Lapoint Surf Camp Portugal - Ericeira — Hotel in Mafra

The stay at the hostel in Ericeira had started well: nice staff, good rooms, professional surf coaches and access to many other activities at the camp besides surfing. The problem started about the 3rd day of our stay there when people got food poisoning. We would hear about more and more people every day who are not able to take their surfing lessons or go to lunch/dinner (that they had paid for as part of the package) because of being sick in their rooms vomiting and having diarrhea.

Many of these people belonged to the group I travelled with but many others were solo travellers that had nothing to do with our group. When we asked the staff about all the sickness going on they blamed it on the bacteria in the sea water. They also said that it probably was the Swedish group that brought a virus with them that was now spreading.

I suspect it must have been something with their food/water since I realized that they are not at all good at food routines. Before going to the camp I was asked to fill in a document with food allergies/intolerances. I chose lactose free and gluten free but they never gave me that options. All of their lunches and dinners included both gluten and lactose. I let the staff know about it and they said they would make sure to give me a lactose free option but that did not happen. Speaking with some of the other guests about the food, I found out that somebody had been fed pork twice despite actively asking the staff not to give her pork because of religious beliefs.

One night a girl had gotten very sick and needed medical care, she was very dehydrated and continued vomiting and having diarrhea despite taking medication. I called the ambulance in the middle of the night and the ambulance staff said she needed a companion to go with her to the emergency room in Lisbon. That ended up being me because it was the middle of the night and there was only the security guard at the reception, but I actually think that it should have been Lapoints staff who followed her to the hospital since it was their guest and to me this girl was a complete stranger, although I was happy to help. This girl and I got to wait for 6h at the emergency room in Lisbon and she got intravenous medicine.

When we came back to the hostel the next morning we went straight to the reception and asked for a manager. We explained the whole situation to the managers substitute who was at the hostel at that moment. She listened to us and ensured us that it had nothing to do with their food, however she was not able to provide any proof for it. I asked for a full refund on my missed surf lesson because I had spent the night at the ER with their guest doing their job. She said that she cannot promise me anything, that she would ask their customer care representatives to get in touch with me to find a solution. So far I am still waiting to be contacted by their team, I myself have gotten food poisoning and missed a dinner and a breakfast that I didn't get a refund for. I got to travel all the way back to my country while having cramps, vomiting and diarrhea because of their food.

They gave me a 20% discount on my hostel card which translates to 1.30 euros. My advice is dont go to Lapoints surf camp in Ericeira if you dont want to get...

WOW!! This wasn't just the best vacation of my life, it was the best EXPERIENCE of my life so far! | Everything exceeded my expectations. The warm welcoming staff felt more like old friends more than staff members. The property itself is beautiful and well maintained and felt more like a 5 star hotel than a hostel. The food was amazing, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Even the music played on the patio every day was a highlight. The staff even went out of their way to get me their spotify playlists so that I could share it with some of my new friends from camp and enjoy the memories of the perfect after surf vibes we had every day. | The social hosts had us all making friends with each other the very first night, and by the first morning I already felt like I was just staying with a large group of friends. They seem to have found the perfect balance of downtime and activities where the whole camp gets involved. Karaoke was soooo fun, the white party, trips into town for ice cream, trip to a vineyard, skate jam in the bowl, giant send off party on the last night, so much more than just a surf camp.| The bartenders are top notch putting out high quality hand made craft cocktails with a smile, and the prices for drinks were surprisingly cheap (from a US perspective). They did a great job keeping the vibes going and were just one of many highlights of my trip there.| The surf instructors were also amazing. Genuinely excited to see us succeed and create new lifelong surfers. My instructor Quinty in particular was really helpful in customizing tips to convert my snowboadring and skateboarding skills into surfing. She had me catching and surfing small waves in the ocean by day 2!!!! By the last couple days I was going out to free-surf before and after lessons and ended up doing much better than I had hoped thanks to her patience and intuition for telling me exactly what I needed to hear to get me riding and turning on waves. All the instructors were eager to help and got me really stoked cheering when I would catch a wave!| This trip has inspired me in many ways and I am already booking their camp in Bali next summer. Ericeira was so fun though I now must squeeze in another trip there too. I really can't say enough about this place and the town of Ericeira. Amazing friendly locals, great food, skateparks everywhere, outdoor gyms everywhere, literal paradise on earth.| If you are still reading this far down, stop thinking and book this place if it's available, you will not regret it! I have about 30 new best friends that will all tell you the same thing. | LaPoint for...

WOW!! This wasn't just the best vacation of my life, it was the best EXPERIENCE of my life so far! Everything exceeded my expectations. The warm welcoming staff felt more like old friends more than staff members. The property itself is beautiful and well maintained and felt more like a 5 star hotel than a hostel. The food was amazing, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Even the music played on the patio every day was a highlight. The staff even went out of their way to get me their spotify playlists so that I could share it with some of my new friends from camp and enjoy the memories of the perfect after surf vibes we had every day. The social hosts had us all making friends with each other the very first night, and by the first morning I already felt like I was just staying with a large group of friends. They seem to have found the perfect balance of downtime and activities where the whole camp gets involved. Karaoke was soooo fun, the white party, trips into town for ice cream, trip to a vineyard, skate jam in the bowl, giant send off party on the last night, so much more than just a surf camp. The bartenders are top notch putting out high quality hand made craft cocktails with a smile, and the prices for drinks were surprisingly cheap (from a US perspective). They did a great job keeping the vibes going and were just one of many highlights of my trip there. The surf instructors were also amazing. Genuinely excited to see us succeed and create new lifelong surfers. My instructor Quinty in particular was really helpful in customizing tips to convert my snowboadring and skateboarding skills into surfing. She had me catching and surfing small waves in the ocean by day 2!!!! By the last couple days I was going out to free-surf before and after lessons and ended up doing much better than I had hoped thanks to her patience and intuition for telling me exactly what I needed to hear to get me riding and turning on waves. All the instructors were eager to help and got me really stoked cheering when I would catch a wave! This trip has inspired me in many ways and I am already booking their camp in Bali next summer. Ericeira was so fun though I now must squeeze in another trip there too. I really can't say enough about this place and the town of Ericeira. Amazing friendly locals, great food, skateparks everywhere, outdoor gyms everywhere, literal paradise on earth. If you are still reading this far down, stop thinking and book this place if it's available, you will not regret it! I have about 30 new best friends that will all tell you the same thing. LaPoint for...