Sublime Comporta Country Retreat & Spa

What to like: Breakfast was very nice and up to the standards of a luxury hotel. Service was excellent, perhaps a notch above the usually expected service. The PR level at this hotel is remarkably friendly and courteous. The garden has some unique and carefully manicured combination of greens (colours and sizes) and zen grated sand and the garden paths are carefully bordered by dried pine needles. I’ve known gardens in five continents, and this is still wonderful and relaxing. We had dinner once at the hotel and i believe the smoked eel (appetizer) and the Lobster rice were worthy of a Michelin restaurant. There are no specific luxury clichés, as opposed to many other 5-star hotels. Though luxury is a feeling expressed by the surroundings. The whole hotel breathes an atmosphere of rustic upscale welcoming smile and quietness. Definitely a place to revisit. A criticism and some small hassles: 1. Biopools are and cleaned every 4x4 months - minimum 2 complete days (Nov / Mar/ Jul ?). Whenever booking a "Biopool room" guests should be informed it will be impossible to use the balcony and pool on their chosen stay. No one is basking in the sun or swimming while the plants are being cut and some hours later removed. Even less with a scuba-dier scrubbing the bottom of the pool for several hours. We might decide not to book or get a discount. In fact one is paying for a benefit which is entirely taken away and out of reach. Since we were lucky enough to chose those exact cleaning two days, were were reduced, I and my wife, to keep the curtains closed most of the time. I suggested at the reception, that this type of work as much as possible should be pushed into the first 2-3 hours of the morning during breakfast time. Even if such a change might imply working an extra week. 2. All the lights in the room should be controlled from the beds. 3. I fail to see the reason why bidets are unavailable – it’s not for lack of space and we have to take a shower each time we use the toilet. 4. The bedside Chinese Ming blue and white table vases hold an unequivocal presence and should be kept for their aesthetic impact but somehow an effort would be appreciated to add up 2-3 small drawers perhaps embedded and half-hidden on the top-sides of the bed ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A big not-to-like and some small

A nossa estadia no Sublime foi fantástica. A decoração, o cuidado tornam a experiência acolhedora e muito confortável. Fomos surpreendidas pelas várias atividades ao longo do dia e tivemos oportunidade de usufruir de uma ótima aula de yoga com a Cátia. O quarto permite a regulação do AC e tem todas as comodidades para uma estadia tranquila e confortável. A zona do spa está muito bem conseguida, embora com um espaço limitado. No entanto, a experiência no restaurante Sem Porta foi bastante dececionante. Pedimos duas entradas: gamba algarvia e carpaccio. O carpaccio estava bem conseguido, mas as gambas não estavam saborosas, os sabores não se interligavam e não dava vontade de continuar a comer. Para prato principal pedimos o arroz de lavagante que estava extremamente cremoso e bem cozinhado, no entanto, sabia imenso a tomate tornando o prato desinteressante. Pedimos dois cocktails sem álcool que nem conseguimos terminar de beber porque eram ácidos e nem davam vontade de continuar a beber. Para concluir, apesar de todos os empregados serem extremamente simpáticos, torna-se incomodativo estarmos constantemente a ser interrompidas pelos mesmos. Não é agradável estar a ter uma conversa ou estar simplesmente embrenhada nos meus pensamentos e ser interrompida por desconhecidos para questionarem apenas se está tudo bem e se estamos a gostar ou se queremos alguma coisa. O que mais gostámos foi sem dúvida da estadia e toda a envolvência, está muito bem conseguido, mas o restaurante fica muito áquem da restante experiência. Para terminar, deixo apenas referência ao facto de a TV não ser Smart TV.