Penha Longa Resort

We have been visiting this hotel as a family, on an annual basis since 2013, which in itself is testament to the consistent quality. This year was no exception with great food, excellent facilities and exemplary service. This is a “must visit” hotel. The quality of food has always been good, but this year was the best we have experienced. However, what makes this location special is the personal service and attention to detail that the staff provides. For fear of forgetting a specific individual, we won’t list staff members who provided truly fantastic service (you know who you are) but suffice to say that the service this year was absolutely outstanding and we sincerely appreciate your hard work and professionalism. Thank you all!!

The hotel is lovely, the pool and the rooms are very good. The food is a let down, however. Advertising around 7 restaurants and neither can cater for special diets very well. Being a Ritz Carlton, and I believe the only Ritz Carlton in Portugal we found this very odd. For the first time, I was denied food at not one, but two different Michelin-starred restaurants for a simple gluten-free meal. I'm not sure how a Japenese restaurant can't cater for it, but this is the first Japanese restaurant that doesn't offer gluten-free options, and that too being a Michelin star. We waited 20 minutes for a table at their Spices restaurant after having reserved, and the restaurant was mostly empty. The couple behind us were seated at 8:40pm for a 8pm reservation and they got their first course only past 9:30pm. I have seen these comments before, both for that restaurant and for the lack of them catering to a simple dietary need. They haven't done anything yet to change it. The lady at the bar (name starting with A), the sommelier Mato, and the Indian guy at the entrance make up in service for what the hotel's dining team lack.

I had a great stay at the Penha Longha resort. All the staff I interacted with went above and beyond to make sure I had a pleasant time at the property. Erica took the time to show me around the pool and women’s locker room amenities. I was very pleased with multiple pool areas, both indoor and outdoor. Also, the complementary waters and apples at the pool were a welcome touch. Santy also was incredibly kind and went out of his way to make me a special drink to address my craving. It was the best espresso martini I’ve had with a tiny bit of orange chocolate added. Tasted a bit like a Jaffa cake. Prava and the staff at the AQUA restaurant were lovely and made a special lunch for me and my friend on our last day at the resort. I wish the pool areas and pool side dining were open later. Also, two out of the three clothing/merch shops at the resort were closed most of my time at the resort. Overall, it was a good experience and I would stay again.

My family of 4 (2 kids ages 11 and 9) stayed here during spring break and had an amazing experience. All of the staff members we interacted with were so incredibly hospitable and friendly. Everyone went out of their way to make sure we had everything we needed and to chat with us. The hotel itself was lovely and the grounds were wonderful with a really nice playground as well as a monastery on the property, and a very nice pool overlooking the golf course, and an indoor pool for bad weather days which really came in handy for us. The only small inconsistency we experienced was at the daily included breakfast (which was delicious). We weren’t told how anything worked the first day or offered anything to drink at the table, so we assumed everything was just buffet and self serve. On day 3 we noticed that others were getting a la carte menu items and carafes of coffee and juice at the table and we asked someone about it and she finally explained that we could order a la carte items and drinks. We were able to fully enjoy our last 2 mornings. Just a heads up to the staff to be sure to ask if it’s someone’s first day and give them the rundown if it is. It wasn’t a huge deal but the only small negative we found - the positives were overwhelmingly more numerous, hence the 5 stars.