Jardim Do Vau

“Excellent stay”

Stayed for 10 nights. We had a 2 bedroom sea view apartment which was massive! Travelled with our daughters (11 and 14) they shared the twin room and had the main bathroom to themselves as we had an en-suite in the main bedroom. Lovely balcony with fantastic view of the sea. The pool area was great… more

Stayed for 10 nights. We had a 2 bedroom sea view apartment which was massive! Travelled with our daughters (11 and 14) they shared the twin room and had the main bathroom to themselves as we had an en-suite in the main bedroom. Lovely balcony with fantastic view of the sea. The pool area was great, never a problem getting sunbeds even at 11am. They do not allow inflatables or ball games in the main pool. The restaurant and pool bar was good if not a bit over priced. The food is nice and very well presented. Daniel the manager was very welcoming and works extremely hard to make sure you are well looked after. Location The hotel is located right on the beach which is lovely. It’s about a 20 minutes walk into Praia de Rocha which is pretty lively without being a party town, it’s very family friendly with lots of restaurants and bars. Would recommend Bulli and Pute Italian and Casa de Rocha. We had one night in Alvor which is definately worth a visit, very good atmosphere in the evening with some amazing looking restaurants. We did not hire a car, used Uber for getting around, it’s only about £4.50 to get back from Praia de Rocha, and about £8 to Alvor, but we ended up walking back from Praia de Rocha most nights. Would definately recommend the hotel.

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“A lovely hotel which doesn't fulfil its potential.”

The whole hotel was very clean and the housekeeping staff did a wonderful job servicing our apartments each day. The bed and bedding were all great quality and we slept well. The shower tray in the main bathroom did not drain well at all and would often fill up so it was a race to see if I could fi… more

The whole hotel was very clean and the housekeeping staff did a wonderful job servicing our apartments each day. The bed and bedding were all great quality and we slept well. The shower tray in the main bathroom did not drain well at all and would often fill up so it was a race to see if I could finish my shower before it overflowed 😂 the balcony is spacious with a table and chairs, plus sun loungers. Our main problem was the lack of entertainment, there isn't much to do locally. We asked staff if there was anything near by and we were just told 'the beach' they failed to mention the little row of restaurants and bars at the back of the hotel just outside the gate near to the pool. The restaurant and bar on site was incredibly quiet but it was end of season. None of the games facilities for the kids worked and neither did the vending machine. Pedro and Sasha were our servers and were very attentive and friendly. A lot of the staff around the resort didn't even acknowledge us which I found very strange. The lady on reception was very well informed whenever I asked questions on the best way to get anywhere. We visited Alvore which is a lovely little place with a marina and some fresh fish restaurants and also we visited Zoomarine which my kids loved, definitely worth a visit. They operate a shuttle bus which I believe you can book through the app. We chose to go via uber and it was around €25-28 each way. You can take snacks and your own drinks however there's lot of places to purchase when inside. There was one night when it sounded like people were in the pool until after 1am. The sound echoes and despite being in an apartment at the front, I could hear it clearly in my bedroom at the back. It didn't bother me too much but it was quite loud and I didn't hear anyone intervene. The main pool is very deep, even at its shallowest it is 1.45m...at its deepest it is 2.5. As a non swimmer I chose not to go in as I'm only conformable when I can stand up. My kids loved it, although there is no life guard on site, my kids are confident swimmers. The beaches and cliffs are stunning. The sound of the waves crashing each night is so peaceful to fall to sleep to and whilst our apartment was a land view apartment, our bedroom doors looked out over the ocean. The pool bar is advertised as being open until October 31st but was not open at all during our stay and no explanation as to why. The mini market I found some things quite pricey and not much choice, we used uber Eats often. The shop closes between 1-3 and then at 8pm. On Sundays it closes at 6pm. I feel that this hotel could be much more than it is, with some entertainment and a little more attention paid to the customer experience it could be exceptional. Having said that, we had a pleasant, restful stay in a beautiful country and we're fortunate to have great weather.

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“A very honest review... ”

We visited Jardim do Vau for 12 days in December for Christmas . 2 adults 3 children . First impressions weren't very good as the exterior and overall look of the hotel look very dated. The lift is very small. We stayed in block D room 109. There is a bit of a sea view however the block infront … more

We visited Jardim do Vau for 12 days in December for Christmas . 2 adults 3 children . First impressions weren't very good as the exterior and overall look of the hotel look very dated. The lift is very small. We stayed in block D room 109. There is a bit of a sea view however the block infront cuts out the view. The 2 bed apartment was quite spacious, very clean and included good facilities such as a washer dryer and a dishwasher. However we had issues with the kettle. It never switched off when boiled. Other room issues were the toilets, one didn't flush well and the other didn't seem to stop flushing ! The bedding smelt really nice, bed was comfortable however mattress did have hard springs. The tv has a good range of channels including sky sports , Disney, cbeebies, sky news, itv , BBC . There's a manual on the tv (somewhere above channel 118 I think!) you'll find it useful as you don't get any info at check it. The kids enjoyed the onsite park. There's a huge trampoline, swings, slide , roundabout and see-saw. The beach is beautiful. The main negative is the hotel is very noisy...the walls-floors-ceilings are very thin that you hear everybody else. At night all we could hear was people stamping across the floors and furniture being scraped along the floor which resulted in us not sleeping very well!! Maybe we were just unfortunate to be placed under a family of elephants and people who liked to stay up all night... The indoor swimming pool has strict rules. No inflatables and swimming caps must be worn. They provide these for 4 euro each. Sauna and steam room is 5 euro. There's a mini shop at the hotel. It's quite small and not much choice but you will use it as there's no other close shops nearby. It's a steep uphill walk to praia da rocha, around 20 mins, where there is shops , restaurants and fast food. We used uber to get around as it was quick and easy. We visited lagos zoo which was nice, it's around 30 mins away and costs around 22-30 euro in uber. The fishing village Alvor is nearby but very quiet and not much to do there unless you want a different scene and a nice seafood restaurant . Overall it's OK and good if you want a rural hotel with nice walks and beaches. I would have rated it a 4 but the noise and lack of sleep due to the noise brings it to a 3 .

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“good and not so good!”

We stayed a week at the end of August at Jardim du Vau. The hotel is perhaps a bit tired in appearance although our room was fine. The block we were in however had the air conditioning unit sited on the balcony, which meant that you could not sit outside if you wanted to keep the rooms cool. The r… more

We stayed a week at the end of August at Jardim du Vau. The hotel is perhaps a bit tired in appearance although our room was fine. The block we were in however had the air conditioning unit sited on the balcony, which meant that you could not sit outside if you wanted to keep the rooms cool. The receptionists were all helpful although a bit of customer training would not go amiss when stuck on a phone call. On a number of occasions the receptionist was on the phone whilst guests waited. An acknowledgement that you were waiting and would be attended to shortly would be a professional touch. The restaurant and bars were, I think, franchised out and it was a mixed bag. Some of the staff (Daniel particularly) were excellent but a couple, if they smiled during the week then we missed it! The outside bar didn't open until lunchtime, a bit strange and a lost opportunity, but it's food was good. The restaurant/ cocktail bar was a different issue. There was no air-conditioning so not a comfortable environment. It did not encourage you to stay and have a drink. One evening at 2215 we asked for a cocktail but was told it was too late, even though closing time was 2300 The restaurant's organisation left a lot to be desired. The two coffee machines, when working, were incredibly slow as was the toaster. The hot breakfast was served in bain-marie's but frequently it took an age to be replenished. One morning there was a 20min wait for a scrabbled egg refill. At least it gave the toast a chance to brown! One evening we decided to try the buffet. What a disaster - the lasagne and fish had gone, leaving only the remnants of a very nice stroganoff. Some replacement dishes did finally arrive, a deep fried fish of fish cake consistency and a chicken offering along similar lines. Not impressive and didn’t bother again. Overall the hotel is a curates egg, some good bits and some not so good!

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