Líbere Porto Laranjais — Hotel in Porto

I recently returned from a 3 night stay at Laranjais and super glad I found this place and chose it for my based on my first visit to Porto.

The location is great - everywhere I wanted to visit, eat and drink at where no more than a 10-15min walk. I got the metro from the airport to the nearest stations and it was about a 7 min walk.

I booked a design suite and I would highly recommend this option to solo travellers wanting a bit of a treat whilst away or a couple wanting some space to chill in come the evenings and not wanting to be on top of one another. I loved the spacious kitchen/living room and the beautiful glass wall and door separating the bedroom from the living space and a cute and private bathroom. I was originally on the first floor (room 5) and I couldn't have been happier - I never heard my neighbours and the quality of the finish is 10/10. It was also a really lovely touch to receive a welcome gift of some delicious chocolates (the hazelnut chocolate was divine) and local port. Was such a treat to come back after a day of sightseeing and have some chocolate and glass of port in the evenings. Plus they provide robes, slippers, toiletries and yoga mats if you fancy a quick stretch at the beginning or end of you day.

I did have to change rooms during my stay(this is the only reason I haven't given 5 out of 5 across the board) and I have nothing but praise for Carlota and Valencia(I hope I've got that right) for all their assistance in trying to rectify the issue quickly and smoothly - they are assets to the hotel and I hope management keep hold of them. I was moved to one room that wasn't a like for like, so then moved in room 2 - another design suite and it was even better than room 5, as you have access to a lovely private and cosy terrace from the bedroom. I was also given a free bottle of sparkling wine and a full refund for one night for the inconvenience experienced - this was hugely appreciated - I travel 4-5 times a year and I can say the customer service at Laranjais is one of the best I've received in Europe. Things may go wrong, it's the way a establishment handle them thats important and I was more than happy with how everything was handled.

I'm only hesitance to share this review because I want to keep this gem of a find to myself for the next time I...

There were so many positive aspects of our stay at Laranjais that I hesitate to award it only 4 "stars," but, as explained below, there were a few aspects of the hotel that detracted from a "5 star experience."||On the positive side, our 1 bedroom suite was spacious and comfortable. You can see a picture of it at the top of this page. It had very stylish decor, with a firm bed, good linens, and lovely toiletries. The location was excelleng in terms of proximity to restaurants and attractions -- lots of hills to ascend and descend but that's Porto. Also, a very courteous and helpful staff.||So, why was I not wholly satisfied? First and foremost because the design choices for our room were more driven by appearance than functionality. In particular:||1) Most of the "wall" dividing the living room area from the bedroom consisted of glass, which meant that light would inevitably shine into the bedroom if one person was in the living room & the other trying to sleep in the bedroom. ||2) Worse yet, the sink portion of the "bathroom" was separated from the bed room by only a partial wall, so any light fixture on in that room also shone in the bedroom. And there was a single light switch that controlled for both light fixtures in that sink area and for the separate, toilet/ shower room. So, if one person arose during the night to use the toilet, when they switched on the light (which was essential as it was otherwise pitch-black in the toilet room), the light in the sink area also went on, shining light into the bedroom as well. ||Aside from these design issues that detracted from the functionality of the bedroom, it was annoying that there were no facial tissues stocked in the room (but there were yoga mats). I had a head cold & ended up just buying some tissues but I would expect a hotel of this caliber to include them in the room. (This was the only hotel of the 5 where we stayed in Portugal without head colds.)||I do not mean to sound so harsh. The hotel is largely lovely and it may be that other rooms/ suites are designed in a...

The floor and couch were dusty, as if it had not been attended for quite some time. There was no person at the reception anytime during our stay. We had to call for everything that we needed. ||The heating system did not work when we checked in. After making a few calls, they were kind enough to switch us to a different room. Unfortunately, the heating system did not work there either. The person on the phone was working in a sister hotel within walking distance by the same owner. I suggested that they just move us to the other hotel as it was a chilly night. I was told “no” after the staff checked with her manager, despite the fact that the cost of the sister hotel was much less than what had paid. To the credit of the young staff, she did bring a couple of blankets to us from the other hotel after I insisted. But that was no cure for the chilly night. It was unfortunate that spending the first night in a very cold hotel room was our first and indelible memory of Porto, an otherwise lovely and beautiful city.||The next morning, we went downstairs for breakfast. We had paid for breakfast in our hotel booking. When we got to the restaurant the first morning, the restaurant was not open. The doors were all locked. After making phone calls, they were able to allow us to walk to its sister hotel to have breakfast. No reasons were given and no apologies. ||The lack of attention to details for a pricy hotel like this was beyond disappointing. To be fair, it might have been related to the particular season, when the tourism industry is not busy. I believe we were the only customers in the entire building during our stay. ||Lastly, be aware that breakfast on site is vegan, if you choose it to be included in your booking. If you are expecting a hearty breakfast with egg and sausage to start your day, you will be dissatisfied. You can easily find less expensive and better breakfast options within a short...