Vasco Da Gama Hotel

We are a family of 4 and booked in the vasco de gama, monte gordo. Realised on booking that we had opted for a quiet resort but this place really is Quiet !
Hotel clean, but in serious need of modernisation. Food was excellent. Staff efficient.
Villa real well worth a visit as is ayamonte across the border in to Spain.
If going to monte gordo though certainly take a few books to read.

The hotel room was clean, towels changed daily and bed linen changed frequently. There was also a mini bar fridge in the room which you could use for your own needs, which was great to stock up on water and juice.
Not much for the kids to do my 11 year was sometimes a bit bored - not many families seem to use this hotel - more couple and elderly people.
I would recommend seeing the Magic show which is held on a Wednesday night in the hotel bar which was absolutely brilliant.
We had half board and found the food very good great choices of dishes - salads, fish and meat dishes. The waiters were very helpful. You sat at any table in the restaurant and the waiter would take your order for your drinks and if you did not manage to finish your bottle of wine they would keep it for you for the following night.
The hotel is situated right on the beach which was great 10 euros for 2 sun beds and umbrella which if you used every day is quite costly - we used them a couple of times - but mostly sat around the pool with no problems of getting a sun bed any time of the day.
We went over to Spain for the day - so cheap to get there - got a taxi to Villa Real St Antonia 3 euros - then caught the ferry over to Aya Monte.
Got the bus to Tavira which was a lovely town well worth a visit - got the bus timetable from the Reception Desk at Hotel - only took about 45 mins.
Went also to the Slide and Splash Water Theme Park which was great fun especially if you have children to entertain - again well worth a visit - bus picked you up from Hotel at 8.20am and dropped you off around 6.00pm.
Outside the hotel was horse and cart rides which took you around parts of Monte Gordo only cost 10 euros we done this twice.
Also an open top bus at night time took you to Villa Real Antonia for only 3 euros lasting for 30 minutes which was also outside the hotel.
For the smokers Regal King size costing 33 euros (which is cheaper than Spain by 3 euros a box) - you can purchase cigarettes from a shop in the hotel reception area.
I enjoyed my holiday if you are just after a relaxing time then Monte Gordo is for you.

I booked this holiday as I wanted to do some sightseeing and chill out by the pool and on the beach.
Monte Gordo has a very Portuguese feel; the resort was very busy with large groups of Portuguese family’s of Parents, Grandparents, Kids, the complete extended family.
The resort was created specifically for tourism. The Vasco De Gama was the first hotel to be built in the resort. There are only two hotels in Monte Gordo that are directly on the beach and the Vasco De Gama is one of those.
My room overlooked the sea, it was spacious, very clean. The meals in the hotel were delicious, I am a vegetarian and I was very well catered for.
The bar area has wood panels, large picture windows overlooking the pool, garden and beach. I enjoyed relaxing on the comfy brown leather sofas in the bar, the staff were very friendly and spoke good English.
The entertainment in the hotel was in the bar area. I watched an excellent magic show one night, I am still wondering where the fluffy white poodle vanished. There was something going on every night in the hotel. The hotel does not have any kids clubs, the entertainment was not child orientated which suited me.
As a single traveller, I felt very safe sat around the spacious and elegant pool area. I found myself a quiet corner, sun loungers and umbrellas around the pool looked fairly new and were provided free of charge. The pool area is screened from the beach by a white wall with climbing flowers, which I found very peaceful and restful. When I fancied a change of scenery, I just walked down a few steps from the garden area directly to the beach. The beach of golden sands goes on for miles, I walked along the beach for 4 hours one evening, I was fascinated by large jelly fish and fish with sharp teeth that had been washed up onto the shore.
I particularly liked the large pool, it was a traditional oblong pool, as opposed to the lagoon shaped pools, I was able to have a really good swim each morning and before dinner.
The reception team at the Vasco Da Gama were very helpful, explaining where to get the bus to Faro and Tavira. There did not appear to be any organised tours to Faro or Tavira. I had borrowed some guidebooks on the Algarve from my local library, the DK Portugal guide book was the most informative, with lots of pictures to show me the place that I was looking for.
Tavira has a roman bridge and 37 churches, it is very picturesque. Most of the churches appeared to be closed on the afternoon that I visited, I was told by the tourist information that they rarely open to tourists.
The highlight of my visit to Faro was the Chapel of Bones, it is not to be missed. The small chapel, is at the back of Igreja do Carmo (Carmo church). I walked into the chapel alone and my breath was completely taken by what I saw. The interior walls of the church are completely lined with the bones and skulls of monks, they are arranged into patterns. A window in the chapel overlooks a children’s playground, I stopped and reflected on both life and death.
Monte Gordo is very close to Spain, I caught the bus outside the hotel to Villa Real St Antonio just 10 mins up the road and then I caught the small open ferry, only 15 mins (1.2 euros each way) to Aya Monte in Spain. Both Aya Monte and Villa Real St Antonio are really charming, both have traditional squares and are well worth exploring. Cigarettes are cheaper in Spain, I stocked up whilst in Aya Monte for a friend who chain smokes (he looked after my British Blue “Oscar” while I was away).
I did a coach trip to Seville from Monte Gordo, it takes about an hour and a half from Monte Gordo. You did not appear to be able to go to Seville for a day trip by public transport. I would recommend the day trip, you can easily waste time trying to find places if you go by yourself to a big city like Seville. The Cathedral and tower in Seville were fantastic, the guide explained all about Christopher Columbus, he was very informative. I bought some rather nice “Camper” shoes in Seville in a sale, about half the price of those in my local Jones the shoe shop back home.
I would recommend both Monte Gordo and the Hotel Vasco De Gama to anyone who likes sightseeing and chilling out in a very comfortable beachfront hotel.

1 reader found this review helpful

The previous griping comments about this hotel are extremely dated and unfair. The hotel is spotlessly clean and has a perfect location on the beach. Our room was spacious and cleverly designed to accommodate my husband and me, both in our 60s, and our 6-year-old granddaughter, who declared everything to be perfect! Our beds were made and the room cleaned every day.
The pretty hotel gardens included a play area with swings, slide, climbing frame etc, and the children’s pool is spacious. Crazy golf is also available. The beach is just perfect and there is a very good restaurant fronting the beach. We had half board and found there was a good variety of food, including a big choice of salads and fruit. The ice cream and deserts are particularly delicious.
The staff are all very helpful, and we found a wide age range staying there from young families to retired people. There was a good, friendly atmosphere. Our only criticism is that we would have liked more diversity with the evening entertainment.
Excursions were arranged during the day for those without their own transport and neighbouring areas are well worth a visit. Overall we had a relaxed and enjoyable holiday in a pretty and interesting location, which felt decidedly un-touristy.

Myself, wife and 9 yr old son went to this hotel in Feb 05 and it was a nice hotel, BUT, their was NO kids club, NO kids menu, NO swimming pool (as it was being re-built, but we weren’t told), NO kids (even though it was half term) and no one under the age of 65yrs...
First choice (last choice now) sold us the holiday with all the above being their, except they forgot to tell us it was an retirement home for OAP Brits....The hotel is stuck back in the sixties, and I think the guests haven’t gone home yet since they first turned up in 1960...We left after 2 days and came home to Plymouth after 3 1/2 days.
What a FANTASTIC holiday. Many, Many thanks First Choice. If you have children DON'T go here but switch to Albufeira instead. Hotel by the bites.