MAR SOL Villa in Vilamoura

The living room was spacious, with a dining table, and the kitchen was large, clean, and had a coffee maker with pods. The bedrooms were smaller, but the beds were comfortable and the AC worked. The only drawback was the small terrace at the back, though it was just a few steps from the pool. We'd definitely come again.

Fatima at reception was very helpful when I suddenly became ill after arriving, and the toilet was fixed within minutes of us reporting it. But the apartment standard was disappointing. The beds were small, hard, and uncomfortable, some furniture was broken, the kitchen had hardly any prep space, and the lighting was poor. The bath was manky, the shower curtain dirty, and tiles were broken. Outside could use attention too: only a few sunbeds, some broken, and the garden needed weeding.

The pool was the biggest problem. Lots of small tiles were missing in both the baby pool and main pool, leaving razor-sharp edges that cut the kids and me. I got a serious cut on my foot playing with them, and it kept me from enjoying the water parks or pool afterwards because plasters aren't waterproof. There were steps marked off with stripped tape, and the poolside flags were at uneven levels from subsidence. It could be lovely, but it needs time and money spent on it instead of botched fixes like tiles glued down with silicone. We stayed in the three-bedroom townhouse villa backing onto the pool. Inside it was very dated. The kitchen, lounge, and dining area were tiny, and the kitchen units were fairly modern. The French doors to the patio wouldn't lock at first, but they fixed that quickly after we told them. Water also came through the light fitting below while we were bathing the children. The man sent round acted as if none of it was an issue and pointed to the RCD box in case the kids got electrocuted. The garden is very small, mostly a patio, with half the space just dusty dirt and ants everywhere. Fake grass or more patio would make it more usable and stop little kids falling in or treating it like sand. The upstairs bedroom is really big and has a view; the other room at the back, where they put the cot, is much smaller. It looks as if two apartments were knocked together to make a house. There's also a driveway if you have a car. Behind the upstairs bedroom wardrobe was a strange room with exposed wires, as if it had once been a kitchen. It's an okay place to stay in Vilamoura if you're mostly using it to sleep and won't spend much time indoors, but it's old-fashioned and not well looked after. The patio worked for the adults to share a drink after dinner and for the occasional lunch, but that's about it. There's no BBQ. The AC was very good, with one in each room, and the beds were okay, if a little firm.

It's a pretty good place, but unfortunately everything is so far away.