Valverde Sintra Palácio de Seteais - the Leading Hotels of the World in Sintra

Traveling south from Galicia, Spain, to Lisbon, passing through Braga, Guimaraes, Porto, Aveiro, Coimbra, and Tomar, each hotel felt like a "home away from home." Unfortunately, Sintra became the Waterloo of this trip! Three things made for a very poor accommodation experience!

First, to conceal its unfavorable location, the hotel suggested guests walk 10 minutes to a certain intersection to take a taxi or tuk-tuk to the attractions upon arrival. Because the entire town of Sintra is located in the mountains with narrow roads, and the road in front of the hotel is a one-way street, once a vehicle reaches the hotel, it cannot turn around and has to continue on a long, winding mountain road back to the town. Therefore, returning to the hotel twice in the evenings during my stay was not smooth: the first time, I hailed a taxi at the town's taxi stand, but the driver, not daring to refuse outright, deliberately inflated the price to 25 euros. It was raining that night, so I had no choice but to agree. Upon arriving at the hotel, presumably due to legal concerns, the driver didn't dare charge 25 euros and only charged 13 euros. The next afternoon, I found a local tuk-tuk from the Moorish Castle to return to the hotel. The driver deliberately took advantage of the language barrier, asking for 10 euros, and then dropped me off at the intersection the hotel suggested I walk to to catch a taxi. She then demanded another 10 euros to get me to the hotel, and even showed that her tuk-tuk battery was low, meaning she wouldn't go even for extra money! When I checked in, I clearly asked the front desk if it was okay for me to leave Pena Palace at 9 am the next day, as my slot time was 10 am. I told them I could walk to the intersection they suggested to catch a taxi, and they clearly said it was no problem. The next morning, I left the hotel promptly at 9:00 AM. After a 17-minute walk (uphill and slippery), drenched in sweat, I arrived at the intersection to find no cars or tuk-tuks in sight! I had to call the hotel internationally for advice. They told me to go to the taxi stand at the National Palace in town. So, I hurriedly walked 5 minutes downhill (slippery, I almost slipped) to hail a taxi, spending 20 euros to barely reach the Pena Palace entrance. My original plan to queue for the shuttle bus was thwarted by the long queue, so I had to walk another 15 minutes to reach the palace entrance, thankfully not missing my slot. The hotel's suggestion made me walk for over half an hour before visiting Pena Palace, drenched in sweat and extremely anxious, fearing I'd miss my slot! To conceal its locational disadvantage, the hotel didn't clearly inform customers of the cost of a comfortable taxi ride to and from the hotel, instead telling them it was an easy 10-minute walk and easy access to the attractions? The actual walking time was far more than 10 minutes! See the picture!


The second issue was that on my first morning after checking in, before leaving the hotel to go to Pena Palace, I gave the front desk a note indicating several places I would be stopping at that day and my final destination. I asked the hotel to help me find a taxi and clarify the total price of a chartered car and how waiting time at each stop would be charged. When I returned to the hotel that day, the front desk told me the total price was 400 euros. When I asked for specific details, they couldn't answer and said they would ask a colleague. Only after I had some snacks at the bar and returned to the front desk to inquire about the result was I told they didn't know, it was just 400 euros. This price is considered high-end in the area. Is this how they treat customers? A dismissive attitude, like "go if you want, I don't care"? Luckily, I called an Uber to escape the hotel the next day!

The third unsatisfactory thing was that I booked a garden view room, but it was actually a room with a "main view of the road, secondary view of the garden"—I have pictures to prove it! If the first two incidents hadn't happened, the third view issue wouldn't have prompted my complaint, just dissatisfaction. But the first two incidents ruined my wonderful expectations for Sintra! At checkout, the front desk acted as if nothing had happened! There was no explanation or apology! This is my experience of staying in a 5-star hotel at such an expensive price! Overall, my impression of this hotel is that it's a European hotel with a Latin American experience! The service standards are completely different from European standards. The walking distances between each attraction in Sintra are quite long, so if you're not comfortable walking, you have two options: either walk 16 minutes to the taxi stand, or spend an extra 10-20 euros on transportation to and from the hotel! The latter is a fact the hotel chooses to conceal!