Quinta Do Arco

In summary: a superb natural setting totally ruined by a lack of hygiene and serious maintenance, a 4-star rating that corresponds to nothing on-site, and a staff who do not take complaints seriously. A report will also be made to the Turismo de Portugal. Positive points The view and the garden are magnificent, even if certain areas are clearly not maintained (a large, unconcealed basin sits at the entrance). The two pools feel very good after a hike, despite aging basins and damaged lounge chairs. Breakfast and the restaurant are good but be careful, they seem to be managed by an external partner and do not belong to the hotel. Negative points From the moment of booking: I had booked a room in the new apartments for 3 people. Following the addition of a 4th person, the establishment asked me to switch to a “quadruplex villa.” Two days before our arrival, I was told that this villa could actually only accommodate 3 people despite its name, and that we had to book two much more expensive hotel rooms. I had to produce the written exchanges proving that I had been offered this villa for 4 people to assert my rights. This episode reveals a real coordination problem between the Pestana group and the hotel itself. Another example of this same dysfunction: my initial reservation clearly specified 3 adults and a 14-year-old child. A few weeks before our arrival, I was informed that the child would be charged as an adult, meaning an additional €30 per person per night not announced at the start (about €200 over 6 nights). Upon our arrival, this supplement was ultimately not charged to us—without explanation, which confirms that there is a real lack of communication between the Pestana group and the establishment. First villa (villa 10, at the very top): magnificent view, but very old-fashioned and dark furnishings (the old style does not bother me in itself, if it is maintained, which was not the case). The children’s sofa bed was just a 3-4 cm mattress with springs sticking out, on torn and dirty sheets. The upstairs bathroom was a bathtub without a plug used as a shower, in which even a child could not stand up. Dirty curtains smelling of mold, like the 2 miserable drawers available. Change of villa: after one night, we complained to the front desk and were easily relocated, to villa number, I discovered later, while reading other reviews, that this is apparently a common practice for the hotel. We were also offered a dinner for 4 at the partner restaurant. Second villa: larger, brighter, four real beds, but very quickly we discovered widespread filth: cleaning not done, spiderwebs and spiders everywhere (including above the headboards), and when night fell, huge cockroaches in the kitchen and bathroom. Complaints without response: email sent that very evening to the hotel and to Booking, no response from the hotel (as with all previous emails, 6 or 7 in total). A “deep clean” promised at the front desk was still not done by 3 p.m. Once completed, the villa was in the same condition; I myself showed crushed cockroaches to the cleaning employee, who simply rolled her eyes. At the front desk, I was then told that we were “in nature” and that it was normal to have cockroaches. An isolated spider that came in through a window, no problem, but spiderwebs everywhere and cockroaches in large numbers signal a real lack of maintenance, not nature. Outcome: after several days without a response despite €2000 paid for 6 nights!!!, we returned to the front desk to demand our departure and a full refund for the last 3 nights. The receptionist claimed to have received none of our emails, even though we had indeed sent them, both to the hotel and via Booking messaging. The manager finally agreed to fully refund us for the 3 remaining nights, which is half of the stay. In parallel, Booking, which was very responsive and supported us well throughout the process, informed us the next morning that they had not managed to reach an agreement with the Pestana group??? In other words: the hotel refunded us on its own initiative, but the Pestana group refused the request, a new blatant example of the lack of internal coordination already noted since the reservation. In conclusion, we found for the same price a new 4* establishment worthy of the name and finished our stay serene after 3 days wasted by this hotel which is clearly a scam!

We had 3 nights booked at an AirBnb in Porto da Cruz. Our first day we did some exploring and got directed to the rose gardens here. We toured the beautiful grounds and gardens and then the Rose Garden and decided to ditch our last 2 nights and stay here. Some of the best gardens we’ve seen on Maderia (even beating Monte Palace in Funchal). Great pool, nice sized rooms and beds. A quiet little town that we could walk through the town and to several lookout spots not far away (one of the only spots we stayed in Madeira that we could walk near our stay). The restaurant is very nice (don’t miss the Vichyssoise or duck or Passion fruit Mousse). Wish we had stayed here longer!

If the reception and the gardens have a lot of charm, the rooms are completely devoid of it. Some of the rooms in our group smelled bad (moisture or sewage); the towels were so old that they slipped away. In a place where everyone comes by car, there is by no means enough parking in the hotel and around there is no more place to park. The restaurant, where breakfasts are also served, is far from the rooms - you have to leave the property and cross a road. No problem when it is good weather, but if it rains a lot it will be quite unpleasant. Still about breakfast – in a hotel of this level (they advertise 4 stars, but it is not at all 4 stars), you have to pay extra to drink a cappuccino. And you have to pay right after breakfast, nor are they allowed to add to the room bill. In short, weak experience.