Pestana Grand Premium Ocean Resort

“Great experince”

Excellent service from check-in to check out. Would highly recommend this hotel. The food choice was great at half board. The room was comfortable with excellent room service and views of the sea and pool area. Funchal centre is 10 minutes away with plenty of restraunts and bars.

“From Our Mole in Madeira”

This was our first time in Madeira and it is a wonderful place. If you like driving through tunnels, Madeira is the place for you! I doubt there can be anywhere in the world with more tunnels per mile. Or kilometre. We hired a car and, after reading many reviews, went for a larger model but I wou... more

This was our first time in Madeira and it is a wonderful place. If you like driving through tunnels, Madeira is the place for you! I doubt there can be anywhere in the world with more tunnels per mile. Or kilometre. We hired a car and, after reading many reviews, went for a larger model but I would actually suggest an automatic may be better than simply a bigger engine. Although a challenge, driving is fine and don't be put off....it's part of the adventure. The Pestana Grand is a lovely hotel staffed by very nice people. As many other people have said, it's not a grand 5 star hotel that you can compare to the Ritz so don't expect that. In reality, you're not paying for that level of luxury either. Also, as many other people say, it's largely the food that lets it down. The buffet is the main culprit which is disappointing in both quality and quantity. For the two weeks we were there, every morning one of the two coffee machines would break down and the machine that dispenses various juices would serve warm juice....or sometimes just warm water into one gulp tiny glasses. You need a cheery face to brave going for a freshly cooked omelette or slice of bacon as the chef is always very busy and, perhaps understandably, has no time for a smile. The three internal restaurants that you must book in advance are better than the buffet. I'm sorry to say that I would probably put the food as a 3 star overall. I was also disappointed with the bed sheets...of all things! The sheets were always too small and only reached the end of the bed so couldn't be tucked in. This happened every day and wasn't because of the bed maker who did what she could. Oddly, many of the towels were not 'fluffy' towels that you might expect at a 5 star premises but were thin and poor quality. This changed from day to day as if they had two different stocks to get through. Overall, the hotel itself is very clean and 'posh', the staff are friendly and professional. It is in a great location. Sophia at 'Customer Care' and the bar staff were super. If the food improved, this would be an amazing hotel.

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“Birthday holiday break.”

We’re just back from a lovely stay at this hotel. We were made to feel really valued, with bubbly in our room on our return from a day out to celebrate my birthday, and greeted with a happy birthday at breakfast that morning. Nothing seemed too much trouble, and booking the other non buffet res... more

We’re just back from a lovely stay at this hotel. We were made to feel really valued, with bubbly in our room on our return from a day out to celebrate my birthday, and greeted with a happy birthday at breakfast that morning. Nothing seemed too much trouble, and booking the other non buffet restaurants for the evenings was simple, with the use of a console in reception. We couldn’t get in one evening, but the lovely lady on Customer relations helped & manually made a booking. There are a few reasons why I didn’t give a 5, but really they are just niggles which could easily be sorted. The lady who does the show cooking of eggs at breakfast could be a little bit more cheery in her work. I get that it’s not a thrilling job, but a smile never goes amiss…and queues built up while she did one thing at a time! The menu and service in the Madeira themed restaurant weren’t fabulous, and we experienced food being left to go cold on the pass while staff dealt with other things both in here, and in the Italian, but the chef in the Italian was great, and saw what was happening, took his gloves off and delivered the food to our table himself, for which I made sure to thank him! Also, the indoor pool and spa area clearly says under 14’s must be supervised by adults, but this is not monitored on a regular basis, and did feel a bit like a ‘drop your kids off’ on our last day, until a pool supervisor appeared and asked the unsupervised children to return to their parents! There were some lovely little details, like new beach towels folded as hearts, or other things on our bed, and nothing was too much trouble if we asked for it. We definitely go back!

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“OK but not 5 Star”

Hotel somewhat out of town but close to a shopping centre and a 'pebble' beach. Food...hmmm ! Certainly Not the best but , have to say , not the worst and dont expect service with a smile. If u want a-la-carte book straight away as the spaces AND selections are (apparently) few...not quite "what ... more

Hotel somewhat out of town but close to a shopping centre and a 'pebble' beach. Food...hmmm ! Certainly Not the best but , have to say , not the worst and dont expect service with a smile. If u want a-la-carte book straight away as the spaces AND selections are (apparently) few...not quite "what it says on the tin". Room ok if a little tired and selection of evening entertainment not quite our thing - thank god for football on TV- First stay in Madeira and it is a fabulous Island but there are doubtless better hotels.

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