfortable for a family stay. The mattresses were really poor, though, so expect possible back pain, and some sheets were dusty, which wasn’t acceptable.

I got nervous after booking through booking.com and then reading the Google reviews, but any past problems seem to have been fixed. My room and the washroom were clean and renovated, and the shared space was roomy and pleasant. There wasn’t any odd smell, and I was very happy with my stay.

The photos were accurate, and the sea view and closeness to Sintra made us give Residencial Real a chance despite the mixed reviews. We came in the off-season and found parking easily in front of the restaurant beside the hotel. It might be harder in season. On arrival, a kind woman was cleaning the floors, but the guesthouse manager was rude and unhelpful. There was confusion about the VAT payment even though I showed our booking.com reservation. I’d just arrived from the United States without euros and had to ask someone to lend us the money. Not having euros was my responsibility, since I should have read the details more carefully. The problem was her attitude, which put me off. The room was average. The linens were clean, but the pillows were worn, gray and stained. The bathroom smelled strongly of urine and feces, the showers never got warm, and the odor came under the doors. There was no staff available at night to help. A loud alarm woke us in the middle of the night and went on for an hour, with no response from staff. Management acknowledged what happened the next day but said they couldn’t control it. I disagreed, since they could have contacted guests by WhatsApp about the alarm, the smoking guest and the smelly bathroom. I asked for $49.66 USD back, half the room cost, because of the disruptions. Despite several attempts to sort it out, management didn’t deal with my request and eventually stopped replying to messages.

A peaceful place with a beautiful ocean view, especially at sunset. It can get very windy and chilly outside, which is to be expected by the ocean. Good for a quick stop. There’s no restaurant, just a self-service kitchen, but you can have breakfast with lovely nature right outside the window 😍