Hotel a Santa Marinha do Zêzere, Portogallo

My husband and I spent 3 nights in this hotel. We meant to have a romantic vacation, away from the kids. Upon arrival, we were pleased with the place. The views are amazing, the hotel is different and mixes old with new. The room was nice, not a 5 star room, but pleasant enough. We also enjoyed the dinner, food was great. The problem with this hotel was the service. We had some disappointing experiences that managed to downgrade the whole experience. 1 - there was no one to accompany us to our room upon arrival. 2- the bathtub and shower had mold. 3- I mentioned several times that my husband’s birthday was during our stay, and nothing was arranged by the hotel. 4- we were told we would have a welcome gift in our room, that turned out to be a water bottle and 2 oranges… 5 - when we asked for more shower gel to the cleaning ladies, we were looked with suspicion, almost like we were lying about not having any in our basket. And then the cleaning lady just suddenly commanded us to put on the face mask. That was our first really bad experience. 6 - the breakfast is until 11 am. But when we showed up at 10h30, there was already little food and the empty trays are not being refilled. If you stayed until after 11, you had the distinct feeling you were very unwelcome. 7 - on our last morning, we asked an employee for 2 cappuccinos from the expresso machine, and that was when we were faced in full with the lack of proper training. The reply we got was more proper from a corner bar than from a 5 star hotel. Not to mention we could hear the employees discussing private matters while we were eating. It was like we weren’t even there. 8 - the check out is to pay and leave. There was no “how was your stay”, nothing. To finish, I would say this hotel would be more deserving of a 3/4 star rating than a 5 star. The service we got was definitely not a 5 star service. The 3 stars I am giving are due to the place and dinner food.

Located in Baiao, Quinta da Ermida is on a river, a 1-minute drive from Duoro River and 7 minutes from Quinta de Covela. This beach guesthouse is 6 mi (9.6 km) from São Silvestre Chapel and 6.7 mi (10.9 km) from Caldas de Aregos.Take advantage of recreation opportunities such as an outdoor pool or take in the view from a rooftop terrace and a garden. Additional features at this guesthouse include complimentary wireless internet access, an arcade/game room, and wedding services.Enjoy a meal at the restaurant, or stay in and take advantage of the guesthouse's room service. Quench your thirst with your favorite drink at the bar/lounge. A complimentary continental breakfast is served daily from 8:30 AM to 10:30 AM.Featured amenities include complimentary newspapers in the lobby, laundry facilities, and a library. Free self parking is available onsite.Make yourself at home in one of the 10 air-conditioned guestrooms. Complimentary wireless internet access keeps you connected, and cable programming is available for your entertainment. Private bathrooms have complimentary toiletries and bidets. Conveniences include phones, and housekeeping is provided daily.

When you stay at Douro Palace Hotel Resort and Spa in Baiao, you'll be on a river, within a 5-minute drive of Duoro River and Quinta de Covela. This upscale hotel is 6.1 mi (9.8 km) from Monastery of Santo André de Ancede and 7.6 mi (12.2 km) from Garden of Saint Bartholomew.Pamper yourself with a visit to the spa, which offers massages, body treatments, and facials. If you're looking for recreational opportunities, you'll find a sauna and a seasonal outdoor pool. This hotel also features complimentary wireless internet access, concierge services, and free babysitting.Enjoy a meal at the restaurant, or stay in and take advantage of the hotel's 24-hour room service. Unwind at the end of the day with a drink at the bar/lounge or the poolside bar. A complimentary buffet breakfast is served daily from 8:00 AM to 10:30 AM.Featured amenities include a business center, complimentary newspapers in the lobby, and dry cleaning/laundry services. For a surcharge, guests may use a roundtrip airport shuttle (available 24 hours) and a train station pick-up service.Make yourself at home in one of the 60 guestrooms featuring minibars and LCD televisions. Rooms have private balconies. Complimentary wireless internet access keeps you connected, and cable programming is available for your entertainment. Private bathrooms with shower/tub combinations feature complimentary toiletries and bidets.

With a stay at Hotel Navarras in Amarante, you'll be in the historical district, within a 10-minute walk of San Gonçalo Church and Mosteiro de São Gonçalo. This hotel is 1 mi (1.6 km) from São Pedro Church and 1.5 mi (2.5 km) from Solar dos Magalhães.Enjoy recreation amenities such as bicycles to rent or take in the view from a terrace. Additional features at this hotel include complimentary wireless internet access, babysitting (surcharge), and a television in a common area.Buffet breakfasts are available for a fee.Featured amenities include dry cleaning/laundry services, a 24-hour front desk, and multilingual staff. Self parking (subject to charges) is available onsite.Make yourself at home in one of the 58 air-conditioned rooms featuring flat-screen televisions. Complimentary wireless internet access keeps you connected, and cable programming is available for your entertainment. Private bathrooms with bathtubs or showers feature complimentary toiletries and bidets. Conveniences include phones, as well as desks and blackout drapes/curtains.

lovely views except that my room was directly across from elevator, had a view of a huge electricity tower just outside the window, had a loudly beeping non working phone and reception staff who didn't care and had zero interest in fixing or replacing it. then a couple with a baby and loudly yapping dog were placed next to my room. the dog started to yap at 6 40 am, the couple apparently continued to sleep, and i had to leave my room and find a quiet place in a very small space. would NOT book here again. the good things are the small pool, which is kept clean, the views so long as you are not in Rooms 9 or 10, and the restaurant, which serves adequate if limited dinner meals. And Daniella is a wonderful staffer and deserves to be part of a more professional and more helpful team.

The hotel is very well located and has stunning views from the terraces. Our room was street side but quiet. The half board program was excellent. Dinner included couvert, wine, salad or soup, main and dessert. Excellent! Breakfast was typical but everything was fresh and plenty to choose from. We did not need air conditioning and were fine with the window ajar. The Wi-Fi was the only drawback as it tended to be spotty.

Located in Lamego, Vila Gale Collection Douro is on a river, within a 5-minute drive of Duoro River and Casa do Douro. This upscale hotel is 1.5 mi (2.3 km) from Douro Museum and 1.5 mi (2.4 km) from Alameda dos Capitaes Park.Pamper yourself with a visit to the spa, which offers massages and body treatments. You can take advantage of recreational amenities such as an indoor pool, a spa tub, and a fitness center. Additional amenities at this hotel include complimentary wireless internet access, a fireplace in the lobby, and tour/ticket assistance.Enjoy a meal at the restaurant, or stay in and take advantage of the hotel's room service (during limited hours). Quench your thirst with your favorite drink at the bar/lounge. A complimentary buffet breakfast is served daily from 8:00 AM to 10:30 AM.Featured amenities include a business center, a 24-hour front desk, and laundry facilities. This hotel has 2 meeting rooms available for events. Self parking (subject to charges) is available onsite.Make yourself at home in one of the 38 air-conditioned rooms featuring minibars and LCD televisions. Complimentary wireless internet access keeps you connected, and cable programming is available for your entertainment. Private bathrooms with shower/tub combinations feature complimentary toiletries and hair dryers. Conveniences include phones, as well as laptop-compatible safes and desks.

Hotel accogliente, staff MT simpatico, sempre confortevole e attento. Camera piacevole e pulita. Spa affascinante (è piccolo ma come funziona con i marchi era adatto al numero di persone presenti), l'unico altro è msm la temperatura (era troppo caldo). P.s. non forniscono gratuitamente indumenti, biancheria da bagno e asciugamani, che di solito si verifica in un hotel di 4*. Cena MT buono, con condizioni per le famiglie con figli (come il nostro caso), MT prestabilita, hanno rispettato tutte le richieste, piatto principale (nel caso del merluzzo bianco con larghezza) MT delizioso e abbastanza richiamabile. E' anche buono (foglie di latte crema). Raccomando vivamente. Almoço molto variabile, da dolci a sali, diversi tipi di pane, diversi tipi di succhi, composti, iogurti, cereali, molto buono in realtà. Ribadisco la simpatia del personale, dalla reception, dal bar, dal ristorante e altro ancora. In realtà non do solo 5* perché la camera in cui siamo ospiti non aveva balcone e apprezzo molto questo aspetto. Se non fosse così, darei 5* con certezza. La prossima volta che verrò qui, mi occuperò di questo aspetto durante la prenotazione.

A nice welcoming reception. All the staff appeared to speak english which is very welcome and always makes me realise how lacking the Brits are at languages. We had a deluxe room which had a spectacular view of the river. It also had a small balcony but no seats so seemed a bit pointless. The heat hit us as soon as we opened the door so we tried to lower the air con to 16 degrees but it remained stifling hot. In the end we had to sleep with the balcony door open otherwise we wouldn’t have been able to sleep in the heat (this was March!) The room was really clean with a fridge and complementary bottled water. They had also provided two miniatures of port, custard tarts and biscuits which were very nice and appreciated. However, there is no coffee making facilities in the room. There were nice toiletries but bolted to the walls as is the trend in eco friendly hotels. The pillows were lovely and soft and the towels nice and big. We had a drink in the bar at lunch time and they serve small dishes & tapas. We had a selection of meat, cheeses & breads which was plenty big enough for two for 15 euro. We had half board so had dinner which was lovely. Well presented dishes which were tasty. Mains were around 25 euro if you didn’t have half or full board. Wine 7 euro for a small glass which seemed a bit steep. No table water offered just bottled water to buy. Breakfast provided a good selection of the usual cold meats, cheeses, pastries, cereal & fruit. There was also a small hot food selection. A carafe of your preferred juice was provided. However, the hot drinks were from one machine which meant there was frequently a queue and they weren’t very hot. Not much to ask for fresh tea and coffee at breakfast. The service in the hotel was very friendly throughout which was appreciated.

It was absolutely amazing stay that we had in Douro valley thanks to the Douro Royal valley Hotel&Spa, especially because our trip took place when it was mostly raining… luckily, me and my husband were able to use that time properly in the hotel’s spa, having massage, enjoying the time in the swimming pool, spending some time in sauna and even at the gym. Thanks to hotel’s facilities the trip was not a waste of time, we could rest actively, we also enjoyed very much the overall ambience of the hotel and taking care of the personell so that overall the hotel is a calm place to stay at. What caught us by surprise was absolutely stunning dinner- each out of 6 courses we had was prepared and served with such a mastery that we thought we are at the resturant with micheline star chef- chapeau bas to the Chef - your courses are absolute masterpiece and the best of the best we tried on our 2-week trip in Portugal. Thank you for this experience :)