Have some fun in the Algarve while you help us at our brunch cafe

Brazil

5

Thanks to the hostel team for having me here. They are amazing people to be with! Portimão during the low season is chill and calm, but at the summer is totally different and crazy.

over 1 year ago

Ana replied

Thanks for the feedback.
As I said in the last review, it was quite nice having you here in the beginning. Unfortunately the way you left, in the middle of a working shift, when the restaurant was full and your colleagues needed your help, without even telling anyone, completely changes our idea about you. Specially after we hired you to work in the restaurant. You didn't even respected the portuguese working law.

We wish you a nice life.

Germany

2

I had a good time at the hostel, but there were some issues concerning Ana, the Host. She didn't take enough time to explain our tasks, and when mistakes were made, she reacted angrily. Communication was difficult; Ana often deflected responsibility and twisted our words. She frequently yelled at staff and forced a sick cleaner to come to work. Meals were always meat-based even though some of us were vegetarian. Ana only offered reimbursement for supermarket food after 3 weeks&aftewe asked. After we had a discussion, Ana demanded I leave within three hours without regard for my financial situation.

10 months ago

United Kingdom

2

Super glad i decided to do this, the girls i was volunteering with were amazing and are definitely friends for life now. However we all decided to leave early after a tense situation with the host Ana. We felt she handled the issue unprofessionally and without compassion unfortunately. Not how we wanted this experience to end but we did not want to stick around to be talked down to by Ana. Glad we all had eachother as being given 2 hours notice to pack up and find new accommodation isn't the easiest situation to navigate.

10 months ago

Australia

2

I made the most incredible life long friends during my time at the hostel and made the best memories that I will always cherish. I cut my time short along with the other volunteers due to some dramas that unfolded at work and miscommunications which led to a big blow out in the common areas of the hostel. Overall a good experience but management and conflict communication was extremely poor and unprofessional. I hope host Ana changes the way she approaches volunteers in the future as it was a tense unfriendly environment. Glad we all had each other to make this experience enjoyable.

10 months ago

United Kingdom

2

I walked away from this experience with a great group of friends and for that reason I'm glad I went to the hostel. The team in the kitchen were lovely and made me feel super welcome and were always helpful. However me and the other girls left early due to some drama and miscommunication. My experience with Ana was very poor, I felt totally unwelcome and always felt like I was walking on eggshells. I felt she handled situations very unprofessionally and totally lacked empathy. As a vegetarian I wasn't catered to at all, and had to buy my own groceries, I was told about the allowance on the last week.

10 months ago

Slovenia

4

I had really good experience at hostel ! Hostel is very cute, clean, comfortable and has big beautiful terrace. Work is very fair, people from restaurant are very friendly and grateful. Hostel is good if you want to explore south of Portugal because it is close to other cities on south or experience Portugal more as local. Hostel is not so social because part of the hostel has private rooms and also dorm rooms are not so cheap for hostel so there are not many young solo travelers. I didn't like Portimao as a city but the whole experience was very fulfilling.

11 months ago

Portugal

4

Staying in Portimão was an amazing experience. We were 4 volunteers in total, sharing a room with two bunk-beds and our own bathroom. The space was very comfartable, I have nothing to complain. As for the staff, all very friendly and I'll miss each one very much. The work itself is reasonable after you get the idea of the system used at reception. Sometimes we help in the cafe as well. Ana is very busy handling it all, so she is not always as present, but we volunteers and staff are always helping each other. I wish all the best for the hostel :) Thank you for having me.

about 1 year ago

Italy

4

I had a wonderful experience at the hostel mostly because of the amazing girls i met but also because of the beautiful landscape surrounding this place. The work was easy and the working hours were fair. The hostel is very beautiful and the staff is friendly. The hostel is very calm and sometimes it was a little boring but i can still recommend it to go there if you are there to see the beautiful south of portugal!

about 1 year ago

Italy

3

I had a great experience in Portimao mostly because of the people I met and the beautiful landscapes and beaches. However I couldn't say the same about the experience at the hostel. I was a little disappointed with the experience: the food that was given to us for lunch and dinner was definitely a problem and sometimes we didn't even have breakfast. For the first two weeks of my stay I had to stay in a guest room with paying guests, after that I had a bed in the volunteers room but I was never given a key.

about 1 year ago

Ana replied

Same feeling here: we also felt disappointed with having you.
What's wrong with staying in a guest room with paying guests? You didn't pay for it, It was free, as you expected. Volunteers room is for 4, if we didn't have an extra bed, we gave you an upgrade...
And you know that we had a problem with the lock, that's why you did not get a key. All girls in the room knew it.
It's also very unprofessional that you never said before coming that you couldn't work at reception, and then anytime we asked for your help at the restaurant (once it was the only thing you could do) you didn't care.
This is volunteer, not vacations. If you want vacations, you've to pay for it.
I didn't give you a bad review so as not to harm your profile, but as you can imagine I wouldn't give you more than one star either.

Wish you all the best for your future.
Ana

United States

4

I had a great time here at the hostel! I met some really great people while working here. The work was straightforward and only took a day or two to catch on to. Portimao is a fun place to be and is close to bigger cities. The beach is a 30 min walk and is beautiful. Ana was very professional and her expectations were clear. I would just ask if I needed anything and she was very nice and responsive :).There is no lunch or dinner on Sundays and Mondays and the food provided was the same for lunch and dinner. I had a great stay and would recommend the experience!

about 1 year ago

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