Plaza Real by Atlantic Hotels

We stayed as a family of four—one adult and three children aged 12, 15 and 16. Room 0005

Reception: The reception staff were lovely, friendly and very helpful. I didn’t get their names, but the lady with the long hair was always smiling and went above and beyond to recommend some lovely pizza restaurants for us.

Toilet roll: One minor inconvenience was having to keep asking reception for extra toilet roll. They assured us they didn’t mind, but I personally felt like we were bothering them each time.

Cafe/restaurant: There seemed to be some confusion regarding the minimum spend. We were initially told it was €7 minimum spend, but my daughter was later told it was €5. Either way, three cans of fizzy drinks cost €8, which we felt was quite expensive.

Rooms: The rooms were a good size. The children found the blinds amusing, as they resembled garage or shop shutters! The air conditioning was available in both the front room and bedroom and worked very well for us.

Bathroom/kitchen: Unfortunately, the bathroom sink was blocked during our stay. The cleaners also left rubbish belonging to a previous family in the kitchen bin. It had a very unpleasant smell and remained there for the entire week. We tried asking the cleaners to remove it, but unfortunately there was a language barrier and they didn’t understand. As a result, we had to keep our own rubbish in bags in the kitchen.

Cleaning and towels: There is no included cleaning service unless you pay an additional €40. After a week, the apartment had understandably become quite dirty. Towels were also not changed automatically, and I had to pay €15 for clean towels.

Outdoor area: There were no sun loungers, just a large patio area with one small table and two chairs. Some of the sun loungers around the pool were also broken. However, the atmosphere was quiet and there was certainly no fighting or rushing to secure sun loungers!

Location and transport: The location was okay. We used Uber to get around and found it very affordable, with journeys ranging from around €3.50 to a maximum of €7. I would definitely recommend using Uber rather than the local taxi service, as it worked out much cheaper for us.

Activities: We used GetYourGuide to book activities and found some good-value options.

Overall, we had a pleasant family stay. The reception staff were particularly friendly and helpful, and the quiet atmosphere was a big positive. However, the lack of regular cleaning, towel changes and some basic maintenance issues could definitely be improved.

We stayed at Plaza Real by Atlantic Hotels as a family group of 8, and after reading some mixed reviews beforehand we weren’t quite sure what to expect. We’re so pleased to say it completely exceeded our expectations.

We knew we were booking a basic 3-star hotel and were simply looking for a clean, affordable base with a pool while we explored the Algarve. It was perfect for exactly that.

Our apartments were really spacious, clean and had everything we needed. The pool was fantastic and our children absolutely loved spending hours in it every day. There were always sunbeds available, which made it feel much more relaxed than many larger resorts.

One of the biggest highlights was the staff. Every member of the team we met was friendly, welcoming and happy to help, which really made a difference to our stay. Special shout out to Oscar, Matilda and Carla who run the restaurant bar - we definitely kept them on their toes! But nothing was too much trouble.

We only had the continental breakfast included, but we also ate lunch and dinner there several times. The food was absolutely delicious, the portions were generous and the prices were incredibly reasonable!

The location worked really well for us too. It was peaceful and quiet at night, but only a short walk or a very inexpensive Uber ride to Praia da Rocha, restaurants, supermarkets and local attractions. We found Uber to be quick and very affordable throughout our stay.

If you’re looking for luxury, this probably isn’t the hotel for you. But if you want excellent value for money, friendly staff, a great pool and a comfortable base for exploring the Algarve, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Plaza Real.

We had an amazing holiday and would happily stay here again.