Vila Gale Albacora

The hotel is huge and caters to groups which I usually dislike. And it is outside of the lovely town of Tavira. But if you have a car, go golfing or birdwatching it is a great option. Ask for a room far from reception to avoid the commotion. The rooms are simple but nice. The hotel used to be the quarters for the tuna fishermen at the beginning the 20th century. There is a nice chapel and museum explaining the history, not to be missed.

Our family love this hotel. My brother got married here and as a family we come back at the same time every year because we always have such a lovely time. The location is beautiful, the staff are great and the entertainment is incredible. The entertainment team in particular really make our trip every year. Shout out to Tanya, Mariana, Claudia, Rodrigo and everyone else on the team. The effort that goes into the evening shows is insane and we always have such a laugh taking part in the competitions to win a cocktail. I have a 20 month old toddler and the outdoor toddler pool was great for him as well as the little soft play and colouring in tables inside the school. There's a play park and mini football pitch as well for kids to play in. They also have a lovely in door swimming pool, sauna,steam room and jacuzzi which is free to use throughout the day, and massages. A boat goes directly from the hotel's private pier to Tavira Island regularly through the day which has a lovely sandy beach and lots of fish restaurants If you want a chilled, hassle free and fun holiday this is definitely the place to go. We will be back!

Very poor service in patio restaurant, some guests waiting up to two hours for food. Did not seem to care about complaint. In the past we have always enjoyed lunch here, though service always slow if more than a few guests. Disappointing there was a lack of concern that we cancelled order after a long wait

We stayed here for 4 days as a big group of 3 families with ages ranging from 8-70! Our room was perfectly comfortable, and surprisingly good power shower! The breakfast was great, drinks very good and extremely reasonably priced. Dinner could have been better, but there was a food range and for the price, really can't complain! Pool is one of the coldest I've experienced, but very beautiful and the children loved the slides. There were plenty of loungers and even at 9 or 10 you could easily find plenty. Without a doubt, what made our stay was Rodrigo and the other animation team members, they are simply amazing! We never like to use kids clubs, as I don't feel comfort leaving my children with strangers, but Rodrigo would come every day and entertain them, play football with them and they absolutely adored him! The rest of the team also, were just so much fun and a joy to be around. We did tbe dolphin spotting trip from the hotel with very low expectations and were so happy that we had an amazing experience! The crew were excellent and we got to spend a wonderful morning surrounded by dolphins which we will never forget! The only negative was that we got eaten alive daily by mosquitos due to the location, but it felt worth it! Take plenty of mozzy spray!

The bathroom was very nice - a good shower, good quality towels, room to put our toilet articles, well lit. I wish I could say the same for the bedroom. The floor tiles near the door had not been laid well, and one tile was too high and the door stuck on it. There were no drawers to put things when we unpacked, so we had to pile them on a long table on the wall opposite the beds. The rods for hanging clothes in the closet ran front to back instead of sideways across the closet, so it was difficult to hang clothes. And the room was very dark. I had trouble seeing the numbers on the combination lock on my suitcase, and even with a headlamp reading anything was difficult. There was no overhead light, just four lamps, and the switch for one of the lamps had gotten behind the long table, which was too heavy to move, so I had to get down on the floor and reach under the table to get at the switch. The lobby was very nice, with a comfortable sitting area, but the door was open most of the time, so the place was full of mosquitos. Staff was very nice and helpful, and when we reported a leak under our sink, it was repaired very promptly. The best thing about this hotel in my opinion was the dining room, where there was an excellent breakfast and dinner buffet with a huge variety of very good food.

Stayed at this hotel for the second year in a row following my cousin having his wedding here last year. I absolutely love this hotel. The food is amazing as are the services provided by the hotel. It has a very relaxing and peaceful vibe. Special shout out to the bartenders: Keegan and Pedro! They really took care of my family and I. They made us feel very welcome and well looked after. They are both very special and interesting individuals who I really enjoyed speaking to. I'm glad to have met them. They also make fantastic cocktails. Another special shout out to The Animation Team, they were tireless in their efforts to involve guests in fun daily activities around the pool as well as providing amazing entertainment in the evenings. They are all incredible entertainers and very good at looking after guests and getting people involved. They helped us create a lot of good memories during our stay here. The personal touch at this hotel is definitely there. Tavira Island is just a short boat ride away. You can also get a river taxi from the pier by the hotel up to Tavira Town. I love the vibe of this place and I think this will be a hotel my family and I will want to regularly visit in the future for our family holidays. I will definitely be looking to come back here next year to relax and have fun. Thanks Vila Galé Albacora, I'll see you next year!