Pine Cliffs Ocean Suites, Algarve

I don’t normally post reviews however after reading the recent negative reviews, feel I should offer some reassurance to anyone visiting soon. Reception staff were welcoming, professional and most helpful in resolving a supermarket delivery issue I had booked. Our 2 bed penthouse suite in Ocean View Suites was spacious and well equipped with wonderful views from the 3 balconies. Shortly after settling into our suite a beautiful birthday cake and champagne was delivered followed by some delicate chocolates and a box of treats for my grandaughter. This was unexpected and much appreciated. We ate in resort on several occasions and again service and staff, especially in Corda Cafe were friendly and professional. Yes I would agree that prices in resort are expensive but there is the option to self cater or eat outside the resort however the setting of the Sunset Bar and Gin Bar is stunning and worth paying for After a busy Mediterranean cruise, we had a wonderful relaxing break. I have visited before and will most certainly visit again.

I've been to the Pine Cliffs Hotel several times since 2004 when it used to be under a different brand name. And, unfortunately, in the last 4 years my experiences there have been worse and worse. Now, it's not a luxury hotel at all in my opinion. It's a busy resort focused on making money on everything with declined services without any special attention to the guests and this attention to their guests makes hotels really special and luxurious (the lady at the reception at the check-in didn't pay attention at all that I went there for my birthday, so zero reaction from the hotel or the management). Of course, you will still have the same buildings, facilities (the gym is overcrowded, you may have to wait to have places outside for the breakfast) and, most importantly, the nature (this is the best part of this place - beautiful views over Praia da Falésia). But the facilities on the beach are poor and they still don't have any showers (which is really bad for a so-called 5-star luxury hotel).

Starting with positives -absolutely stunning resort can't fault the grounds, cleanliness and room -shuttle service is great -many of the staff are fantastic -Spa (although expensive) was amazing Negatives - the biggest thing was we emailed and requested a cot in the room, when we arrived after travelling all day no cot was in there and it's was 8pm. Asked for one they said they would bring it straight away. Ended up asking twice more. Someone turnt up about 40 minutes later with a high chair (which was broken) and by this point we were furious! Eventually we got one but this isn't acceptable AND we spoke to another couple and the same sort of thing happened to them. - cost. Everything is overpriced for what it is in my opinion. Pretty much all the food was not worth the cost. It wasn't bad food but for the prices it wasnt good enough. Breakfast got boring within a couple of days and wasn't 5* - service isn't 5*. Things like around the pool and gardens nobody came to offer us drinks etc and in the restaurants it was very slow. And this isn't even peak season Overall, I think the resort is getting away with being 5* based on the rooms and grounds. It didn't feel 5* in any other ways. I would consider returning but wouldn't be in a rush

The hotel is gorgeous, the beach and the rooms are nice but the service is terrible. At multiple points we were waiting so long for people to come to help us at the restaurants and the bars and no one was coming. It was extremely frustrating. It took over 25 minutes to get a drink at the gin bar after we ordered which was unfortunately common throughout my stay.

Overpriced resort masquerading as 5 star. I was so excited about this resort based on the photos. What the photos don’t show is the smell of sewage on the grounds, unfriendly staff, and so many flies and wasps buzzing around the breakfast buffet (which is almost inedible aside from the bread, by the way) that you can’t even sit down and enjoy a coffee. Our kids had 3-4 wasps buzzing around them as they tried to eat, which of course resulted in screaming and us having to leave. The Suites are outdated with ants crawling all over the place, black mold in the bathroom, toilet tissue holder broken, and it smelled like fish (We were advised to book it when asked for a location next to kids club). We switched to the Gardens which was better but I think it’s extremely confusing to try and book the “right” location. But at $700+ per night for the suites, they should be ashamed of the condition of those units. Everything is extremely overpriced for what you get. The food is average. A tiny bottle of water is 4£. The grounds felt unkept. The beach is beautiful, I will give it that. But you’re better off going to Dominican Republic if you want a relaxing beach resort. The staff at the front desk, the burger place, zest etc were all grumpy and acted annoyed you were even there. The staff at Mare were nice.