Hotel Santa Cruz

We had our second visit to this lovely hotel in November, we have never returned to a hotel or destination before but we weren't at all disappointed, the hotel was just as wonderful and it's standards just as high as on our first visit. We could fault nothing as before. The staff were attentive, friendly and extremely helpful to everyone and a special thank you to Mr Edgar, Sandra, Louisa,David, Odelia, Michelle and Nadia from the restaurant, Caterina in the Spa ( a must visit) and the wonderful reception staff for another enjoyable stay. The Christmas lights were switched on whilst we were there and Santa Cruz Village became a beautiful winter wonderland! The lights were outstanding with animated singing tableaus and the village was alive with local families and visitors alike, it definitely made our visit more special. We will be returning again later this month and are looking forward to exploring more of this beautiful island. If you are looking for a peaceful relaxing holiday with good food, staff and amenities, located in a beautiful village ( only a 10 minute transfer from the airport) look no further..

One of our classic ‘last minute’ decisions to grab a few days away after Christmas and before the new year really started up…it was through Jet2 and have to say it was seamless. The hotel information on the net is pretty accurate and we went for a double room with sea view..and that’s exactly what we got. The room was very comfortable, daily room cleaning, aircon, and had a small but functional balcony with chairs and a table. We went bed and breakfast as we like to check out local restaurants but the breakfast had a varied offering from fried, continental, cereals and with tea, coffee and a range of fruit juices. Service all round was good and the staff attentive if a little ‘serious’ at times. Parking is available (underground) and whilst a little pricey at €7 per day was spacious and not overcrowded. The hotel is literally a stones throw from the beach and village centre where there are a large number of local restaurants and bars serving up great meals at fair prices. Around €10 - €20 for a main course. Being there still in the post Christmas period the decorations and light were still all up over the island and Santa Cruz had some wonderful lighting and animated displays…it was a great time to visit. Be warned Santa Cruz is close to the airport but it did not interfere in the slightest with the enjoyment of the stay. In fact if you get a tracking app. you can sit with a glass of wine and monitor the incoming and outgoing flights! There is really little prolonged noise and you shouldn’t complain as that’s probably how you got there! The hotel has a small indoor pool, gym and spa bath and a large outdoor pool. All very clean , well maintained and safe. Funchal is about 15 minutes drive or the hotel has a courtesy bus although we didn’t use it so can’t really comment on it. Overall the Vila Gale was a great place to stay and we would (will!) go there again.

This hotel is in a fantastic location but that is literally the only good thing that I can say about it. I have never left a bad review on a website about a hotel but feel compelled to do so after Tui refused to acknowledge that that there was anything wrong with the hotel, despite an official complaint . Literally all of the guests in the hotel were complaining. The rooms at the back were noisy and the hotel manager refused to accept that there was a problem until I threatened to leave the hotel and ask for my money back. There was no-one to serve at the bar for hours on end which lead to guests going behind the bar to serve other people! The staff on reception were extremely rude. Our tui rep visited once for a welcome meeting, never to be seen again. Several guests tried to contact the rep to try ang get him to help sort out the situation at the hotel but he did not answer his phone or return calls for 3 days. This hotel is a disgrace and the fact that aTUI do not appear to acknowledge this is terrible.