Casa da Pendôa

La camera è in realtà un grazioso mini appartamento con camera, bagno e cucina con buoni spazi a disposizione. Avrebbe bisogno di qualche lavoretto di manutenzione (la porta della doccia non chiude bene, pareti un po' rovinate, filtro del bagno cieco non pulito...) La pulizia generale è buona, peccato solo per il pesante odore di fritto presente all'interno (non abbiamo capito se qualcuno avesse cucinato o se veniva dell'esterno, pur tenendo aperte le finestre non è andato via). La host ci ha accolti con molta gentilezza parlando bene in inglese. La posizione è molto comoda per raggiungere la zona centrale a piedi ma è assolutamente sconsigliato arrivarci in auto. Pochi giorni prima dell'arrivo abbiamo ricevuto una mail da LovelyStay.com che ci informava che il centro storico è interdetto alle auto dei turisti e ci suggeriva una via vicina dove parcheggiare. La via in questione è stretta e con pochissimi parcheggi a bordo strada e impostandola sul navigatore non si trova. Dopo oltre 3 ore alla ricerca di un parcheggio con code chilometriche abbiamo lasciato l'auto in stazione e pagato un taxi per arrivare alla struttura (c'è anche l'autobus che arriva nella piazzetta principale). Ovviamente il traffico congestionato non è colpa di chi gestisce la struttura ma ritengo che sia necessario informare meglio chi la deve raggiungere per evitare disagi. Pur essendo partiti con ampio anticipo da Lisbona abbiamo mancato l'ingresso a Quinta de Regaleira, che purtroppo non siamo riusciti a vedere, perdendo anche i soldi del biglietto per 2 persone.

We stayed for one night in a 2 bedroom apartment with kitchen. We loved the location, decor and luxuries amenities in the unit. The towels, beds and lines are top notch. The power went out at 10pm which derailed our stay. They could not put it back on. They did offer to relocate us, but we declined as the kids were already asleep and it would have taken long to repack. The QR code to open city gate did not work (I felt very sorry to our uber driver). The directions for the hotel is very convoluted. This hotel is basically 120 second walk from the palace of Sintra. I'd give then another chance.

I booked this place on ******* thinking this was a hotel. Well, it is not a hotel, it is an AirBnB type property. They do not have a reception like all AirBnB properties. However, unlike AirBnB properties, they have no one on site to help you. I drove all the way there. The directions to get there were not good. They texted me on Whatsup and told me to follow yellow signs with the Name Casa Pandoa once I entered the village. They told me to ignore the GPS directions once in the village (Sintra). The yellow signs were not easy to spot, I did manage to see them and they sent me to a road the was blocked. I gave up and tried to follow my GPS, the GPS took me to the guest house. When I arrived there, there was a map with the location of the apartments on a wall, I did not understand the map. I called them on whatsup and they texted me back and said they would not answer whatsup calls. I told them on messages that I could not find the apartment, they told me I need to put the right code on the door to be able to get it. I could not communicate with them my needs, I could not find the darn apartment. I finally called *******, they called them on my behalf, they answered *******, they said that there was no one in the property to help me find the apartment. ******* canceled the reservation on my behalf and I left. The streets to drive in the area are very narrow, you must be very careful to drive without scratching your car. I went to a hotel instead with a reception. From now on, I do not intend to stay in places without someone in the property that I can talk to when I arrive. Virtual reception does not work well. Even AirBnBs have someone on property to help you if you need assistance. They have no one.

The description says it has a fully equipped kitchen/kitchenette well it hasn’t even got a toaster or a bread knife. The fridge was a mini bar and there were hardly any cups plates etc so why have a mini wishwasher?

The apartments are located in a very quiet area where you can sleep with your windows open. During the night one can hear the peaceful sounds from the birds in the forest nearby. Although the stay was perfect, the apartments are completely inaccessible for unfit or older people or people with disabilities. The police stopped our Uber taxi far down the hill, forcing us to drag our bags more than 200m up a steeply inclined hill. Apparently, no cars are allowed inside the old residential area, except for residents. Needless to say, this unfortunately soured our experience of our stay in Sintra.