Vale d'El Rei Hotel & Villas

This fabulous hotel is located in spectacular well kept gardens brimming with wildlife and plants. It is so tranquil and an ideal hotel to relax and regenerate. The 2 saltwater pool are clean but a bit cold. There is a good choice of food by the pool but the evening dinner was a bit hit and miss but they are working on it. However it is nice to see Portugese style cooking. All the wines are from the Algarve. The breakfasts are fantastic with a huge choice including gluten free cereal and bread rolls. All the staff we met were very helpful and nice.

We decided to stay here as a last minute trip to the Algarve & to kayak the Benagil caves. This hotel surpassed our expectations. The free breakfast was plentiful & offered many options, I especially liked the yogurt bar with various fruits, nuts & seeds. The pools were well kept & the grounds were beautiful. It is about a 10 minute drive to town or the coast so we recommend having a car. They have a shuttle which we didn’t use so I can’t comment but I believe it runs 2 -3 times per day. Staff was very helpful & friendly.

We have just come back from Vale D’El Rai stay for 10 nights and our review will be completely honest about our experience. From the beginning we were greeted by a professional and friendly staff member who explained thoroughly all information about the hotel along with the amenities they had to offer. The room was spacious, clean and everything you would like was provided. For example hair, body gel, kettle, safe and we also had a mini bar in our room full of drinks, wine and other snacks along with a coffee machine. These however were at an additional cost for whatever you take. Housekeeping would check, restock and bill it to your room for you departure, as expected of course. Breakfast was lovely every morning with lots of variety and staff were always friendly and welcoming. All pools, one which is heated, one unheated and a child’s pool, were always clean and lots of spaces to grab a sun lounger. Their spa facility and relaxation area which included a sauna, steam, Turkish bath and jacuzzi was one of our favourite things to do. You would have to pre book yourself a time slot with reception directly or they do offer a WhatsApp service that you could message at any time to ask any questions or to book anything in, the response time was always very efficient. For the relaxation area, you were allocated 45 minutes and the staff were always friendly and like the pool, it always had a very relaxing atmosphere. The hotels restaurant, the evening menu was always varied and in total we dined there 3 times. Once to begin with in which it was a buffet setting, food was amazing for this, and the last two times in which was a sit down set menu. If you do book a couple of evenings in the evening restaurant you do get a discount from €25 a head to €20 a head, so we done just that and paid upfront at reception for our upcoming two meals Our first experience of the sit down menu was lovely, lovely food and friendly waiter with service being attentive. However, our last and final visit in the restaurant was slightly different. A lot of people tend to eat slightly later and when our pre booked table was moved from eight to eight - thirty in the evening on arrival, it was incredibly busy. Therefor, I would recommend to dine before 8pm if possible. We were seated quickly and was served couvert to begin with, without being shown a menu. After about 15 minutes I did have to ask one of the bar staff, who came in to help with the busy atmosphere, for a menu. Service was slightly slower which was understandable but staff came across rushed, not as attentive and appeared as though you were a hindrance when placing an order/requests. The specific menu had brilliant potential but for myself and partner lacked flavour but this could be personal preference. We had settled our set bill days previous at reception and with only drinks on our bill we thought we would leave to carry on our evening with a walk around the grounds and to the bar. We barely made it a stone throw

Wonderful hotel, we arrived late at night and the moment we arrived it was just perfect . We had a suite which was a huge bedroom separate lounge dining room. Huge balcony with a hammock - very private as well. There is a mini bar ( at a cost ) you also get a large bottle of water which you refill for free when ever you like from the pool restaurant. Breakfast is lovely fresh meats, cakes breads, bacon three kinds of eggs each day. Cereals yoghurts etc.. you can get food from the pool bar up until 6.30pm which is well priced and good. The gardens and pool are very pretty and plenty of loungers around. The hotel is very quiet and in big grounds. Very peaceful. There is nothing around and we had a car which was great to get to restaurants etc. there is a free shuttle a couple of times a day to take you into the town ( about 15 min away ) Food in the evenings - there is a restaurant which you have to book at about 30€ per person. Also the bar does a few snacks up until 10.30pm. Uber eats deliver there which was also good Overall if you want a beautiful peaceful holiday this is the place ! The staff are also very friendly and attentive all the time .

We arrived at this hotel in early afternoon however our room was not ready,the kind receptionist notified us that we can be contacted by WhatsApp when it would be ready and to go and enjoy the facilities.what a beautiful place,very well kept Gardens,and pristine pool area with ample sunbeds any time of day.the room was spotless clean with an exceptionally comfortable bed.the balcony offered sun later in the day which was nice whilst relaxing with a drink.the housekeeping staff work very hard to keep rooms in pristine condition and are always smiling regardless of their hard jobs. The reception staff were always happy to help at anytime of day and were particularly knowledgeable on the surrounding area.the only hiccup I can confirm is that the evening meals and service at the hotel need attention.i could tell from the outset that the hotel was short of staff during these times,everyone was rushing around back and forwards trying their best to meet dinner and bar orders. Unfortunately as a result of this, the food quality suffered as you could tell there was no love from the kitchen in your food and the restaurant manager was simply stressed out! Fix this staffing problem and the chefs way of serving food to guests and you have a great hotel with very good prospects.

My wife & I stayed at the Vale d’el Rei for 4 nights in early October. We visit the Algarve around twice a year and I have to say this is one of the best if not the best hotel we have stayed at in our many visits. First of all, the grounds the hotel sits in are extensive & immaculately kept. There are 2/3 pools, the main pool is salt water and heated during the colder months and is perfect for swimming in. There are enough sun beds, of good quality, to go round & we never once saw beds being reserved by the “crack of dawn brigade” Breakfast is served around the pool area & is a buffet style with plenty of good quality hot & cold options and all overseen by a very efficient & friendly staff who are constantly clearing, cleaning & replenishing food. A wonderful start to each day. We stayed in a suite, which was amazing value for money. It consisted of, an entrance area, a bathroom with overhead shower, a lounge with balcony off & a bedroom with a gigantic comfortable bed with good quality bed linen, double wardrobes with plenty of hangers and a safe that you didn’t have to pay extra to use. If there is a negative & I would have to search very hard for one, it’s that it’s a little remote. Although the hotel does provide a shuttle bus that runs into and from Carvoeiro several times a day. I would recommend you had a hire car which we always use when we visit the Algarve. This tiny negative would 1 million% not stop us visiting again & I have already enquired for our stay in 2024. Well done all at Vale d’el Rei, look forward to seeing you again next year.

Stayed for a recent short break and wish we had booked longer. The hotel is a mixture of rooms, suites and villas, set in stunning grounds. The suites have hammocks which provided the perfect place to lay in the sun, watching the sunset or a retreat at 2am when my husband was snoring … The rooms are spacious and well decorated, with plenty of in room facilities. We hired a car which I would recommend as it is quite up out of the way which is by no means a negative. They offer a day shuttle down into Caroviero, however if you wanted to go down in the evening for dinner, a car or taxi is needed. Breakfast every day was plentiful, offering numerous different option and seating inside and out. We ate so well at breakfast each day we didn’t have lunch the entire trip. We ate once at the hotels restaurant which provided a lovely 4 course meal for only €30 which was more than reasonable. The food was well cooked and seasoned and we enjoyed our evening there. Our only comment was that the waiting staff were pushed to get around the amount of customers, as at one point there was only one on his own who was clearly flustered. Additional staff to ease the pressures would have made for a nicer dining experience and also help the staff working as they also operate a service from the bar offering pizzas and other options. All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay and our only regret was not staying longer. We are already planning to return.

This hotel is set in luscious gardens with the tranquil sound of birds. No loud music, animation or pool games to spoil a relaxing holiday. I stayed half board in a well equipped villa. Breakfast had plenty of choice, dinner needs improvement it's a bit bland. Hotel's not close to any amenities so a car or taxi to shop and eat out. Bar prices in the hotel and town both reasonable. Polite and helpful staff. I'll be back...