Hotel Pontao

“Great base to stay for a good price”

Just back from a week at this hotel which exceeded my expectations. My room faced the road but it wasnt noisy and you could watch the sun setting from the balcony in the evenings. It also got the sun all afternoon if you didn't want to venture out. Shower was very good and always had hot water. It… more

Just back from a week at this hotel which exceeded my expectations. My room faced the road but it wasnt noisy and you could watch the sun setting from the balcony in the evenings. It also got the sun all afternoon if you didn't want to venture out. Shower was very good and always had hot water. It was nice to have a fridge. Only probkem in my room was the difficulty opening and closing the patio doors. As a result, i had to keep them slightly ooen throughout my stay. This needs addressing. I had great wifi everywhere in the hotel which I wasnt expecting. Rooms were very clean as was everywhere in the hotel. Breakfast was fab with a good variety. Occasionally ran short of plates, mugs etc but, you're on holiday! Just be patient and they're soon restocked. Pool area was lovely but didn't get a lot of sun. However, the roof terrace was a little gem. Very quiet and (generally) peaceful. Odd times when people seemed to think you scared their taste in music 🤔. Only gripes were the sunbeds. Get some new ones please!! The majority were either broken or so saggy you were nearly on the floor. The other was the whirlpool on the roof. It's used as a bird bath by the flocks of pigeons that gather there. There was bird dirt visible in the water which put me off using it. . This was my 4th visit to Santa Maria and, despite some issues, I will definitely come back to this hotel based on location and value for money.

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“Can other guests be quiet ?”

Good things :The breakfast includes local products and traditional dishes. The facilities like the jacuzzi, pool, and rooftop area are great, and the garden is beautiful. The location is convenient for visiting the city center. The staff members are very friendly and were flexible regarding early c… more

Good things :The breakfast includes local products and traditional dishes. The facilities like the jacuzzi, pool, and rooftop area are great, and the garden is beautiful. The location is convenient for visiting the city center. The staff members are very friendly and were flexible regarding early check in and late check out. The negative aspects were mainly related to the behavior of other guests. Some families were very loud in common areas and others watched videos without headphones in the morning. This made it difficult to find peace. The hotel should consider installing signs to encourage a quiet environment. Although I did not experience the noise from the nightclub that others mentioned, my room had an unpleasant smell that suggested it was previously a smoking room.

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“Basic but adequate hotel.”

The hotel is basic but adequate. When we stayed, there weren't very many other English tourists so we were definitely in the minority. The reception staff were helpful enough but the waiting staff were distinctly unfriendly. We had a corner room which had a larger balcony than some of the other … more

The hotel is basic but adequate. When we stayed, there weren't very many other English tourists so we were definitely in the minority. The reception staff were helpful enough but the waiting staff were distinctly unfriendly. We had a corner room which had a larger balcony than some of the other rooms and it was nice and cool to sit on. Rooms had air con which had seen better days but worked ok and cooled the room. When we arrived (Friday evening) we were missing the TV remote control buttons. We reported to reception and buttons turned up on Monday. To be fair we didn't want to watch the tv but did want to use it for music. The TV in our room had a USB slot so we could listen to music we had brought with us. There was a fridge in our room which worked ok and was suitable for keeping milk in. Again it had probably seen better days. We brought our own kettle, mugs, tea and coffee which was a life saver. Milk was available in the local supermarket (we drink lots of and coffee)! We ate breakfast in the restaurant to begin with (b&b) but then found a nice restaurant in the high street which was more to our taste. On day one when we went to explore we were accosted by a street trader who followed us to the pharmacy (where we were headed for plasters), waited for us and then took us to his "market". Basically a shop of tourist "gifts". He put bracelets on our wrists tightly and then proceeded to try and charge us €50 for a fan and wooden turtle. Obviously we refused but in order to get out of the shop gave him €20 for the 2 bracelets we couldn't remove. After this we didn't engage at all with the many traders who tried to entice us into their shops on a daily basis. There were police regularly patrolling the high street which was reassuring. I'm not sure i would return to this part of cape verde, but might return to an all inclusive gated resort.

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