Hotel Apartamento Dom Pancho - Albufeira, Portugal 

Cheap as Chips - Our Second Time Here
Posted: Wed, Jul 23 2008
We stayed at Dom Pancho early 2007 for a short break, having booked cheap flights via EasyJet and then booked Dom Pancho via alpharooms. The first time, we thought it was a little bit run-down and certainly not up to the standards of the likes of the Hotel Montechoro, or the Real Bellavista where we have also stayed. For New Year's Eve in 2006, we stayed at the Auramar which is an absolute hell-hole. It is positively filthy and we ended up with bites from the creatures lurking in the bed. So, having ruled out the Auramar for New Years Eve 2007, we decided on the Dom Pancho instead. There were 4 couples, consisting of me, the wife, my 3-year old daugher, my sister-in-law and her boyfriend, and my mum & dad and my wife's mum & dad. We all had our own rooms, some of us had 1-bed apartments, but the parents chose to have the studio - not really much difference if you ask me, but incredibly good value for money, either way. This is a case of you get what you pay for. Don't expect 5-star luxury, but at the end of the day, it's a great location if you want to get away for a cheap break and have somewhere clean to get your head down. This is not accomadation I could recommend for a famiy's main summer holiday, but it is absolutely fine for a cheap break.

Worst Apartments Ever Stayed At
Posted: Fri, Jul 11 2008
We were surrounded by building works. The view from the window was of a skip. Builders started drilling and hammering around 0830 every morning until around 1900. Hotel was full so we were unable to move rooms and staff were very unhelpful. These apartments should not have been occupied whilst works being carried out. The room itself was a good size but poorly equipped with none of the usual electrical goods i.e. toaster, iron, kettle, hairdryer. Also no drawer space to put clothes and only a handful of coat hangers in the wardrobe so we couldn't properly unpack. Bed linen was so old it was torn along folds. During a 7 night stay linen is not changed and towels only changed once. Had to complain as Maid did not clean floors or empty bins for three days. No daytime entertainment and nightly entertainment not worth having. Well located for bars and restaurants but a good 15 minute walk to the beach. With a bit of effort this could be a great hotel but too many corners have been cut to save money. They even charge you 1 euro to phone you a cab from reception!