Pestana Cidadela Cascais — Hotel in Cascais

I came to the area for work, but decided to bring my wife and two daughters (three and five years old) to have a little getaway at the same time. We landed on the Pestana Cidadela Cascais because of the five star amenities and the historic and beautiful grounds it had seamlessly joined. We were not disappointed. In fact the opposite was true, it far surpassed our expectations.

It Is hard to miss the beautifully menacing fort with its sharp angles. As you enter through the main gate you are hit with this gorgeous strangeness with a tool built for war holding this gentle artistic hub. Past the art galleries and into the hotel, the grandeur continues with a sleek lobby, stunning bar area, and just an absolutely stunning hotel that just flows with the fort.

Now what truly made this stay special was the staff. From the get go we were greeted with a genuine smile at the reception and helped arrange for our room to be ready slightly ahead of time so we could get our two tired girls washed up and ready for an evening out. Next stop was some refreshments at the hotel restaurant in front of the hotel entrance across the courtyard.

Here we were rewarded with the presence of Nareen. Nareen went above and beyond in her service. Our little one tripped and scraped her knee and next thing we know is Nareen is kneeling down next to her with an ice cube against her knee and a big smile on her face comforting her directly. We ran into Nareen several times throughout the hotel and every single time it was an absolute joy.

Now getting to our room we were helped by Antonio and Jorge. Antonio was the first to welcome us to the hotel and offer refreshments and then gave us a quick tour and escorted us to our room. Extremely friendly gentleman that we enjoyed being in the presence of.

Jorge was quick to get to our car and load the numerous bags to keep this family of four going. Not just helpful, but engaged with us and made us feel immediately welcomed. On our way out he was again there to expertly accomplish the game of tetris that is putting the luggage back in the car.

The next standout was the morning buffet. All the other reviews do not lie when they talk about how good it is. What they do miss, however, is how good the staff is there that is helping. Especially Nazmul Hasan. He made our mornings special and ensured our girls had their morning cup of hot chocolate. Not to mention keeping our coffee cups overflowing.

This was such a great start to everyday and definitely helped my wife manage the kids throughout the day. Of course I have to give a special shout out to my wife for managing two young girls through the entire week. She took off from work to enjoy some sun and time with them, but doing it alone is no joke. Because of that we did take full advantage of the time we were all together. A lot of those highlights seemed to come back to this hotel.

We went to the hotel restaurant (insert name) for a proper dinner and again our expectations were exceeded. The weight staff were absolutely excellent and the food was fantastic. I only wish I had remembered their names, but hope to come back soon to correct that.

The final acknowledgement that we must make is about a bartender named André. We ran into André on a few occasions. The service was always top notch. Not only the service, but his skill as a mixologist and a barista are best of the best. His cappuccinos can compete for some of the world’s best not to mention the exquisite Cocktails he prepared. We also had dinner in the bar our final night as the week of walking, beach, and dining out had worn on us all. Ended up being another fantastic time.

The last shout out Is to the housekeeping team. Our room was extremely well maintained at all times and around 1800 they would come around for turn down service. Well you know with two little girls and a beach close by it was another full cleaning and the beds were always very cutely made stuffed animals. Always that extra touch that made the stay special.

Best vacation ever without even...

This hotel needs some love and attention from the owners. I imagine it was really nice about 15 years ago. Being part of a group booking, I asked the rest of our group their experiences - mine was not unique. A colleague saw two guests requesting their rooms to be changed during the stay. That speaks volumes.

Pros: Location is quite nice Cons: Value for money. This is not a 4* hotel that is worth 170+ euros a night! It is very dated and has a very tired, unmaintaned look. The first room had a horrible drain smell. The initial resolution was to offer to send a cleaning crew with air refreshner... Sorry, no. Thankfully, in the end I was offered a new room (without any offer help to bring my stuff to a new room though). This is why the 2 starts for service and not 1, as I was ready for a fight to get my money back and move someplace else (you have to pay for the hotel in full at check in - no wonder why) Dirty linen. Both (!) of my rooms had dirty linen on the bed. The first had something that looked like semi-washed out stains of blood, the second had mascara (?) stains. The matresses in the first room were different thickness. Everything that can be broken, is broken, and everything that can be dirty, rusty or moldy, is. Door stoppers broken. I had an actual hole in the table. I didn't risk taking a bath, only a quick shower (as quick as it can be, since getting to hot water takes about 10 min). The silicone strips in bathroom are all moldy, dishes in the mini kitchen dirty, balcony screws rusty. I don't know who thought it was a good idea to put linoleum behind the bathroom mirror. I am afraid to think what is under it, if the solution to cover like this is better. First room was just "wavy" look, the second had this stuff really peeling off, with brown patches of glue visible. This same glue was also in the mini kitchen... The whole "don't you dare keep the iron for longer than 30 min!" speech when asking for one. A 4* hotel should have more than 3 irons available for guests and scolding guests that there will be consequences (5 eur fee) if you return it late when you simply ask for it, is unacceptable. Most 4* hotels have irons in the rooms these days or have an ironing room where you can iron to your hearts desire. Yelling at guests when they inquire if providing a hotel loyalty number at this point gives any benefit is unacceptable. A simple "no" would have been sufficient, I didn't need a lecture on how the group booking organizer should have provided this in advance and only then we'd get 10% discount. I actually wasn't asking for a discount, I was mostly interested in the points or the supposedly available free water in room for loyalty guests. Fine, after this experience it is not like I will stay in a Pestana hotel ever again :) I spend abouty 100 nights a year in hotels and this hotel takes the top prize as the worst maintaned one in the past 5 years for sure, and frankly, staff's attitude also leaves plenty of room for improvement. Which is a pity, as the...

The location is absolutely perfect — I love Cascais, and this hotel is wonderfully placed within the fascinating old citadel. It’s a truly unique and charming setting.

That said, I feel that the 5-star rating doesn’t quite reflect the actual experience, which was closer to a 4-star level. The staff are very polite, friendly, and accommodating, but the overall service could use some improvement.

Since we were traveling with our daughter, we needed a bit more space than a regular room. The team kindly gave us a large and pretty room, but unfortunately it was located underground, and there was a noticeable smell of mold, which made it hard to stay there for all the nights we had booked. We then asked for a room with a marina view, but as the hotel was hosting a large and loud party the following day, availability was limited. We were eventually given a room next to the breakfast area — which, as you can imagine, was quite noisy early in the morning.

For a 5-star hotel, the room itself wasn’t very functional: the bathroom water pressure was extremely low, the sink was so small that washing hands was uncomfortable, and the faucet barely produced any water. The bed quality was poor and felt almost like a water mattress. The carpet and walls were also quite dirty, and overall the room didn’t feel clean.

Housekeeping could also be improved: when the room was redone, dirty plates were not removed, and we even found a pile of towels placed on top of our luggage and clothes. I understand that mistakes can happen — I’m the first to acknowledge that — but there were quite a few oversights throughout our stay.

Breakfast, on the other hand, was wonderful — rich, varied, and full of options. Unfortunately, one morning I found hair in the scrambled eggs, which, together with the other small issues, made it difficult to enjoy it fully.

Overall, the impression is that the property has incredible potential but the staff seem not fully trained to maintain the high standard it deserves. For almost €400 per night, guests should expect a seamless and truly enjoyable experience.

The pool areas are also not ideal — the water in both pools is quite cold, and one of them requires quite a long walk to reach, as it’s located outside and rather isolated.

I genuinely wish our stay had been more pleasant, because we truly love Cascais and have always admired this property from the outside, having lived here in the past. Sadly, we won’t be returning, and for those seeking a true 5-star experience, I would recommend exploring...