Hotel Santa Maria - Açores — Hotel in Vila do Porto

Where to start with the problems here at this SUPPOSED 4 satr hotel(perhaps when built in the 60s, the bathroom fixtures are original).||||Lets mention the positives first: The TV does work and there are LOADS of channels and the air con is very good. Spacious room. Tennis Court, albeit in need of maintence, and small swimming pool. Ample free parking. Refrigerator, although has no freezer but NOT complaining (another rarity in Europe). Unlimited ice from the ice machine at the bar (a REAL rarity in Europe!).||||Now on the myriad drawbacks. ||||First, WIFI ;ONE router (in the lobby under the TV) of a HUGE hotel that is very spread out. Im sitting right next to the ONE router to post this to warn others. And even here the signal comes and goes. Basically no signal in resturant or rooms. Note to management, downgrade the TV package and UPGRADE the internet. The 60s are long over!||||Two:Location: very bleak and windswept. STILL looks like a military base (which it was built as!) HUGE let down after Sao Miguel which is simply stunning, and there is no ugkly, buildings well maintained and painted. VERY run down, niot just this hotel but entire island really. Tourism is BOOMING on 8 of the 9 Azores; This one is down 17% from last year and now I know why! The ONLY reasons to come here are the white sand beaches and scubadiving (to see manta rays in particular)|||| USAF crews STILL stay here; we saw their C17 at the airport and saw them at breakfast.||||Three: Breakfast: Think "Contiental breakfast" at a low end motel like Travelodge, Super 8 etc. ||||Four Beds: Single beds pushed together with old mattresses. ||||Fith: NOISE in hallways. Tour groups stay here and they tend to gather in the hallways chatting. Location seems so isolated you'd think it would be quiet; NOT SO!||||Flies in lobby, one molesting me as I write||And for this the cost of 122Euros,...

During our stay at the Hotel Santa Maria was a wedding, so you couldn’t use the entrance & had to walk through the garden. In the middle of the night the firealarm started, just to be turned off & wake up everybody again about one hour later. At the same night somebody was screaming through the hallway (around 5am), so we already had an awful night - so let’s continue at the following morning to be sent out from breakfast really rude with waving hands & “no no no, it’s not open”(in the room information is written breakfast at 7am).. we came in at 7:30am. Well, the breakfast is a joke anyway. Tetrapack juice, coffee from a machine that’s worse than from any fuel station & cheese that tastes like plastic. One morning at 8am there was nothing left, not even plates or glasses got refilled, really?! The guy who checked us in had no word to much, he just said the room number & NOTHING else. No Informations about breakfast or poolhours, so of course we took the time from the info sheet in the room. The other receptionist didn’t speak English & so nothing was done after our complain.. Dinner is aweful, DO NOT EAT THERE. The “fish” was a frozen one & not even that was proper cooked. But the spaghetti where well over cooked. There are insects in the hotel which is okay as it’s surrounded by nature, but it’s not okay to have the same dead insects still there after the housekeeping was in the room? Same for the hallway. Unbelievable to pay so much money for this ./ Only good thing is...

Visited on 12.9.-16.9. 2022

nice staff good location (near the airport and still quiet) clean rooms garden with pool decent breakfast

insects everywhere old room missing chairs on the terrace too far from the centre (or any other supermarket)

It is stated that it is a 4 star hotel with which I disagree... Recepcionist was nice and allowed us to hide our rented bikes in their monitored side hallway. Communication in English was OK. At breakfast, there was not big food selection, but it contained everything needed and it was fresh. Rooms were clean, buuut the main problem was that they do not have mosquito nets on doors, so you need to decide at night if you want fresh air or be stang by mosquitos (killed 1st night at least 10+ of them and we had just light from TV in the room) aaand the humidity drew in also other insects (they need definitely isolate the front and back door so the insect won't come in, till then -1.5 star). Bathroom was also clean but the shower curtain was not practical and old. Wifi connection was at all times OK. Beds were divided, so if you are going like couple and want to cuddle there is a huge gap between you. Not much trees in the garden in the backyard, but they are taking care of the environment well and the hammock was comfortable. Pool was divided into two parts for children and adults. Water was a little bit cold but clean.

I recommend this hotel in general, if you are not...