María Auxiliadora Holidays from £128

Great apartment in the heart of where you’d want to be, on a pedestrianised street right next to Bolhão market.

This is the nicest European hotel we have ever stayed in. The building is fabulous, really nicely converted with lots of thoughtful design choices. The rooms are lovely, beds super comfy, nice big fluffy towels. Great indoor spa facilities (we had a brilliant couples massage) and the outdoor pool is the perfect place to swim and relax with a cocktail. There are loads of nice places to sit and relax inside and outside. Staying here feels as comfortable as being at home. The breakfast is delicious, lots of choice and everything high quality. Room service food was great, the food in the restaurant really delicious. All of that aside though, what really makes this hotel special is the staff. We had brilliant service from the second we checked in to the moment we checked out. Absolutely nothing was too much trouble and the service felt personal and attentive. We had hired an electric car, charging it was no trouble and in fact the receptionist offered to take our keys, charged the car overnight and parked the car back in the car park. We were lucky enough to be able to have a late check-out too - again this was no trouble and the team were happy to accommodate us. Don’t miss the club room - a lovely space to relax with a book (there are plenty), watch tv and enjoy a complimentary cup of tea and slice of cake. I’m hoping MS Collection expands their luxury hotels elsewhere so we can explore more places while staying in luxury!

Great location. Except for the fact there is a massive building project on the adjoining wall. It would have been nice to know that before booking. As at 0800 the Roto Hammer’s start a massive concert is n jackhammering noises. And this project will be ongoing for some time. If this would have been known before hand? I wouldn’t have booked. As I spent a lifetime in construction and wanted to leave the noise behind me. In affection, the A/c is more of a suggestion as it wouldn’t cool the room off as it should. I also ended up having to empty the water collection for the a/c 3 times. If not? There would have been gallons of water spilled on the floor. This was not disclosed about having to preform preventative maintenance. Check in? Was after 1500, not by much, but then they are strict about Che k out time they should be as strict about check in time. For the price? The value just wasn’t there.

Awesome hotel. Equally amazing staff and service. Exceeded expectations. The views were amazing from and around the hotel.