- Algarve Holidays
- Albufeira
- Grande Real Santa Eulalia Hotel and Spa
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Grande Real Santa Eulalia Hotel and Spa
Portugal, Europe
Albufeira
This exclusive luxury hotel is a conveniently located hotel in Albufeira, above beautiful, sandy Praia de Santa Eulália Beach. The hotel also offers a free shuttle bus into town that runs a few times per day, and there is a regular bus stop located 100 metres from the hotel, going to the lively centre of Albufeira, with its many shopping and entertainment venues; Faro Airport is 23 kilometers away from the hotel. The complex has all the peace and tranquility of an Algarve beach setting, the sense of fun that comes with a holiday in a tourist area, and the charm of a fairy tale. The complex has accommodation for all kinds of families. All rooms, suites or apartments have the amenities required for a comfortable stay, which includes appliances and comfortable furniture, as well as access to areas with balconies.
Facilities
- Tennis*
- Billiards
- Spa treatments*
- Massage*
- Steam bath*
- Sauna*
- TV lounge
- Entertainment programme for children
- Entertainment programme for adults
- Children playground
- Please note some facilities may incur an additional fee
The Local Area
Tripadvisor Reviews
4.0 Very Good5,782 reviews
Excellent
52%
Very Good
30%
Average
12%
Poor
4%
Terrible
3%
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Value
Far from 5 star hotel, bad service & cockroaches
We stayed at Grande Real Santa Eulália for a week in August, having previously stayed here in May last year. Unfortunately, after giving the hotel a second chance, we left extremely disappointed and will not be returning.
Firstly, the positives. The hotel is in a prime location on a beautiful beach, and our sea-view room had a gorgeous view. The bedrooms themselves are modern and nicely decorated, although the bathrooms are very dated and definitely not what I would expect from a 5-star hotel. Breakfast was lovely, while the dinner buffet was very hit and miss.
Cleanliness in the common areas also needs attention. The carpet in our corridor was visibly dirty throughout the week and did not appear to have been hoovered, and there was an unpleasant smell in the corridors.
Our biggest disappointment before the room issues was the service. When we stayed last May, we assumed the poor service may have been because it was off-season and the hotel was short-staffed. However, returning in August, we found the service just as bad, if not worse. There were some notable exceptions — particularly the lovely lady cooking eggs at breakfast, and the staff at Le Club and Atlântico, who were very pleasant.
Unfortunately, elsewhere the level of service simply did not match a 5-star hotel. At the Real Bar beside reception, we sometimes waited around 30 minutes just for someone to take our order, even when the bar wasn’t particularly busy. At the pool bar and breakfast/dinner buffet, we found some staff extremely unfriendly and unwelcoming. Very little smiling, conversation or basic customer service — at times you genuinely felt as though you should simply be grateful to be served. For a hotel charging 5-star prices, this isn’t acceptable.
Then came the worst part of our stay.
Halfway through our holiday, we found an enormous cockroach crawling across our bedroom floor — genuinely about the size of a chicken nugget. It disappeared underneath the bed/headboard, so naturally we contacted reception. We were given a different room for that night, with a resort view, and were told we would be moved to another sea-view room the following day.
The next morning we packed everything again, went to spend the day by the pool and, as promised, were moved into another sea-view room. We thought that was the end of it.
Unfortunately, the following day another huge cockroach appeared in the bathroom of our new room.
We managed to trap it in the bathroom and contacted reception again. A member of staff arrived with insect spray and dealt with it. By this stage we were nearing the end of our holiday and couldn’t face packing everything and moving rooms yet again, so we kept all the bathroom drains closed and the bathroom door shut for the remainder of our stay.
What should have been a relaxing holiday became the complete opposite. I barely slept properly afterwards because I was constantly worried about finding another one. I have honestly never seen cockroaches this size.
What disappointed us almost as much as the cockroaches was the hotel’s response. The manager did not seem particularly concerned and refused to offer any meaningful gesture or compensation — whether that was a complimentary meal, a night’s stay refunded or anything else — despite us finding large cockroaches in two separate rooms and already having to pack up and move once.
This hotel is not cheap. We paid for what is advertised as a 5-star experience and expected a relaxing holiday with an appropriate standard of cleanliness, service and customer care. Unfortunately, that is not what we received.
The location and beach are beautiful and there are some lovely members of staff, but overall, in our experience, the hotel is currently far from the 5-star standard it advertises.
We gave it a second chance after our experience last year, but sadly we won’t be giving it a third. We will not be returning.
Review by giedre_1991 Naas, Ireland
Not worth 5 stars at all
Sorry to say, but the staff is really distanced and unfriendly and culinary quality quite poor. Seems the aim of the hotel just is to be okay, nothing more. Which does not match the price or 5 star rating at all – really poor when compared to the (great) Grecotels for example.
good hotel, not bad, but things to improve for a 5 star rating
breakfast to crowded, cleaning rooms and hallways must be better, quality of breakfast is not 5 stars
A little disappointing
We recently stayed at Santa Emilia Hotel Resort & Spa , which is a beautiful property with some truly impressive features. The main hotel and resort boast a five-star rating, and the grounds offer beautiful sea views, lovely swimming pools overlooking the private beach area, and a very attractive overall setting.
Unfortunately, our experience in the resort’s self-catering villas did not feel like a five-star experience.
The villas have a very traditional interior style and, in our opinion, are in need of upgrading and refurbishment. We noticed issues such as curtains that did not properly meet in the middle and areas where paint was flaking from the walls, soap despenser broken off the walls, and soft furnituring grubby. However, the most concerning issue for us was a strong, musty, mouldy smell in the bedroom area of our villa.
After our first night, we reported the smell to reception and were assured that it would be dealt with straight away. Unfortunately, after 2 or 3 hours we approached reception again we were told someone will visit the property asap and after an other hour waiting and asking to speak to management again and with out any investigation we were eventually moved to another villa. The second accommodation was in slightly better condition, and the smell was nowhere near as strong, although there was still a slight musty/mouldy smell coming from one side of the mattress in one of the bedrooms.
On a positive note, the resort itself is beautiful. The swimming pools and grounds are very well maintained and the views are lovely. We also really enjoyed the restaurants within the resort, as well as the pizzeria, which were both excellent and a little pricey.
Overall, we enjoyed the facilities and location, but we feel that the self-catering villas need significant upgrading and refurbishment to bring them up to the five-star standard that the main hotel and resort portray. In particular, the issue of musty or mouldy smells in the bedrooms needs to be addressed.
With investment in the villas, the accommodation could match the very high standard of the rest of this beautiful resort.
Not 5 star
My post is a full review of pros and cons We are a family of 4 kids age 12 and 4. This is our first visit to Portugal and this hotel was the top in terms of reviews hence our choice
Not sure we will want to come back
We booked a 1 bed apartment. One main room with huge bed and TV and cupboard and a separate bath with overhead shower/ bidet and toilet. Hairdryer in bathroom. Robes in room but so worn I didn't wear them.
Main living room had one single bed and a sofa bed/ dining table / crockery and hob/ coffee machine / fridge freezer and microwave and kettle but no basic coffee / tea. One bottle of water is left every day They also have an iron and board Patio area which is communal so u have to keep it locked if ur not there
Arrived and checked in and our room had no working safe and no working phone. Luckily I had paid for data as it's a 5 min walk to reception
They came twice and could not fix it so the offered me the only room they had left - they said - which was much further from the pools
What should be done is a map of the hotel. I haven't yet worked out the layout but it's seems the villas surround a pool - one possibly 18m pool deep in the middle and shallow for kids on the edge and a baby pool adjacent
The rooms are slightly dates but clean. Broken soap dispenser.
Housekeeping isn't great - they don't always replace towels we had to ring for them
Pizza place was close to our pool but really pricy so we ate there once - good food but terrible cocktails. We then bought our own drinks and had them by the pool.
Pools are clean. No issue with sunbeds here. Mainly families with kids. No lifeguard and some kids started to eat their snacks in the pool. Decking is PVC and clean. Water is warm as it's 30 degrees. No shade over pool
Breakfast is really good. Fruit/ ham/ cheese/ cereal/ eggs / omelette / bacon / sausage/ porridge /pastries and good range of juices and coffee and bread. Same food daily so after 5 days it's a bit dull. Clean restaurant.
The hotel beach is a good 10min walk from reception. U need ur room card to get there and there are no on site taps to wash after until u get to the top again.
Sunloungers here chargeable and without it no shade Sandy clean beach Lifeguard present but not at all times Few restaurants were on the beachfront but you need to climb up.
Beach towels are in reception Odd set up. They simply need it to be on the beach!
Leaving the hotel it's a 15min walk to anything.
Few games room eg pool/ table tennis
Late checkout was not possible but staff were really helpful holding bags and allowing us to use the facilities
