More about Stella Maris
Excellent apartments, but beware of the moody locals!
by TripAdvisor Member Janesy1983
Myself and my partner have just returned from a week at the Stella Maris. The reception staff were very helpful and checked us in promptly. Our room was fantastic! Although there was only two of us we had two double bedrooms, two bathrooms and a massive lounge diner - We were very impressed. The pool area is lovely and always had plenty of sunbeds, even at midday. The pool bar is really nice and has a good selection of drinks & snacks. The resort itself is very quiet, but has a small selection of bars and restaurants. Alot of the locals eat at these restaurants and we found that the staff were very rude towards tourists and basically ignored us when we ate there! (The worst restaurant for this is Flor De Mar, so beware!) The locals would be well looked after and we would still be sitting there waiting for our drinks!!!! So after our bad experience we decided to walk to the neighbouring resort of Acoteias which is about 10 minutes walk from Praia De Falesia. The people are much more friendly towards tourists! We went to a FANTASTIC restaurant called La Lagosteira. It was a really lovely restaurant in a great setting with great food & great service! We highly recommend this place. You must also visit Trotters Bar which is also in Acoteias! Brian, Eve & Will are fantastic and you will have some of the best nights out there! We also visited Albufeira's Strip and Old Town. Both were great fun, but the Strip is definitly more for groups rather then couples! The Old Town was lovely and had little restaurants & bars hidden away down cobbled backstreets. The main nightlife is in the Square which was surrounded by bars and restaurants and had a great buzz well into the early hours!
All in all our holiday was fantastic and I would definitly recommend the Stella Maris if you are looking for a quiet relaxing holiday, but it may not be for you if you want to be close to the nightlife.
Highly recommended!
by TripAdvisor Member rachipstones
We stayed in this hotel for a week. We wanted a holiday to competely relax and do nothing and this hotel was perfect for that. The rooms are modern and very clean, with a large balcony, and the staff were helpful. A good hotel for families too. The only complaint I would have is that there is a limited range of food on offer in the hotel and the kitchen staff seemed to struggle to cope when the hotel became busier (for a Portugese bank holiday). However, there are a number of restaurants just 5 mins walk away and Albufeira is just 10 mins drive from the hotel. Our room was a studio with a small kitchen so there is also the option to cook. I would definitely recommend this hotel and would stay there again.
Great hotel
by TripAdvisor Member dotty51
The Stella Maris is a fabulous hotel. After reading some of the other reviews I expected it to be in the middle of a pine forest all on its own, it's not. We had a studio apartment which was huge as was our balcony, the apartment was very well equipped and there was plenty of everything. Excellent air conditioning and shower with plenty of hot water. The reception staff were brilliant and nothing was to much trouble, that goes for the bar staff and cleaners as well. The whole place was spotless and the cleaners came in every day. The food at the bar was very good and 'snacks' consisted of steaks, omelette's etc. which were delicious. We explored the area and walked to Acoteias which has quite a few restaurants, shops and bars if you don't want to eat at the square, also, if you turn left at the hotel and walk to the road, then turn right you will come to a couple of restaurants which are good. We walked into Villamoura several times, once by the countryside route (which only took us 1/2 hours to walk back) and by the beach which, despite what our rep said (takes 2 to 3 hours) took approx an hour at a leisurely stroll and was heavenly. Falesia beach is very long, very clean and the water was warm, although nearby the beach is accessed by steps, you can walk further afield and avoid the steps. We went into Albefeira a couple of times and the cheapest we paid one afternoon for a taxi was 7euros 33cents (£5.20) which was excellent value considering the distance. The dearest was at night 8euros 30cents (5.92) still good considering what we pay here.
We had a brilliant holiday and met some great people there, and would definitely recommend the Stella Maris for a laid back, chill out holiday.
Wonderful place to relax
by TripAdvisor Member Rippin
Just returned from a really enjoyable week at the Stella Maris. A quiet location but was what we expected and wanted. The rooms were very clean, spacious and well appointed. The staff most helpful and spoke excellent English. We chose to travel by public transport and taxis which the reception staff went out of their way to help us organise. The only minor issue was that we went late in their season and sun never reached our balcony so to sit and eat outside was a little on the cool side however, the pool was very clean and most of it was in a sun trap. The beach was only 10 mins walk away and we enjoyed many hours walking along the clean sand and clear water. There are sufficient bars, small restaurants and shops in the area and we were made to feel most welcome by the locals.
We believe it would be a little too far out for those seeking 'night life' but if you want a quiet holiday in a pleasant location this would suit you!
lovely hotel
by TripAdvisor Member pippink
Just returned from a great holiday at the stella maris. The apartments are fantastic and spotless, the cleaners came and cleaned our room everyday leaving fresh towels and made our beds.
We had a 2 bedroom apartment which was very spacious and had 2 bathrooms,living room with dining table, separate kitchen which had everything you needed, we only ate out 3 times all week we have 3 children so found it cheaper to eat in. This is a great place for a relaxing holiday there is a few shops, restaurants and supermarket just 5 mins walk away from the hotel. We decided to hire a car which was very easy to do either through travel rep or reception desk. We then did our shopping at lidle near albuferia much cheaper and more choice.
the beach is a 10 min walk away from hotel beautiful long beach we walked to vilamoura on our last day which took us just over an hour to get there though maybe a little shorter for somebody else because kids kept stopping to play in the sand. There is no entertainment at night in the hotel but there is a bar and a restaurant and a park for the kids. lovely pool though did'nt go in because water was too cold but you can expect that in november. the weather was fantastict though not one days rain and the pool area was a sun trap in the afternoon.
I would definatley recommend this hotel, staff was friendly and helpful and the hotel was great value for what we paid. I would recommend car hire if you like to get out and about to explore the country. i think i personally would have got quite bored after a couple of days but it depends what you like
it is very relaxing place to be.
An Algarve gem
by TripAdvisor Member JoeBDublin
We came upon this Aparthotel by chance, and what a find it was! Unlike many of the apartment blocks that you find in the Algarve, the Stella Maris had a refined elegance that was reflected in the style of the overall development as well as in the large-sized one-bedroom apartment that we had. The service from the staff was second-to-none, whether at the reception arranging transportation or having lunch by the pool. The good news that this did not come at premium prices - the value and quality were consistently good.
The location itself is excellent, although it wouldn't be the best for young families who want to be in the thick of things. The apartment is a 10-minute taxi ride east of Albufeira right on the coast. The area is not over-developed; there are a few other quality apartment blocks and quite a few private villas around. The beach is a 5-7 minute walk and is quite secluded.
Another great thing about the location is the number of high-quality, yet reasonably priced restaurants on the main road leading in. Unlike the restaurants in Albufeira itself, it is clear that these rely on repeat business from both locals and visitors. As a result, the quality is exceptionally high while prices are lower - especially if you like fish or seafood. We were even offered a lift back to the apartment on a couple of evenings when it was raining (we were there in late-November).
We have been to a number of Algarve resorts over the past 25 years, and this is the only one about which we've ever said "We have to come back here!" And we will!
Great place to stay
by TripAdvisor Member riggerparish
just returned from the algarve staying at the stella maris..
the place is absolutely spotless and the staff very helpful.
our room was cleaned and the beds made daily.
the room and balcony's were massive.
if you want a quiet relaxing place this is it, however busier villamora is only 10 euros in a taxi.
places to eat were all quite good with the exception of the local chinese. we were the only two customers in there and we soon found out why.
REALLY BAD FOOD....DONT GO.
overall a very nice relaxing holiday.
Excellent but needs a more personal touch
by TripAdvisor Member Elvistcbx
Really nice quiet hotel. Very slick and clean. Great attention to detail which really shows. The whole place was very modern and well equipped. We did upgrade from a 1 bedroom to a 2 bedroom as the sofa bed was very uncomfortable. The 2 bedroom was huge and had 2 bathrooms. The pool was freezing although this didn't stop my kids going in. Plenty of sunbeds but this was a quiet time. The beach is about 10 minutes walk and is lovely. Very windy though. Trip to Zoo Marine well worth it and my daughter loved swimming with the dolphins. The buffet food was lovely but not really catering for children, although mine survived without chips and pizza. Some other families had problems with the late start of dinner which was 7.30 but they had very young children. My only gripe is that is was all too professional. Maybe missing the personal touch. But perhaps that's because my heart lies in Greece where they invite you into the kitchen before you eat. Other than that great if you want peace and quiet.
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