Pine Cliffs Residence, a Luxury Collection Resort, Algarve

I feel very disappointed after my stay in pine cliffs. We were a family of 4, two adults two kids. Check in experience was terrible. Borderline rude. Nobody talked us through all the facilities in the resort. This resulted in us having to figure it all out ourselves, during our 4 day stay ( where were the gyms, indoor pool etc) We were just handed a map with tiny text. It was difficult to read. Reception were mostly interested in getting a credit card to run a pre authorisation. I enquired about the kids club but was shut down and told to call them directly myself. We had a late lunch in O, grill waiting for our residence apt to be ready. Food average. Barely any chicken in the chicken Caesar salad. This is when we discovered the price gouging. €5 for a soft drink. We don’t even experience these costs in Ireland. We used the indoor pool on the first evening. Staff on desk were again rude. Started with a negative saying we needed caps for the kids or no entry. Instead of saying they needed caps swim caps but don’t worry we sell them. Kids club was a next level let down. You cannot use it for an hour here or there , it’s a morning or evening session only. This set up is not geared towards families at all. it comes at a cost which I knew. We paid €70 for two for a morning session. My kids 5 & 7 said it was really boring & only one other kid there. Both times I used the gym there was nobody on reception on arrival , not what you’d expect in a 5 star. Someone did arrive half way through my workout and came into the gym area. No hello or anything it was quite off putting. We loved our accommodation and the beach , buffet breakfast was lovely too but honestly Pine Cliffs is not worth the high rates. Check out was again terrible, had to queue for 15 mins to check out. Very rude man at check out, I didn’t get asked if I enjoyed my stay. Unheard of in a 5 star resort. Which leads me to say the place is masquerading as a 5 star resort. The cons definitely outweighed the pros at Pine Cliffs. I feel very put out. glad we only stayed 4 nights.

- Incredible amenities - "One in a kind" view - The sunset bar is amazing - Great fitness options (I did yoga, gym, sauna, etc) - Staff always super attentive

A few more beds in the beach would be nice

Booked to go on a restful weeks holiday. The hotel is in fact a vast resort with villas, self catering accommodation and the hotel. Capacity is about 3500 people we were told. Had we known this when looking we would have not booked. There are no adult only areas, the food and drink is exhorbitantly priced and all bills carry a 10% charge. I refused to pay the 10% and reception removed it. We did go off resort on the Shuttle Bus as it’s too far to walk and ate in local eateries which were good and a fraction on Pine Cliffs costs. The room we had was good but quite a walk from the lift but we went with Jet 2 who might not command prime spots. We ate once on site which was expensive and very poor and cancelled other restaurant bookings. Breakfast was buffet style and good but if you didn’t get there early ,say before 9am ,there were queues. Whilst the staff were in the main polite, attentive and smiling facilities were not the best. The only bar open in the evening was noisy and people on site for conferences gravitated there and were very noisy. We asked staff why they couldn’t keep conference attendees somewhere else and the bar staff couldn’t help as indeed the reception couldn’t help. This in my view is not somewhere to visit unless you might enjoy 9 holes of golf, attend a conference all paid for or have so much money you don’t mind wasting it. I could have booked a weeks holiday to Lanzarote for 2 for the cost to me of the extras which were lunch by the pool and drinks. I consider the resort a rip off and could not recommend it especially should you want a restful weeks break and reasonably priced food and wine. A shuttle bus is necessary to get round the resort which operated quite well but quite a few people wanted to use the facility and decided to walk. In one of the pools noisy children and adults ruined one’s rest. Sun beds were not plentiful.

We loved pine cliffs it’s an amazing luxurious resort suitable for families. Definitely will be going back in the future

The room cleaning service was very inconsistent. Two days it was cleaned very well and the four days were not great. One of the days items of clothing that were left on one of the beds were put on the floor and rubbish wasn’t cleaned out.

We almost didn't visit Pine Cliffs Resort because of some bad reviews. It would have been a big mistake not to go. The rooms are spacious and clean, the balcony is great, the staff are nice and it's good value for money.

To avoid seeming too complimentary, if one of the pools had been heated, it would have been even better, since we were travelling with a one-year-old.

We found black mold in our bathroom and the manager didn’t think it was a big deal. I had to explain how toxic black mold is / it was quite shocking. Offered us same room type to move into and didn’t offer anything for the inconvenience of unpacking just to repack again and move to new room. We had to ask for an upgrade to a larger room for the inconvenience and we had to send her a photo as she didn’t believe us initially (?!!!). The grounds were nice but very limited beach chairs, the food was overpriced, 60% of our phone calls were answered (including calls to request shuttles so we had to drive our own car a bunch because we couldn’t get shuttle service). Also, everything was an extra charge / felt nickel and dimed everywhere we went. This isn’t how a true five star resort should operate.

I visited the Resort in 2017 and I loved it. This second time, in August 2025, felt like a disappointment. We reserved a 2-floor room in the Resort with our 1-year-old baby for 5 nights. The room was very poorly maintained: stains on all pieces of furniture, sticky remote controllers, holes in the tiled floor, black marks all over the walls. Despite immediately raising the matter with the staff - also showing them pictures that I decided not to post here - it took 48 hours to be taken seriously. Multiple times I was promised to be provided updates on potential solutions and multiple times the staff forgot to contact me. For the last three nights, we were moved to a room in the Ocean Suites which is definitely newer. This was appreciated despite having to pack and unpack again. However there were works being performed on our floor, so this was frequently dirty and noisy. The worst part was when, at checkout, rather than being offered any discount to make up for the bad experience, I was asked for double payments for the last three nights - both for the room at Ocean Suites and the original one at the Resort!!!! All in all, the village is great, the restaurants are great, all the services offered are great, and this is an amazing place for families. I will potentially come back eventually. But you need to be aware that some rooms are very poorly maintained and that the staff at times does not live up to the expectations of a Luxury Collection, >600€ per night hotel.

The resort was beautifully maintained.

Everything on on-site was overly expensive.

Good location with first rate accommodation.

Facilities spread too thin when resort is at full capacity. Avoid peak season.