Villa Alba by Akasha Retreat

Everything. The location is amazing and Dana is an awesome host.

Beautiful location, super attentive staff, delicious food.

great place to wind down and relax, very quiet and amazing views.

Vila Alba has the supreme coziness, spacious rooms, delicious breakfast and a wonderful yard where you can enjoy and relax.

We loved everything.

Nice area, lovely breakfast. Loved the morning yoga at Akasha!

Not as close to Akasha as I expected. Do check your bill if you go for yoga or dinner at Akasha as we were overcharged and our bill was 30 percent more than it should've been... It was corrected at the end though.

Very nice accommodation, clean rooms, very nice designed and very welcoming hosts

Everything was great

The place was as described. The location and scenery are beautiful. Daniela and Ramiro were responsive and helpful throughout our stay. We will definitely return.

Excellent property, interior of the property is unique. Breakfast was good. Two of the three hosts were pleasant and knew how to talk to the client. The issues we had were promptly acknowledged and the 80% refund was made. We make no compromises when it comes to choosing accommodation. Our limited holidays are precious, and every moment of that time is invaluable. Negative experiences during our stay cannot be compensated with money. We expect transparency, open, and honest communication from hosts. Issues can arise anywhere, but if they are communicated promptly, one can make alternative arrangements. In this case, the local authorities had stopped the water supply for hours over the past few days. This meant no water in the bath or toilet. The host should have informed us of this issue immediately after we booked the property, allowing us to choose another accommodation. Instead, we were only informed after we checked in. Initially, we were told it would only be a couple of hours. We were in transit during a long trip and needed to freshen up and relax, which was our primary reason for booking this accommodation. Four hours passed without water, so we contacted the hosts again. They promptly called us and informed us that water would be available only after 8:30 PM. We had checked in around 3:00 PM and had booked dinner with the same hosts for 7:30 PM. We waited to freshen up but eventually went to dinner when there was still no sign of water. The hosts offered us the option for free cancellation, but it was too late to search for another property, pack, and check in elsewhere, considering we were in transit and had to leave early the next morning.

At dinner, we met the hosts’ mother, who tried to justify the situation by blaming the local authorities. What started as a decent conversation turned into a debate, which we didn’t appreciate. In front of other guests, she accused our dog of having fleas because she scratched herself once and then offered us a free dinner in lieu of a bath. The tone and manner of this offer were insulting, as if we were there for a free meal. We chose the dinner option while booking the accommodation and could have gone to any other restaurant otherwise. By 8:00 PM, most of the buffet dishes were almost finished, further disappointing us. We quickly ate what was available and left in about ten minutes. Usually, at 4-star properties, there is a three-course meal (soup/appetizers, main course, and dessert), but we didn’t see those options for us. We did notice dessert being served to other guests at their tables. The host's mother claimed she wasn’t expecting us for dinner, which might explain why the options were almost exhausted. We suspect they expected us to cancel the reservation, given the inconsistent information about the water issue. After dinner, the host’s mother asked if everything was okay, and we expressed our disappointment. She apologized, but her tone suggested insincerity. She eventually offered us an 80% refund, which we accepted. We were told the refund would be processed the same day as we had to check out early the next morning. However, we received no communication that night and had to follow up on the refund status. The host's mother prepared our breakfast, which was very good and highly recommended. She processed the refund during checkout but continued justifying her previous comments, which we found unnecessary and irritating. Overall, it was not the experience we wanted. The host's son and daughter were polite and apologetic throughout our stay. The son even arranged a fan and mosquito repellent for us.