Hotels near Convent of the Capuchos, Colares

Rating 0/5 - Exceptions to this RATING - Are the polite & extremely helpful Jessica @ the front desk & Andre the Rooms Manager who went out of their respective ways to meet any requirements needed. Firstly, my reservation was booked 2 months prior yet NO NOTIFICATION that the Hotel name & brand had changed a couple weeks prior. With a few street signs & the massive New Name signage on the hotel marquis , I was not notified of the NH Re- Branding. I was told that ALL guests were notified of this Change of Corporate Re- Branding . When I explain this to the Day front Desk Manager his reply was nothing they can do as it all comes from Head Office (poor apology ). I checked all previous correspondence & no such emails were received by me despite being assured that notifications were sent to all arriving guests! After an 8 hour flight from Toronto Canada & driving past the hotel 3 times up & down one way streets, finally parked & asked where is the Tivoli Sintra Hotel? I was directed in its direction. Jessica @ the front desk walked back with me to my car ( got in with my wife & I ) & guided us through the streets to the hotel. Wonderful ! Andre was most attentive & any request was followed through with the expertise & care of a 5 star manager (a hand written note expressing his desire to be of service should we require anything) was in our room . COMMENDABLE! Now my rating is based not on these two wonderful caring staff But the other staff & room encounters. The shower head kept falling down on the bar so could only be used by hand . The evening front desk manager came to the room & apologizing said it would be repaired in the morning, still not corrected by next day. I asked for 4 towels as the shower floor was soaking wet ( said could give us ONLY 2 ) from the ill functioning shower-head, also the sink faucet spout that spewed water over the entire area (poor design) choice. The house maid came & cleaned entire bathroom that evening so we could still use it the next day - lovely lady despite no English we gestured what was required and she met our expectations. The following day we went @9:30 pm for a late light dinner. After being seated by a bus boy who did not provide us with table settings, we waited 10 minutes as the Waiter walked by us twice with no acknowledgment as to our presence (saying he would be with us momentarily would have been considerate). He proceeded to serve another table 3 feet from us, who were asking for additional drinks as they were obviously there for some time dining. We finally got up from the table & in dismay the waiter looked at us. We stated that being ignored & as guests of the hotel were upset with this level of disrespect & lack of hospitality professionalism. Lastly, I had sent an email at the time of booking advising of this being a special 70 th Birthday trip for my wife, to the hotel Manager that any niceties that could be offered would be appreciated. Not even a note ! As I am writing this in our Fig

The hotel is very close to the railway station, and it is easy to find it according to the navigation. The outside courtyard is beautiful, and the lobby and public areas are also beautiful. However, because it is an old house, there is no elevator, and if you live on a high floor, you have to carry your suitcase to go up. This is basically the problem in hotels where you live in old houses in Portugal. We booked a suite with a small loft and a small balcony outside the loft with a nice view. Breakfast is their own coffee shop, not with the place where they live, it is very close, less than 5 minutes. Breakfast is Western style, with bread, cheese, desserts, fruits, a cup of juice and coffee per person, which is quite hearty.

The staff were so friendly and helpful with the travel advice and ideas of what to do and where to go. The breakfast provided was great!! Surfing activities and yoga classes were available to do which is pretty cool! And on some evenings there was an opportunity to have a freshly cooked meal and drinks (margaritas) with other hostel dwellers (for an additional cost) Shared dormitories, bathrooms and shower rooms were incredibly clean and well maintained! Fully recommend 100% value for money!!

We arrived here early, long before check-in. We waited in the lounge, which was comfortable enough, and noticed guests arriving after us were being allocated thier rooms before us, no reason given. We had booked 2 balcony rooms, only to be put in the basement with a ”garden room”, no view, dark and dingy. I complained and in fairness we were moved the following day, although we were put two floors apart, not ideal as we were travelling as one party. One of our party was taken unwell and the Reception staff could not have been more unhelpful, flatly refusing to call a doctor. Having worked in the travel business in this resort I can honestly say that I have never stayed in such an unfriendly, unhelpful hotel. I would never even consider staying at this awful place again, let alone recommend it to anyone else. Please pay a little more and stay in a decent hotel as far away from this one as possible.