Pine Cliffs Ocean Suites, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Algarve

Exceptional in every way. Pine Cliffs in Albufeira comes with our highest recommendation. Rarely, do the 3 of us - me 45F and my mum and dad - find a place to holiday that meets all of our needs. The search is over and we will be returning for many years to come. The location was perfect, only 20 minutes from Faro airport and nestled amongst beautifully landscaped picturesque gardens. Every detail was glorious from the mosaic stone paths winding their way through well thought out white stucco villas topped with beautiful terracotta roofs that changed colour with the rising and setting sun. The golf courses and tennis courts were immaculate however we chose to spend our 12 day visit mostly by the crystal blue pool (1 of 6 in the resort) barely 100 steps from our private terrace. We stayed at Casa Pine Cliffs - in the Residences. Our 2 bedroom and 2 bathroom suite was pure luxury, spotlessly clean and well maintained. Breakfast was at The O’Grill, a whole 50 more steps beyond the pool. It was self-service, with endless dishes of the most mouthwatering, fresh, local produce with every taste catered for. Fresh brewed coffee, Mimosas, Bloody Mary’s - whatever you wanted and in whatever quantity- nothing was too much trouble for the hardworking staff at O’Grill. There was a mini market within our ‘village’ of villas with a plentiful supply of food, drink and toiletries. We dined within Pinecliffs on a couple of occasions but preferred to adjourn to our suite to make use of the self catering facilities while enjoying an al-fresco dinner with a bottle of wine. Everything was simply effortless and the staff are some of the most lovely we’ve ever come across. The housekeeping team were so thoughtful, checking we had everything we needed during the evening and bring us chocolates and bid us a good night. Joao, Ali, Chef Paoula- and many, many more - got to know us well and by day 3 were bringing us to our usual table - bringing over our usual drink orders etc. On my birthday (the last day) I was brought complimentary drinks and wished a genuine happy birthday by the staff. This attention to detail is what sets Pine Cliffs apart from many other similar resorts of this calibre. I am hard pressed to find anything negative to say, but the only thing that could have made the experience more enjoyable is an adults only pool and relaxation area. We purposely chose the last week of September as we wanted a quiet and relaxing experience. For all of the days apart from the last two, this was the case. Unfortunately two large groups with several children arrived on Oct 1st & 2nd. Without a thought for the majority of people who were there, they took over the area. Screaming at an ear splitting volume, shouting and repeatedly splashing us - mum got hit with a ball - it was a frustrating end to an otherwise brilliant experience. I’ve never been able to understand why when occupying a public space, the enjoyment of some comes at the expense of others. I ho

Fantastic resort ! Housekeeping team are amazing spoke to the Exec Housekeeper and the room attendants there a credit to the hotel often forgotten in hotels. Reception team Friendly ! The breakfast staff super friendly! The beach staff look after you ! Beautiful facilities and restaurants! Coming back in May ‘

We stayed for one week, as a family of three, in a spacious two bed Ocean Suite, which was modern, clean, spacious and bright. It also benefitted from a washing machine and a relatively comprehensive kitchenette, which was handy. Pine Cliffs is a great resort for families. It is in a beautiful setting and benefits from an excellent range of facilities and amenities, including a fantastic nine-hole golf course and with access to a fantastic beach. We ate in several of the restaurants during our stay. In my opinion, even though the food in the restaurants was good, the price for the food was high, though again not unexpected in this type of resort. All the staff we met in the reception, restaurants, golf club and concierge made you feel very welcome and were helpful and had a friendly attitude. I would highlight that this is a very busy resort, as you would expect in July. Minor gripes include being required to book some of the restaurants, in some cases days in advance. On the resort website, the Italian appeared to be fully booked all week, though we did manage to get in one evening by just turning up. I had e-mailed the concierge team around four days in advance of arriving, to book several restaurants but had not received a response. The reason given was that they had thousands of e-mails and the team didn't have the resources to be able to read and respond to them all in time. As a result, our restaurant reservations had not been made. It also felt petty to be charging €6 per person to play mini golf given the room rates. Overall, we had a positive stay at Pine Cliffs. It is a beautiful resort with lots to keep you entertained but it feels like it falls slightly short in terms of the luxury that is reflected in the pricing.

The resort itself is truly stunning: beautiful grounds, well-kept gardens, and a very nice, modern room. Unfortunately, that’s where the praise ends – overall, our stay was a huge disappointment, especially considering the price and what you’d expect from a so-called 5-star hotel. The problems start early in the morning at the beach: there are far too few sunbeds, and guests reserve them for hours without ever using them – while the hotel staff simply looks the other way. If you come a bit later, you’ll end up lying on your towel in the sand. Totally unacceptable for a resort of this category. Breakfast is another disaster. Long lines just to get a table, and once you finally sit down, you often have to find extra chairs yourself or even set the table to make room for the whole family. There is no relaxed start to the day and absolutely no 5-star atmosphere – pure mass catering and this for over € 100 for the whole family per day! The Kids Club can only be booked 24 hours in advance and comes with an extra charge – quite disappointing for a hotel that advertises itself as family-friendly. The only heated pool can only be used if you wear a swimming cap. If you don’t have one, you’re forced to buy one at a ridiculous price. In general, almost everything costs extra here – hardly anything is included in the room rate. To top it all off, guests are expected to carry their own luggage to and from the car during check-in and check-out – so much for service. And at the end of your stay, you’re “rewarded” with a so-called resort fee of €20 per day. Thank you so much! Bottom line: Beautiful location, beautiful hotel – but when it comes to service, organization, and value for money, this place completely fails. We will definitely never return!

The property is charming, the customer service is totally missing. Onsite restaurants menus are less than average for Portuguese gastronomy with very high price tags. Customer service is poor and the attitude is take it or leave it. No effort is made to provide good service. Sad for such a good location!

Had such a lovely stay at the pine cliffs, pools were so relaxing and clean and lovely for families. we really enjoyed the corda cafe & peri peri for food, but leaving the hotel and going outside to salt and pepper restaurant 1 min walk past the peri peri restaurant you will not be disappointed food is excellent and half the price of the food at the Pinecliffs staff are amazing a must visit we ended up going 3 times! (: