Aroeira Lisbon Hotel Sea & Golf

Hotel a bit lost with not many activities around except golf or pool. Nearest beach is not really foot distance and it is not the prettiest of caparica. Have to admit pool time was great, bar service was top but it is very altered by bad breakfast, poor room cleaning and not very helpful desk for different issues pointed out .

We were aware that we arrived two hours earlier than planned and only wanted to leave our luggage at the hotel. Unfortunately, the check-in experience was anything but welcoming. Without even a greeting, the receptionist immediately told us that check-in was not available at this time. We were then instructed to take our suitcases to a storage room ourselves — the young lady at the front desk made it clear that she doesn’t do that sort of thing. Afterward, she attempted to charge us again for the stay. We had to prove that our Expedia booking was prepaid, otherwise she would have charged us again. It wasn’t until the front desk manager got involved that this was clarified and confirmed. Apparently, the hotel doesn’t trust its own staff — there are notes in the rooms stating that the hotel does not take responsibility for theft committed by its own personnel. That really makes you feel safe. The breakfast buffet is of average quality and in line with what you’d expect from a four-star hotel. However, the coffee from the machines, made with powdered milk, is undrinkable. The service staff were inattentive and negligent. Dirty dishes piled up on the table before anyone noticed or cleared them.

I chose this hotel to stay here and celebrate my partners birthday but we were not impressed. When checking in we weren’t made to feel very welcome, a more personal/pleasant customer service experience is expected at a hotel like this. We spent our first day by the pool where you can press a button to request for service, these buttons are totally pointless as we sat for 25 minutes before opting to go to the bar ourselves, to which we were told someone would come out and take our order, they didn’t. That evening, we chose to eat at the hotel restaurant - the food was OK but the ambiance was not nice for a dinner setting - they leave all the bright lights on. The drinks and food is the same as London prices, minus the quality and service. There is a coffee machine in the room but you have to pay for additional coffee pods which seems unnecessary. That said, I had requested for a birthday treat to be left in the room which he had organised for me kindly. The location of the hotel is great if you are looking for a chilled, beach vibe (which we were) as the beaches near by are stunning. I would recommend hiring a car although Ubers are relatively cheap.