Pestana Blue Alvor Beach - All Inclusive Hotel

When I booked the hotel for my Birthday, my elderly mum was coming so I requested a adjoining room, we couldn't of been further away on the same floor. Our room had a bed and a place to hang a few clothes, no Drawers, no seats. The bathroom had not been updated there was black around the taps etc, on the 5th night I started to run the bath and the water was brown, I went to report it at reception and he said that's not good for your health we will move you, the room we moved to was lovely had everything. One day in the restaurant I went to get a coke I put my glass under and started to pour it was frothy and I wondered what all the bits were, to my shock there was 15 to 20 ants in, I went to the manager at the door and told him he said oh yes we know about that problem, we will switch the machine off, it put me on one the rest of the holiday. We were going to the beach one day, walking around past the pool my mum nearly tripped in a hole which had not been filled in, my husband got a big pot and put it over the hole and reported it again to the manager when we left nothing had been done. We went in to the restaurant one evening and it was filled with smoke from the chef who was cooking she had not switched the extractor fan on, it was stinging people's eyes, and making people cough, a member of staff was asked why the smoke detector had not gone off and he said they had switched it off. There was a practice fire alarm for the staff when we were there, the alarm could not be heard by many elderly people and some people thought it was there mobiles. Don't get me wrong the hotel is lovely the staff are lovely, but the management are diabolical, they have a young man working behind the bar in the entertainment room on his own all day and night yes he had ques but he was so good at his job, also in the bar opposite the reception a young man on his own serving, again ques but he did a dam good job. The Restaurant staff what there was of them not many at all were lovely and hardworking but there was not enough staff, tables not getting cleared, glasses and cups not being replenished, soft drinks machines either not turned on or running out, same with the hot drinks machines, the food was barely warm, not a great selection, I like my food hot and kept having to bother one of the staff to put my food in the microwave in the kitchen, I did speak to the manager about them having a microwave out, then people could use it, he said great suggestion but nothing was ever done. The Entertainment was not brill but the staff tried there best, not alot of people went in due to them having a very strong smell of sewerage, it was there 8 out of 11 nights of our holiday. One of the nights my mum slipped in the shower banged her arm and head and lay there for half an hour as she could not get out due to being no hand rail, there were holes where it should of been, thus made her quite unwell. Now to me this is the worst thing, I would take my mum up to her room about16:

Hotel lovely, rooms spacious & clean. Waiters, waitresses, cleaners etc all lovely, friendly but hotel very under staffed, workers over worked. Biggest letdown by far is the restaurant, the food is the worst I have encountered in a all inclusive. Food was cold a lot of the time, things were not topped up, so depending on what time you arrived for your meal was dependent on what you got! Tables were not cleared but that was due to not enough staff. Salt was limited to one salt cellar for the whole restaurant! No teaspoons only wooden sticks!! The positives are there are lots of sunbeds, the hotel is clean, the staff are lovely however I will not be visiting again.

Lovely hotel needs improvement. For the most part, the hotel is lovely. Bar staff amazing though under staffed and overworked. Clean hotel and great location. Restaurant is its biggest let down. Did not see the food and beverage manager once in the restaurant. They know the issues, but seem reluctant to fix them as the reviews are all the same. No organisation. Not enough basics. Difficult to get drinks. Food not replenished. Labels bad. One of the worst things about this hotel unfortunately is the TUI rep. 15 years of holidays with TUI and she did not care. Was rude and basically told us we should have paid more if we wanted a better holiday, apparently has said this to others, and dismissed complaints. Real let down. After care from TUI also terrible. TUI web page has inaccurate info also about the hotel , which they need to change or they should compensate for false advertising.

Stayed in better three stars We paid for the upgrade to sea view but you could just see the sea, it was in fact a pool view and noisy all day and evening. The room was lovely and spotlessly clean. the bathroom was horrible. The Lou seat was so old and full of cracks it was uncomfortable and unhygienic. The bath was disgusting, the surface had gone leaving a brown under layer you could not sit in, so no baths for the week. The surround to the bath had significant mould in the corners, this bathroom had obviously not been renewed. The toilet bowl was covered in black scratches.We complained and it took three requests and two days for the Lou seat to be changed. One day our bin in the bathroom mysteriously disappeared and two requests and again two days for another to be provided I will try to attach photos of the bathroom .On one occasion when we complained we were offered to view another room with a view to moving but we were only there for one week and losing another half day moving and reorganising a new room seems daunting when you are elderly. Replenishment of tea, coffee etc was hit and miss and we ended up taking it from the restaurant so we could have our early morning cup of tea. Pools, sun bathing areas were large and well kept. Towel service good. The restaurant, what can I say, On arrival I informed the reception that I am coeliac (cannot eat wheat) they told me my meals would be provided from the kitchen . The only offerings where plain whitefish, white rice and a piece of lettuce. I may have been able to eat other things but the labelling was so poor and never any staff free to ask . One night they did offer me gluten free ice cream as I had no t been able to eat any of the other deserts , we waited 40 minutes it never arrived! The food was either tepid or cold and I am surprised we only met three guests who had had bad stomachs from it. The choice of food was very poor. The tables were not cleared and reset so it was difficult to find a clean table to eat at. Most evenings we were on desert before any pots from the previous courses were cleared which made it difficult as the two person tables were so small. Every morning there were never any bowls to eat cereal and it took on average ten minutes before they were replenished. They were constantly running out of wine glasses and one evening we had finished three courses before we could have a glass of wine. The drinks machines were constantly empty and we had to go from machine to machine around the restaurant to find one that had what we wanted. One night the restaurant filled with smoke and should have been cleared. I could not breathe One evening the bubbles bar did not have any whisky which is all my husband drinks plus they had to close half the lounge down due to a leak so there was nowhere to sit, it remained closed for the rest of our stay. TUi description stated we could eat at each of the two themed restaurants during our stay, we could not ge

This is a lovely hotel with really nice rooms, staff, pool area and location. It’s sadly let down by a very poor standard of food and lack of service in the restaurant - we are regular travellers and this was a huge disappointment towards the enjoyment of our holiday - lunches were ok - breakfast would have been fine if not cold - evening meals were very poor apart from the themed surf and turf restaurant. Hopefully they get their act together in the restaurant as would be expected of a hotel of their rating.

We had another very enjoyable stay at the hotel. We returned for a second time having had a great stay at the same hotel last year when it was Pestana Delfim. Positives from this stay - we had a lovely room again facing the sea. The rooms are modern, very clean, very comfortable with very good air conditioning. The bathroom is large and has lot of space. Housekeeping does a good job. - we again enjoyed the salad range and fish on the buffet and the food was nice though somewhat repetitive. Really do NOT LIKE that they serve rabbit…cruel and pls stop it. - the entertainment was good, particularly the female Portuguese singer on Tuesday nights. The entertainment team is friendly and enthusiastic. - the staff are very helpful and friendly - the selection of liqueurs was far better this time with Baileys, Kahlua, etc now available. - really must mention the bartender at Coral Bar who was particularly amazing. Long queues, on his own and he made the drinks with tremendous speed, showing zero stress. The bartender at the Bubbles Bar is also good and both provide good service. - the swimming pool area and close proximity to the beach is always a big plus for this hotel Things needing improvement from this stay - the service in the buffet restaurant was an issue this time and we had to wait for a long time for wine glasses, cereal bowls, spoons. On one occasion tables were dirty and left uncleared and we had to set our own table with whatever clean crockery, cutlery we could find. - last year when we stayed we really liked the fact that the main swimming pool area was non smoking. Had seen a staff member even approaching a woman who was smoking and asking her not to. This time was disappointing to see smoking being allowed in the pool area. - the snacks buffet in the bar was better last time with a better selection of cakes, etc. The snack truck was closed this time but that is not an issue at all if only the snack bar was good like last time. - Beware of the young, female hotel photographer who very nicely ensnares hotel guests for photos and then wants 30 euros for 6 very average photos. When you say you want only 3, she immediately ups the price to 10 euros for one and 20 euros for 3. Our only unpleasant experience at the hotel as felt like a scam. Overall we once again had a splendid stay at this hotel and look forward to returning to Pestana Blue Alvor. Don’t know what it is but this this hotel feels much nicer and more special than other beach holiday resorts.

We stayed at this hotel for a week from 9th May 2024. Hotel is clean and refurbished to a good standard. The animation team worked very hard to keep guests occupied. Morning walks with animation team were adventurous. Good service overall. Thank you

The hotel has only just reopened at the start of May following refurbishment, and we stayed for a 10 day period from 2-12 May. We had a great time. Our room was on the 14th floor and had a fabulous view over Alvor and the beach. All of the staff were excellent and the company have done a great job in training their team. Particularly impressed with the way the entertainment team found out the names of all of the guests and spoke to them daily. The restaurant was well laid out with plenty of food of all kinds. Bars were well stocked and the bar staff ensured drinks were quickly served. I have always thought that ethos of a hotel can sometimes be shown by how effectively they deal with problems. Well, my sister in law and her husband were initially located in the room next to ours. On the late afternoon of our first day they discovered a problem with a water leak in the bathroom. We flagged this up to reception and within a short period of time the team found them another room on the 12th floor . To compensate them for having to move, the room was much larger and with a substantial balcony. A great service. In addition to the large circular pool, there is an infinity pool in a quieter area of the hotel reserved for adults. You don’t have to fear about not getting a sun bed, there seems to be sufficient for every guest. Additionally you can get a fresh beach towel daily if required. One plus point is that the beach is less than 300 mtrs from the hotel. If you prefer bars and restaurants in Alvor then they are around a 20 min walk.