Rentals in Algarve — Hotel in Albufeira

Have been using Rentals in the Algarve for a few years but unfortunately can no longer recommend. There is a big lack of response when communicating with the management team. Emails often go unanswered even if dealing with major issues. A large number of the units are in the Cerro Branco apartment hotel complex. This complex is not being properly maintained and is deteriorating. Apartments are individually owned and quite a few are getting very old and dated. A few have been renovated. We stayed here for an extended time. Had a large number of issues including black mold, electrical issues, cockroaches, and an ant infestation. Was not the vacation we were looking for. We were given the opportunity to move but still had many issues even in the "newer" apartment. Management will not tell you about the issues or differences in the units ahead of time. Be forewarned as well that some units have a large number of steps to get in and out of the complex and that is not disclosed in the listings either. (Ours had 73 steps to get to street level)

Response It is unfortunate this company prefers to continue disputes, instead of making its customers a priority. There are a number of inaccuracies in their response. If they spent the time dealing promptly with customers emails and communications, we would probably not have ended up with some the messes we did during our stay. So to clear up some of the inaccurate information in their response here are the actual facts:

Not all of the initial issues were dealt with and numerous issues continued to surface (also not always dealt with). It took 6 weeks before we were given the opportunity to move. A move only came about when we discovered a large area of black mold in the bedroom and told them we were looking for other accommodations and wanted a refund for the next 2+ months, on the unit we had fully paid for, in advance.

They charged us more for moving to the 2nd unit and we told them we would pay, but we also asked for compensation for some ruined items and things we had to dispose of. They ignored the initial email we sent regarding compensation until our last few days in town. In fact we had an email from them at 6:44 pm on the 18th, the night before our departure (at which point their office was closed).

We departed on our scheduled departure date of April 19 (I don’t believe notice of departure is required when you leave on your departure date nor did they ask for one) and as our flight was at 9:30 am we departed the property at 6:00 am. Their office does not open until 10:00 am and we were still In communication and negotiation re compensation with them, so really not sure what they expected. We departed on a Saturday and transferred the funds to them on the Wednesday 23rd as soon as we could get to our bank (Monday 21st was a bank holiday and we live rurally, a distance from our bank).

New Year’s Eve was lovely,  very memorable, and much appreciated however this is in reference to business practices. We were there for 3 ½ months, much of that time was dealing with one issue or another which is what this review is about.

The first unit we were in should never have been rented out, particularly to a long term customer. It was substandard but we were charged standard rates and from conversations, they knew in advance it was a unit not up to par. We were very disappointed they rented this unit to us instead of another unit.

Yes we had looked into coming again next year earlier in our stay, but had decided on our end that we could not spend our time and money here again given all the issues and how they were (or weren’t) dealt with. We never tried to confirm the stay.

Overall experience this year was very disappointing for our first long term, retirement rental. We had trusted this company to rent us suitable accommodations and be responsive to issues that arose. It seems that over the last year or two there has been a noticeable change with long...

Stayed in Cerro Branco apartment. Ground floor (down steps as built into a hill).Well equipped. Hob, Fan oven with built in grill. Washing machine. Pool and grounds well maintained.

Was met by Antonio and shown apartment. He was on hand should we need anything.

Central location. Great restaurants at end of street. Old town within ten minutes...

Really kind and amazing people, due to our young daughter, we had many requests for them but they were kind enough to fulfill...