Santa Catarina Hotel

We chose this hotel as we were flying into the airport late at night and it is only five minutes by taxi. We found it comfortable and the staff attentive to our needs. There was a little noise from the village but nothing excessive.

Before we started our trip we read reviews of the hotel, whilst most seemed to be positive there were a few negative. Having stayed in the hotel we can only say some people are only happy when they are whingeing! We found the staff incredibly friendly and helpful, the room was clean and comfortable, the self service breakfast buffet suited my healthy appetite and my wife's small appetite, the restaurant in the evening, whilst offering a limited vegetarian choice, which appeared to be consistent throughout the island, certainly offered... more

I read the reviews on here and felt a little worried about whether we had made the right choice of hotel. We arrived at 8pm, Staying half board. The staff are very helpful/friendly. The food was lovely. Yes you can choose from the main menu if you like and we did at NO extra cost. The hotel offers "happt hour" between 5.30 and 6.30 this is advertised at the bottom of the drinks menu in the bar. The rooms are clean and we didn't here any aircraft at night. The buses run regularly to Funchal and it cost 2.20 Euro each way and takes... more

stayed in santa catarina half board,first mistake the menue for half board was very limited one fish and one meat dish every night,so every night was very samey.You could choose of the ordinary menu and pay the difference,but what they dont tell you is how much you are allowed per person for half board per night.It could end up being a very expensive stay.The rooms were clean but in need of an upgrade,staff polite and helpful.would not go again

Thoroughly enjoyed our stay at this hotel, we stayed In February and were given an upgraded room free with views overlooking Sea and Santa Cruz, room excellent and spacious with very comfy bed and large balcony. Food great, Staff very helpful and courteous. I would recommend this hotel and would use it again. Bus to Funchal 100 metres from Hotel and only 2.10 euros each way, timetables displayed at bus stop, buses run frequently and on-time. For car hire I would recommend the hotels car hire it is cheaper than the airports and with... more

My partner and I have just spent a week in this hotel and found it to be extremely clean, good breakfast and nicely located, just a few minutes walk to the seafront, bars, restaurants and the local buses ran regularly to places like Funchal and Machico. Yes, it was situated near the airport but we found very little noise or disruption. Our room had a mountain and a sea view and was extremely good value for money. The only downside we found was that the pillows were a little hard and the lack of a fridge in the room. DramaQueen -... more

The bed was comfy, the bedding and linen was spotless. The doors to patio did not lock. The whole place is a little tired, and would benefit from a lick of paint and some new grouting in the bathroom. Biggest gripe - there is no air con and not even a ceiling fan so the room was hot and stuffy during the night. Break fast was ok, staff pleasant and helpful. It is 5 mins from airport, you know this when you book, and planes do not fly during the night so you can sleep.

This is just a note re an experience we had in the restaurant at this hotel whilst we were staying in Santa Cruz. The restaurant is open to non-residents so we gave it a try. Here is the timetable of events. 20:15 - Ordered meals 21:00 - The two starters we ordered arrived. How long can it take for a bowl of soup and a prawn cocktail. Two hotel guests had ordered and eaten a 2 course meal in this time. 21:15 - Two of the main meals arrive. 21:35 - Third main meal arrives. 21:50 - Last main course arrives, by which... more

We were absolutely delighted with this hotel. The staff were friendly, helpful and efficient. They were always available and approachable, and they enjoyed their work. Through the staff, we were able to find out so much about the island and its people - they gave us a head start. The atmosphere was always pleasant. Food and drink in the hotel restaurant were superb, and the room facilities were very good. We are looking forward to going back to this hotel. Guy and Wanda Higby, Dunstable, UK.

Hotel is sited under a motorway flyover (one of the motorway concrete support legs is sited next the swimming pool area !!). Also the airport flightpath is close to the hotel. So if you like busy traffic and planes this hotel is for you !! We booked this hotel via Airtours a few years ago on an 'allocation on arrival' basis and most of the guests were horrified at what we saw on arrival and promptly kicked up a storm with the holiday rep. We (along with many others) managed to get a transfer (at our extra cost) to a nice hotel in... more