Aquiles Eco Hotel

“Right Next to the Beach With the Giant Turtles”

We totally enjoyed our stay at Aquiles Eco Hotel. The staff are very nice and friendly. The service is excellent. The owner was very nice and helpful to us. The breakfast is really good -- local cheese, papaya confiture, coffee -- we totally enjoyed it. The hotel is just right next to the beach wh… more

We totally enjoyed our stay at Aquiles Eco Hotel. The staff are very nice and friendly. The service is excellent. The owner was very nice and helpful to us. The breakfast is really good -- local cheese, papaya confiture, coffee -- we totally enjoyed it. The hotel is just right next to the beach where you can see the giant turtles swimming close to shore. The only thing to be improved is that there is no internet in the rooms and the walls are a bit thin, you can hear the noise outside. Highly recommended, and very good value for money.

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“An interesting concept in a good location to see turtles and for plane spotters”

Some of the negative reviews of this property are unfounded. The concept is interesting, industrial chic. The rooms are not actually shipping containers, they are wooden boxes. They are not small or claustrophobic. Some hotels in Europe have smaller rooms. Our room was large enough for a double b… more

Some of the negative reviews of this property are unfounded. The concept is interesting, industrial chic. The rooms are not actually shipping containers, they are wooden boxes. They are not small or claustrophobic. Some hotels in Europe have smaller rooms. Our room was large enough for a double bed, bag storage, a chair and table. All rooms have a balcony, but only the suite on the top of the hotel has sea views. The hotel was clean, however, Sao Vicente is a very windy island and the hotel has open walls in the areas between the rooms, so it's easy for some sand to blow in. Our shower was the best we had anywhere in Cape Verde. Water pressure was good and hot water was consistent. Unfortunately there's no hook for the hose. The sink was deep and good for washing beach clothing as well. Breakfast is very good and included in the price. The lounge area is spacious and comfortable. Wifi is available in the lounge area. Occasionally you might be able to connect in the rooms, but generally it's only available on the ground floor. Overall it's a little overpriced, but not terrible. Staff were very friendly and helpful. Be aware, Cape Verdeans are often softly spoken and humble, which some may interpret as being unhelpful. There's little employment opportunities in Sao Pedro, so you may be approached by locals, particularly on the beach, offering boat trips to see the turtles, shells for sale or to wash your feet. Be polite and decline if you don't want anything and you'll be left alone. Decide for yourself about the turtle boat trips. You can swim to the location, but you won't find any turtles without locals feeding them. Nacky's Lounge is a good place to eat and also the Moreno Beach Club at the other end of the beach. It's a good location for plane spotting as well. It's safe to stand on the beach and film a plane flying directly over your head.

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“Unique place, loved the Seaview Suite!”

We enjoyed or stay at the Aquiles Eco-hotel, really a unique place and experience. The gals at reception were great – very welcoming and friendly. We felt like honored guests – which was partly true, as we were the only guests staying at the hotel for 2 nights. The hotel is actually a big cement st… more

We enjoyed or stay at the Aquiles Eco-hotel, really a unique place and experience. The gals at reception were great – very welcoming and friendly. We felt like honored guests – which was partly true, as we were the only guests staying at the hotel for 2 nights. The hotel is actually a big cement structural framework with modular wooden shipping container type rooms inserted into it. Very strangely, all of the rooms faced out over the town street and not the beach/sea. We got the seaview suite, the only one facing out over the beach, and it was wonderful! What amazing views! The rooms are fairly small and narrow, whitewashed inside, and with minimal furniture – basically a bed a small table, and 1 chair. It was clean, bright and comfortable so really no major complaints. We had a huge terrace with 2 wooden deck chairs (no pads though), but unfortunately it gets the direct sunlight after midday, and without shade of any kind, it is unusable. There is decent Wifi in the reception/restaurant area, but it doesn’t extend up into the rooms. We found this a bit frustrating as it is such an easy problem to fix. There is a bit of town noise as well: screaming kids from the school next door, loud domestic arguments from nearby houses, but that’s all part of the experience. We liked the fact that there were rental bikes available and made use of them on several occasions. The restaurant area wasn’t working while we were there, however they did serve us a reasonably good breakfast. There isn’t much choice for eating around there. The best options are to go over to the nearby village of Santo Andre where there is a very good bistro and also the restaurant at the resort. Santo Andre is about a 15min walk down the beach from Sao Pedro, or a 4min bike ride. Overall we had a great stay and would recommend it to other travelers looking for something a bit different.

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