A warning for other holidaymakers: our factual 3-star review with some important criticisms wasn't published on a well-known booking website. We're putting it here in the hope people don't rely on the strangely uniform, exclusively positive 5-star reviews. There were some good points. Check-in and key return through a safe went smoothly, and email communication with the landlady was good. The small garden had sun loungers, and the kitchen was new and well equipped, with a quiet washing machine and induction stove. Nearly everything we needed was there, though only the bare essentials. Access was quick and easy, and there was a "private" parking space. The house is close to the VE3 and ER210 highways, so the mountains and neighboring towns are easy to reach. But the first impression wasn't great. The supposedly free space opposite the house was taken when we arrived. There was a dead lizard by both the garden gate and the terrace, a musty smell throughout, and mosquitoes everywhere. The stove was filthy and smelled bad, so we had to scrub and disinfect it first. We never figured out the musty smell's source, and it didn't go away during our stay. We bought plug-in air fresheners for the living room and bedroom, which helped. I'll explain below why airing the place wasn't an option. Reviews described the location as quiet, and while that may fit Prazeres generally, it didn't fit this house. It's almost directly beside the VE3, visible on the map, which connects the whole southwest of the island. At times in the garden, traffic was so loud we could barely hear one another speak. We knew the road was nearby, but trusted other reviews that consistently praised the quiet. In the evenings, when traffic eased, it was pleasant enough. There's also a slightly larger holiday home DIRECTLY next door, with a surveillance camera under its roof on the first floor pointed straight at this house's garden. We felt watched. If a family is staying there, it could also get noisy, which matters if you're looking for peace and quiet. In summer the big sunny windows make the house very hot, almost like a sauna. It also seemed to attract mosquitoes. Opening a sliding door or window to get cooler air let mosquitoes inside, or one of the many giant grasshoppers around the house. Fly screens like the one in the bathroom, or other insect protection, would help. We only managed to deal with it by buying a fan. We'd never had mosquito trouble in Madeira before, so this was new to us. The bedroom mattress inside the house was a bad joke, rock hard but wobbly like jelly. Our first night on it was not restful at all. The mattress in the separate bedroom, reached through the conservatory or terrace, was fine. Unless the inside bedroom mattress is replaced, I'd book for no more than two people.
