Martinhal Sagres Family Resort

Overall my family had a nice experience and we enjoyed our time at Martinhal. However there were important cons that left me disappointed. In short, the main issue was the lack of transparency at how limited the services will be during Jan prior to booking and during check-in, and the fact that the staff, who was wonderful, seemed to work unacceptably long shifts (same faces from morning till night). PROS - I cannot stress enough how lovely was the staff across the board (very friendly and we always received timely attention when anything needed solving) - wrlcome package in our apartment was thoughtful and useful - everything is adapted to families with children with a good amount of child friendly amenities and activities even during reduced service season (January) - indoor pool area was a hit with our LO and free sauna and steam room were available - good quality food on site with allergens displayed on the menu. Kitchen flexible enough to adapt items to those with multiple intolerances. Good coffe and multiple veg meal and milk options available. - restaurants provide a kids play corner with adult supervision during meals - meal/activity booking system was convenient and meal delivery was available - wonderful location and views, in vicinity of beautiful sights and supermarkets - comfortable beds - our LO had a lot of fun and went down like a log every evening CONS - it seemed that the staff spent an average of 16 hours a day on premises (there for breakfast, lunch and dinner) which is a business practice I do not approve of - significantly reduced service in Jan/Feb of which we were NOT notified in advance of booking and negotiating price - we were not notified in advance that despite paying for half board a portion of the menu required additional payment - while we knew drinks were not included in the half board, neither was water. the restaurants do not provide tap water due to it not tasting very nice, but they do charge 4.50 for 750 ml of filtered water. On our first day we were even told that the water is not safe to drink when we asked for tap which is absolutely not true. A hotel of this rating and cost should really provide unlimited, good tasting water to their clients for no extra charge in my opinion. - we were not notified that 2 of the 3 restaurants will be closed and the remaining restaurant is fish focused with very limited non fish/seafood options many of which required additional payment despite prepaying for half-board. Our child is allergic to fish so we avoid eating it when having meals together. - the open restaurant is basically made of glass and certain meals were had in jackets - pool changing rooms were absolutely freezing - additional indoor or rain/wind shielded playground would have bee a nice to have - the sofa in our apartment was ridiculously small

4 months ago

Excellent stay for the cost. Nice resort, incredibly family-friendly with a few restaurants on site to choose from, a few pools, and on site activities including dirt bike track (peddle), bike rentals and tours into the town, a few restaurants. Local grocery store in just a few minutes away in the town as are a number of great surfing options. The resort has a good amount of beach space, beautiful views, and standard rooms. They also offer large villas for rent with private pools. On-site child care/daycare services in two location (smaller babies in main checkin building and toddler and up ages in another care building near the playground). Lots of play spaces around and really wonderful for younger families. There is a spa onsite very walkable to the main areas. Massage services were great and staff was very friendly and professional.

2 months ago

We had a wonderful stay at Martinhal and overall the experience truly lived up to its reputation as a premium, family-focused resort. The villa was beautiful and well maintained, the facilities were excellent, and the resort is exceptionally well designed for families. Our son had an amazing time, and as parents we really appreciated the comfort, cleanliness, and thoughtful details throughout the property. One small point of feedback relates to the handling of an extraordinary situation. On the 28th, due to severe weather, there was a city-wide outage of water and electricity — clearly outside of the hotel’s control, and something we fully understood. However, during this time the villa was not usable for several hours, and communication and support could have been more proactive. Aside from this isolated incident, everything else about our stay was excellent, and we truly enjoyed our time at Martinhal. We would happily return.

4 months ago