Estalagem do Vale

Fab view (be careful Garden view is limited unless you like walls). Really need a car as the located some way from the SAO Vicente centre. Rooms well equipped but no tea making facilities. Outside swimming pool cold. Fab extensive breakfast buffet. Evening meals v limited. Our second visit and despite criticisms we enjoy our stays.

The location in the valley is exceptional and the view from our room was amazing. We did not have a car and dined at the hotel restaurant which was convenient. The hotel grounds and facilities are very beautiful and clean and the staff are very pleasant. A swim in the pool after a day of hiking was very refreshing. We’ll definitely stay there if we come to Madeira again.

The rooms were clean, the staff was friendly and helpful and the views were amazing. Although there is a parking, it can get crowded, but there is no problem to park on the street next to the accomodation.

The hotel has visibly outdated facilities, especially the bathrooms, but the cleaning staff did their best to keep everything clean. However, in our bathroom, where the door couldn’t be closed, water kept running from the faucet and shower, and no one did anything about it. In another room, the toilet frequently broke down, which was also quite inconvenient. The wellness area was a major disappointment – out of two saunas, only one was working, but it was too cold and had broken seats. The hot tub was cracked and empty, and the shower in the wellness area was very dirty. Additionally, we were only informed at check-out that there was a €5 charge per person for each entry to the wellness. The outdoor pool was freezing, making it barely usable. On the positive side, breakfast was good, and the staff was very friendly, which slightly improved the overall experience. However, parking was often an issue – the parking lot was full, and we had to leave our car keys at the reception, where staff moved the cars as needed. A nice bonus was the bar right next to the hotel, which served the best poncha on Madeira. In the end, the stay wasn’t bad because we got a good off-season deal, but for the full price, it definitely wouldn’t be worth it. A four-star hotel should offer a higher standard, but this felt more like a two-star experience.