Saccharum Resort and Spa

Great place with regards to location, service, and standards. Food & drinks at the hotel restaurants and for breakfast were also really good. The room felt modern, thought through, tidy and clean. The surrounding area with the marina and closeness to nature made it easy to drive in and out and provided a calm and relaxing vibe.

First the positives: The best part of the Saccharum is the staff. They are attentive and helpful in every way. From the car to restaurant recommendations, they were always friendly and wonderful. Room: beautiful, calming, lovely, with ocean view and balcony. Housekeeping was very reliable. Now the rest: Yoga: twice per week at 11. If you do anything else in Madeira you will not be available for yoga at 11 AM. All of the offerings, like Pilates, yoga, etc. are at 11:00 AM. Seems by design. Spa: Swedish style massage. If you need deep tissue, do not expect that. Also: there’s an Upcharge for the use of the spa of 35 euro per day, not insignificant. Food: average at beach bar. Extremely mixed at 8th floor restaurant. The island of Madeira offers wonderful restaurants that are healthy and well priced within a 20 min drive. Coffee: there’s a Gato Legal booth across the street. Otherwise at Saccharum it’s Nespresso pods. After our experiences with food we quickly sought food elsewhere, so we did not try the “fancier” restaurants.

This hotel has stunning views but that’s where it ends. The wait staff at the bar are incredibly rude. Eye rolling. Blank stares. Horrible lunch. Breakfast buffet was good but two of the waitresses were so rude that we almost left. Lunch was awful. Drinks are watered down. No pool service two days in a row. The hotel is not clean on a 5 star level. It’s dark and you have to ask for clean sheets and towels. The mini bar is not a real mini bar and we were in an ocean view suite. The topper is that we were charged 175.00 for items that we did not purchase. As I stated earlier the views are stunning but this is a 2 star hotel at best.

I stayed at the Saccharum Hotel – Savoy Signature in Madeira for two nights and was deeply disappointed with the overall experience. The most serious issue was a cockroach that I found inside my suitcase, which had been on the floor in my room. I reported the incident to the front desk immediately, but there was no apology, no compensation, and no real concern. The staff’s reaction made it seem like this was not the first time something like this had happened. Despite its 5-star label, almost everything at the hotel comes with an extra charge – spa access, premium sunbeds, beach club entry, even water at breakfast, and parking. For a hotel that charges around €400 per night, this feels completely unjustified and undermines the luxury experience it advertises. The room itself lacked quality. There was no proper coffee machine, only instant coffee. The pool loungers were placed on artificial grass and made of synthetic leather, which was sticky and uncomfortable in the heat. Breakfast was well below expectations, with a very limited selection, no à la carte options, poor service, and self-service coffee from a machine. Even more frustrating was the overall atmosphere of the hotel: the pools and common areas were far too small for the number of guests. Everything felt overcrowded, chaotic, and noisy. The hotel presents itself as a tranquil, high-end retreat, but in reality it was packed with families and children, making it difficult to relax. I have stayed at two other Savoy hotels in Madeira in the past, and unfortunately those stays were also disappointing in quality and service. Based on repeated experience, I would not recommend any of the Savoy properties. This chain does not live up to the standards it claims to offer.

The postives. Spa treatments excellent Bedding very comfortable and spacious rooms Excellent choice at breakfast, pancakes are the best! Location is ideal as gives many options. Staff are very friendly and helpful Beach bar bao buns excellent Negatives Waiting staff not grasped the basis, especially at breakfast, Not all gym equipment switched on for use during the morning. Waiting times for food unbearable at times, over an hour for simple brushetta at 9pm in the fly lounge Waited over an hour for food on the beach bar as their systems were down.