Tivoli Alvor Algarve

We have just returned from a 10 day trip to the Tivoli Alvor. I had read a lot of the reviews on here and was in two minds about what to expect. We had booked through Jet2 and were part of a party of 11 – two families of 5 and my Mum who has some minor mobility issues. The cost of the trip was high – certainly a 5 star price and we have been on similar holidays to other 4/5 star all inclusive resorts – albeit in the Canary Islands rather than the Algarve.

Overall it was a good trip although the hotel could be so much better. The check in process was quite slow but we got there in the end. We had booked premium suites as they were large enough for families of 5 and my Mum had upgraded so that we could eat breakfast together etc. As part of that package you have a free excursion to either Slide and Splash or Zoomarine as well as a 35 euro voucher to spend in the spa for each adult. We went to Slide and Splash which was a good day.

We were taken to rooms on golf buggies with our luggage and passed the main pool area on the way – it was absolutely heaving – no probs I thought as there were ‘5 pools’ on site. The grounds are really beautifully kept – we saw gardeners working on it at very points through the stay & it reallyis a stunning looking resort .

ROOMS - We got to our rooms and as other reviewers have said they are very modern and spacious – we had a bottle of fizz and some beers in the fridge and there were bottles of water that were replaced every day. There is a lack of storage & hanging space – especially if you have longer items – dresses etc. Rooms were cleaned well every day but there were constant inconsistencies with towels – some days no bath towels, others no hand towels. Seems minor but this is a 5* resort.

POOLS – we went to the pool area – the area passed on the way to the room is actually 3 of the 5 pools and the only space you can use if you have older kids. There is a smaller splash park/pool for little kids & an adult pool that we wandered up to for a swim occasionally. The main pool area is bedlam – too many people for such a small space & very noisy. You have to get up early to get some loungers & want a parasol – you will find somewhere later in the day, but it will be on a grassy bank on an incline with no cover. Many of the parasols are missing wheels/handles. The pool area was a bit grubby as well – someone had picked off their fake nails and they were on the floor for the duration of the trip. A few people complained that the pools were murky – the hotel did seem to act on this and we started to see cleaners towards the end of our stay and the quality seemed to improve. There are various activities going on throughout the day – kids enjoyed the waterpolo particularly. The adult pool is a nice, quiet area and not very busy.

RESTAURANTS – The premium package includes breakfast in Mad Med – a separate restaurant to the main buffet. You order tea/coffee & egg dishes from the waiter & then there is an extensive buffet with hot/cold food and pastries. Best meal of the day whilst we were staying at the resort. Having said that, tea pots often turned up without lids, dishes that we were told did not come with toast did turn up with it. Not a problem for most, but my daughter has a peanut allergy and was told she could not eat the bread so we ended up sending things back fairly often.

At lunch you can eat in the main Essenze buffet or there is a good snack selection at Salty’s bar. We ate in Essenze a lot of the time – the head chef in there was excellent – he came out to speak to my daughter about her allergy each time we visited and separately prepared her a dish each day we visited. The selection in here was good at lunch time but a bit of a mixed bag in the evenings sometimes – not as good as other AI resorts we have used – both 4 & 5*. Service is a bit hit and miss – I think they are supposed to pour your wine etc. – some days they did, some days we just ended up helping ourselves. The rest of the party used the snack bar most days – excellent grilled meat/fish/burgers on a barbecue as well as salads/toasties and pizza.

We ate at Mad Med for dinner on our third night – kids loved it – breaded chicken/nuggets for starters and huge portions of chicken chips for main. The adults in the group thought it was OK. My wife & I spent the following 3 days with a severe stomach bug – assuming it was something we had picked up from someone else as the whole party ate the chicken. However, we did not return.

Whilst we were unwell the rest of the group ate at Roastic – they were really happy with the meal – nice, well cooked T Bone steaks on the sharing platter as well a selection of other dishes. Once we were better we visited too but it wasn’t as good – no T Bone and a tough chewy old cut of meat. We had booked again for the last night and were unsure about whether to go back but we did – it was excellent to be fair – great steaks, good sides and the service very good. If they could be consistent with quality of food it would be a lot better. My daughter could not eat the dessert as there was a peanut cake on the display – we asked if she could have something from the kitchen here but were told it was not possible.

Carosello the Italian was good – we ate there twice. Pizza/pasta and a couple of other dishes on the menu. The nice thing about the restaurants is you can stay a bit longer and have a couple of drinks. When we ate in Essenze we felt a bit 'in &out' and were then stuck for somewhere to go. Consequently, If you do want a few drinks later you will struggle. The big entertainment tent shuts at 11pm and the only place open is the shore bar – barely any seats here & fully occupied on the times we tried to go. There is plenty of space so they could do with putting some more chairs here. It is also a shame that Salty’s bar does not open in the evening during peak season – would be a cool place to sit and have a few drinks away from the entertainment.

As I said, overall it was a good trip. However, not a 5* hotel. First problem is lack of consistency – service/food/dealing with allergies. The other is the pool area – it’s tired and grubby & if you want a more chilled out space but have older kids – there is nowhere else to go in the resort. Would we return? Probably not at the price we paid. A shame as it could be so good.

We had high expectations for Tivoli Alvor, especially as a Titanium member and having booked the Premium All-Inclusive package, but unfortunately the stay was disappointing.

The main frustration was that several advertised benefits required us to repeatedly push for them. At check-in, no Titanium room upgrade was offered despite eligible rooms showing as available online. Only after returning to reception and showing the availability ourselves were we upgraded. A similar situation occurred with late check-out, which was declined despite rooms appearing available online.

The Premium All-Inclusive experience was also underwhelming. À-la-carte restaurant reservations were extremely difficult to secure, with very limited availability even when restaurants later appeared far from full. Food quality was inconsistent: Premium breakfast and Carosello were good, but Roastic was mediocre, while Mad Med and Cookout were particularly disappointing. Despite having All-Inclusive, we ended up eating outside the resort several times.

Service was similarly inconsistent. At Mad Med, we were initially refused a last-minute table despite the restaurant appearing less than half full and were later told we were being done a “huge favour” by being seated, which made us feel unwelcome. On another evening, after waiting in the bar queue before closing time, we were refused service when our turn came just after 23:00.

None of these issues alone would have defined the stay. Taken together, however, the recurring feeling was that we had to negotiate for benefits and services that should have been part of our membership or package.

Having enjoyed many excellent stays across Tivoli, NH Collection and Anantara, I know Minor Hotels can deliver much better. Unfortunately, this stay did not reflect the premium, effortless experience we expected.

Tivoli Alvor was a lovely experience I am a coeliac and I was pleased they had gluten free beers for me to enjoy. They had a gluten free section not a massive selection but was nice to have a seperate selection which included pasta. The food especially the fish dishes were lovely. The room was nice and clean with everything needed. The pool areas were nice though busy and you can struggle to get a deck chair during the busy times. The entertainment during the day by the pool was good children. Though the evening entertainment was hit and miss. I would happily return to the resort the beach is close by and we utilised free tickets to ZooMarine which was a good day out.