Villa Epicurea — Hotel in Sesimbra

Hi all;||Sharing with you few comments after our experience in Villa Epicure.||Say that we had very high expectations about this place. Particularly because of the pictures, what we wrote about it, and the personal moment (small honeymoon) of why we did this trip.||We booked the Villa thinking in a relaxing and quiet place. ||However I found a consistent list of deficiencies during my stay. Any of them would be critical by it’s own, but the sum of all of them are considerably important for not to repeat this place considering is not a cheap place to stay.|| How to get; GPS is a must. There is no sign - indication during the way to the Villa. Not even when you exit the main road and need to take a clay path, neither a name on the main door.|| Car Parking; The Villa has a parking we’re tu can perfectly fit any car. However the car park is at the very entrance, and you will need to walk a quite steep clay path. You must leave first the suitcases and the bring the car down. I find this a bit uncomfortable particularly with kids.|| Light; If you arrive at night there is NO light from car park to the House. So the usage of the torch of your phone is a must! Olive trees are illuminated at the top of the house, but priority should be to facilitate access to the guests.|| Breakfast; Time is from 8:30 to 10:30. Experience tells me that everything must be ready at this time, particularly when breakfast is included. However few remarks;| - Eggs where ready round 9:00| - Bread, which should have been “arriving” did not arrive until at least 9:15 when we left the breakfast | - No hot milk. And when I raised this point there was not a microwave to warm up the coffees.... so hot coffee and cold milk. You can always pay 1EUR and get a nespresso. Coffee is non filtered so might not be the preference for all palates.|| - Juice or Smoothies. The w.o.w is a do it yourself. So be prepare to do your own orange juice. For me this should be clearly stated in the Villa description. At least a guest knows what to expect.||| Internet; Very poor signal in the rooms but WiFi does not reach the rooms... do not expect to work remote from here. At least in the room.|| Temperature; Room is very very, and again very hot. We had our stay in September and we needed to sleep with a door open.... this is a big issue as there is no AC in the room. There is a small Dyson fan but not enough to cools down the room. || Workers; there are still constructions happening in the property of the Villa. So workers come in the morning and might use drills or any noisy tool which can destroy quiet atmosphere.|| Size; bathrooms, at least of the room we were was very very small.... || Towels; Not being changed in 3 days. True is that we left them outside to dry and is OK, but mainly because there is nothing in the toilet advising you about the general w.o.w.|| Cat; yes, there is a Cat that goes in & out the house, so for those who are allergic please be aware. This is not mentioned anywhere. |||In summary, the concept of having a sharing space for the guests could work. You have a kitchen, and family room that can be used any time by anyone.||However the feeling, maybe because also the guest they were also in the Villa is far away from it. Feeling is like a sharing flat where everyone is always in / out the house.||Also, in our stay there there was a lot of kids.... which for me contradicts the quiet and peaceful spirit of what I read before coming. Mainly because, again, as the house has the common kitchen, it is intensively used in this circumstances. So the fact of enjoying of a bottle of wine outside.... looses the magic.||Hope the above can be understood as a constructive feedback as the place has a lot of potential.||Good points to highlight | Design of the house is great| Homemade marmalade is top| Sunset view is nice||Regards|Nico|||Enviado...

As a company that has hosted multiple yoga and movement retreats at Villa Epicurea, we feel it’s important to share our experience to help other retreat leaders and organizers make an informed decision.

We initially chose this venue because of its promise of exclusivity, professionalism, and a natural setting for deep, immersive experiences. Unfortunately, our expectations were not met—and our final experience was significantly below the standard any retreat host should accept.

Disruption Due to Construction & Misrepresentation During our most recent retreat, we were told a sauna would be available—a feature we advertised to our participants. On arrival, not only was the sauna unavailable, but active construction was taking place throughout the retreat. Builders were on-site from early morning to late at night, with no prior warning. The noise severely disrupted the peaceful environment we aim to create and led to participant complaints.

Poor Communication and Financial Inconsistencies We were charged unexpected and previously uncommunicated fees (e.g. for kitchen use) after our summer retreat. Despite multiple follow-ups, we had to wait months for a clear breakdown of costs. The final documentation only arrived long after our fiscal year had closed, creating real challenges for our bookkeeping and compliance. This lack of transparency made it difficult to trust the financial integrity of the partnership.

Lack of Respect for Exclusivity Even though we booked the full venue for private use, we encountered other guests using the pool and shared spaces. This completely contradicted our agreement and disrupted the sense of safety and community that is essential to our retreats.

Breach of Privacy One of the most concerning issues was the unauthorized sharing of private contact information. We were contacted directly by a third party who had been given our details and asked us to reschedule—despite our booking being confirmed nine months in advance. This was both unprofessional and distressing.

Aggressive Collection Practices Instead of addressing our complaints or acknowledging any service failures, Villa Epicurea escalated the situation to a debt collection agency. Even as we attempted to negotiate a reasonable discount given the significant disruption, we were met with rigid, legalistic responses. In the end, we paid the balance simply to end the conflict—but were left feeling dismissed and disrespected as a client.

Hostile Neighbor Situation Finally, future retreat hosts should be aware that a neighboring resident is highly intolerant of any outdoor sound. Even minimal music played during a yoga session on the terrace led to threats of police involvement. This makes the venue unsuitable for even the most respectful outdoor programming—a key part of most retreat formats.

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In summary: while the physical location of Villa Epicurea holds potential, the management practices, communication style, and lack of client care make it very difficult for us to recommend—especially for professional retreats. What we experienced was not hospitality, but a transactional approach with little regard for client experience or trust. Proceed with caution and get every...

You have to understand that Villa Epicurea is a "communal" type of experience, something that doesn't come across when you browse their website (it accents the eco part of the experience). By communal I mean a shared kitchen (including assigned shelves in the fridge to store your food), which can be used to cook lunch and dinner, if you so desire. Guests are mainly left to themselves, as there is no service throughout the day (what I mean is, if you would like to have a cocktail by the pool, you can go and make it yourself with the supplies you bought earlier). There is wine and beer in the fridge (at additional cost), but you can only purchase the entire bottle and can’t have just a glass.||Breakfast is served in a leisurely manner and very much in "chillaxed" mode. Times of things being ready, varies from day to day. Some days there were pancakes, others omelette. The buffet is small (fits on a 1x0.5 m table) and consists of primarily cheese, butter, marmalade and bread (no meats) but all very tasty. Some days the bread was stale (as if from the previous day) and did not vary in offering (meaning the same type of bread). If something runs out, you have to ask or get it from the “hotel” fridge yourself, it didn't get replenished by the staff. They try to reduce waste food (or at least that what different notes around the kitchen area say), that’s why nothing is in abundance, and if it runs out, you gotta ask if you want more. You can make fresh orange juice yourself, but there is a reminder to be mindful of other guests and not take too much… take that as you will.||There is no possibility to spontaneously have dinner at this property (because there is no staff around, after 3-4 pm), you have to pre-book it in advance and its only available on specific days of the week. We also didn't find a restaurant in a walking distance from Villa Epicurea, therefore car is a must at this property. FYI, "car park" is at the entrance to the property, meaning you walk up a hill to the rooms afterwards (about 150-200m). There is a possibility to drive up to the main building, but not to leave your car there.||The views are extremely nice, and sunsets are gorgeous! Natural pool was refreshing and clean, hope it remains that way (since we were there couple months after the opening date). Some days it was quiet, other days quite noisy, all depends on other guests (if they decide to use the kitchen in the middle of the night for instance).||Room (in the main building) was nicely decorated, didn't have an AC, just a fan, so we slept with a sliding balcony door open, which attracted mosquitoes (there was no repellent in the room). Bathroom was nice and clean, water pressure good, however, the shower did not drain properly, meaning that after 2 minutes of showering you stand in 5-7 cm of water.||The experience is generally positive, as long as people understand what to expect and hopefully this review sheds some light on this. Accommodation is on a pricier side, but its the view that you pay for, not the service. If you are into eco experiences, this place would tick many boxes, if you expect typical hotel experience, maybe not...