A Holiday At The Eden Resort, Albufeira

This Summer we spent two weeks at the very beautiful Eden Resort, Albufeira. In fact It’s hard to believe that we have been back over two weeks already and the girls have started school again. We had such an amazing Summer and ending it with two weeks in the Algarve was perfect. We really didn’t want it to end.

I have already done a sneak peek at what we got up to on holiday. There is so much to tell you about though that I’m afraid there will be a few posts yet.

Think pretty ice cream coloured villas, lush gardens and fantastic pool areas and you might begin to be able to imagine how gorgeous the Eden Resort really is. We enjoyed ourselves so much and would love to go back again.

The Resort
Eden really is a lovely looking resort with palm trees dotted everywhere. It is not right next to the beach but has an excellent complimentary shuttle service four times a day. This takes you to the old town where all the shops and restaurants are and then it’s just a five minute walk to the beach. Perfectly doable with the family in tow and worth it to be away from the crowds. It has a very laid back and relaxed feel which appealed to us. It was quiet and peaceful but close enough to the action for when you wanted it.

In the past there were complaints that the shuttle bus was only a mini bus for 8 people and this was the case for the first week of our holiday. It made no difference to us though as they went up and down until everyone was dropped off. However,during the second week a very smart, new and shiny bus for 15 complete with childs booster seats arrived. Much better! They have obviously listened and responded to customer comments. I like that!

The Villas
There are a variety of villas ranging from one to four bedrooms to cater for everyone. Some even with their own pools which would have been amazing! We stayed in a two bedroom villa which was extremely spacious and well thought out and could fit up to 6 people in. With maid service 5 times a week they were also very clean. I adored the way they were all painted different pastel colours although some were in need of another coat or touch up, especially the white bits. It was the end of the season though so I would hope this would be done ready for next year.

Space really was the key here. There was room for all five of us, all of our stuff and we still had loads of room. It was brilliant and made it an easy holiday. Having an outdoors space was amazing too and we used it every day.

I have to tell you that the beds were all extremely comfortable and we all slept very well.  If you plan on using the sofa bed in the living room they’re fantastic. You will find it is easy to pull out and it is made up with clean sheets several times a week too. We were very impressed! The girls all slept in in the mornings too thanks to all of the fresh air and the heavy curtains.

Now the only thing I would say is that the information about the resort  is seriously lacking. They could do with the usual booklet or folder in each villa filled with useful information in. There was something telling you about the All Inclusive meal times and a map but nothing really for those self catering. A bit of info about local supermarkets, nearest restaurants etc would have been very useful and even the best beaches or attractions in the Algarve too.

For the record there is a very good Portuguese supermarket at the bottom of the hill on the left and an Aldi and Lidl further down. There are also lots of lovely places to eat in the Old Town. We did a bit of both eating in and out and used the local supermarket. Taxis are cheap for running you up and the hill too. Just €3-5 a time.

For those that want to cook the kitchens have plenty of storage, a full sized fridge and freezer and even a dishwasher. The only thing I would say is that our villa was for up to 6 but there wasn’t 6 plates, cups, glasses and sets of cutlery. It might have been due to breakages over the summer and they did bring us anything we needed but it would have been nice to have it all there ready.

Cleanliness and Grounds
I must admit they really do take pride in this resort. Not only will you see it constantly being cleaned but the lawns were cut twice whilst we were there and they even cleaned the road! Ive never seen that being done before. I am fussy about cleanliness and found nothing to complain about at all.  It really is a lovely looking and clean resort. The little bridge area in particular is delightful and the children never tried of the brightly coloured fish and turtles.

Service and Staff
We found that the staff were all very approachable, friendly and helpful. Nothing was too much for any of them.

The Pools
The pool areas were beautiful and once again very clean.  There really make the whole resort and are a key feature of it. There are two family areas which each have a large pool, a splash pool and sun beds surrounding them. There is also an adult only pool which is for over 16s. A lovely quiet pool with no inflatables….obviously not the one for us.

The large pools in the family areas have a big shallow end of 0.80m which meant we could just let Daisy play without swim aids until she eventually took off with swimming. By the end she was diving in the deep end swimming a width. I will warn you the first week it was busier and people were getting up at crazy hours to save themselves sunbeds but by the end it was much more relaxing.

The Bar Areas
With three young children and not being All Inclusive meant these areas were not a big part of our holiday. That said though one of things Husband and I both commented on was on the lack of atmosphere surrounding them. Just a few simple changes would make all the difference. The pool bar is in a great location. Being close to the kids club and playground area  is perfect for families too.  However, it would really benefit from some simple fairy lights or candles on the tables to take it from daytime to evening. We never used the bar by the restaurant, it looked more like a big kids play area rather than a bar so again could do with a little bit of lift.

The Food
We had originally booked a self catering holiday but we were treated to a day of the ultra all inclusive service to help with our review. I must admit the food we tasted was very good and there was plenty of choice. Obviously I can’t comment on what it would have been like over two weeks but I can say there was a lot of it. For one day we tried a bit of everything (a whole other post coming soon). Whilst we wouldn’t have been able to eat quite like we did for the whole two weeks we had great fun trying it all out.

There is still so much to tell you about, especially the amazing spa and the fun kids club but I will save that for another post. We would definitely go back and would also really recommend as a great base for families wanting to stay in and explore the Algarve.

Karen x