Latest Reviews for Sal

only saw parts of sal on our quad bike safari so cant say much. its very baren and building work going on all over the place. we went all inclusive so no idea what the food is like outside the hotel(if any restaurants).

we had a weeks stay at the funana.when you arrive at thec hotel its best to take your own cases to the room otherwise you could wait over an hour to come to your room.the location of the hotel is by far the best part ot this massive complex which dominates the skyline.take a leisurely stroll on the almost empty beach and admire the view whilst dipping your feet in the sea.(temp 25c).if your lucky see the turtle enclosure on the beach just outside the hotel.its amazing to see them just been hatched.we would reccomend snorkeling if you can get your hands on them as there arent many to hire which is crazy due to size of the hotel.you only hire them for an hour.on the beach we went on a quad bike safari which is brilliant for 2 hours.you go all over the island and see many things.its 70euros for a twin,but we hired a single at 50euros each which is much better.a warning to wear old clothes as you get dirty and dusty but still great fun. back at hotel the food was ok but not a 5* standard. we ate at the chinese(great) also the fish restuarant(great)and tried the grill (rubbish). the entertainment was shocking the tiny bits we saw. ie karaoke night and a grease night very very poor.if you like butlins then you will like it.the hotel is nice but not a 5* more like a 4*. lastly the airport is tiny,so do all your duty free shopping in the uk. a small tip for you--- make a sandwich at the hotel before you leave as their are no food outlets at the airport.

Sal is a barren island with a lot of building work being carried out in santa maria.

The Funana/Garopa is one large hotel. The staff are friendly but don't have time to talk as the bars are always busy. You always have to queue for a drink. Staff don’t talk much in the restaurants as EVERYTHING is self service. The beach is good but the waves are big and will knock you off your feet if you are not careful. If you want a sunbed, be at the pool before 9:30 and 10:00 on the beach. People also use them as sunshades so feel free to remove them as they should use the umbrellas. The pool staff will also lift any unattended towels before 9:00am. This upset some people but was amusing to see when they returned and someone else was on THEIR beds so be warned. The food is average and always luke warm unless you arrived when the chefs were adding fresh food. This was the same at the Mandalay (Asian) speciality restaurant. The rooms are clean but do not leave any Euros lying. I left 3 Euros in the room and it went missing. I assume the cleaner thought it was a tip for her services. Funny how the hotel accepts no responsibility for theft unless valuables are locked away in the safety deposit box! The Jeep Safari is a good trip if you want to see some of the island but you do get bounced about a bit as the drivers race each other when offroad. You are also taken to a couple of souvenir shops and stop at a local bar for a drink. The ½ day catamaran trip was good if you want to laze about and enjoy the sun. I would recommend the introductory diving course with Scuba Caribe (Ilson and Robin) who give a free trial around the pool. The good bit – we were pestered by flies at the pool and beach all day long. I expect some flies around but not this many. Watch the Funana dance, you can practice by swatting the flies. We used the open-air Santa Maria restaurant beside the pool at lunch time and you cannot leave food or drink on the table unattended as it will have a few flies on it when you return. There were also flies in the main restaurant. The other problem is the mosquitoes. Cape Verde had about 3 years worth of rain in 1 1/2 days just before we arrived. There were stagnant pools of water in front of the hotel blocks and on the beach. We were eaten alive during the day at the pool. The evening was OK as we used a repellant. We had more than 60 bites each by the end of the fortnight and were not the only ones. Some people had left the speciality restaurants at night because of the mozzies!

We didn't leave the complex as there is nothing around the hotel except sand!

We went for our honeymoon. Couldn't fault anything apart from evening entertainment. Always plenty of fresh food. Rooms really good and spacious. There wasn't anything to complain about

Sal is very up and coming and we would imagine in about 5 years or so then it will have the waterpark, McDonald's etc. In our opinion Sal will lose some of it charm when these things are built.

My Partner and I travelled to this hotel in June 2008 and would liek tot say we had a fantastic time. The staff were very helpful more than what can be said for the Thomson reps. The island is very windy so be careful when in the sun as it doens't feel that hot but it certainly burns. You will need a light jacket / cardigan for the evening as it can be very cold. We would throughly recommended this destination to people, it is a great place to chill out and relax. As long as you do you research you will enjoy Cape Verde.

Sal itself is very uncommercialised which is lovely for those wanting peace and quiet. It's very flat and sandy and quite barren so when it's windy, very dusty. The beaches are beautiful and totally unspoilt. There is lots building work going on - new apartments. It will bring much needed revenue, investment and jobs as Sal is a very poor country. This will however bring the inevitable bars, restaurants and shops.

What a fantastic holiday we had in April 08 when we went with Thomson's to Sal, Cape Verde. The weather is glorious (no rain for 10years). The Hotel Funana shares a complex with the Hotel Garopa so each has it's own restaurant, pool, poolbar but guests can use the facilities of either. There are 3 speciality restaurants (no extra charge)! just book in advance. ALL the staff are absolutely brilliant and so friendly nothing was too much trouble, rooms cleaned daily, restaurant food was lovely and fresh every day with unlimited wine, beer, fruitjuice in fact you don't need to wait for a waiter just help yourself plus we NEVER had to queue to go into the restaurant. Always tea/coffee, soft drinks and beer in reception area 24hrs. Beach was beautiful with LOADS OF SUNBEDS - daily activities there and round the pool. Evening entertainment not professional but local girls and boys who worked so hard and did a fantasitc job. Only down side the nearest small town was Santa Maria which was 30mins walk along the beach or 40mins by 'road' (I use the term loosly) although taxis queued up outside the hotel and were only 3euros. There is very little to do in Sal so if you like shopping don't go there. There isn't very many trips either (don't go on the catamaran one it's a rip off) but if you want a peaceful and tranquil holiday go now before it becomes too commercialised and spoilt. FANTASTIC!!!

If you have a particular intersest in building sites and industrial development, this is the place fior you. Millions of pounds are being invested in this island and thousands of holiday rooms are being built. I an sure it wuill settle down in a year or two.

Alan Titchmarsh would not be interested in this place as there is not a bit of plant life other than that grown in the hotel grounds.

The old part of Santa Maria still has its charm with a number of locals trying to sell their goods in the normal african way.

The culture is a mixture Portugese, Brazillian and African.

As stated above though, it is a relaxing place to come to but not for exploring or touring.

The hotel is massive and the facilities excellent. The service left a little to be desired but we put this down to it being an emerging holiday destination.

If what you want is a totally restful holiday on one of the best beaches in the world then for the price and flight time, this was a good choice.

We certainly chilled out and got out of the holiday what we needed.

Cape Verd'e is a great destination if all you want is a beach hol because the beach is fabuluos pure white sand for miles and when you walk this beach you can turn around after 10 mins and not see a single sole in either direction (how cool is that) But there is a downside , the wind is very strong at all times and depending on direction can be very wareing the sea can be extremely rough and dangerous especially for youngsters but we were able to go into the sea on most days and it is better than the carribean, My advice is to see it now in its natual state before all the hotels get built (5yrs) at most because you will not be able to excperience the solitude on the beach for tourists and sun beds. The resort overall lacks any features there is no Fauna or flora and the landscape is very flat arid and dirty due to the lack of rain. We didnt explore the island because there isnt much to explore there is very little ifrastructure of any sort but this is a developing island which is very apparent when you look back from the beach and they do need our money from tourism so do spend a few euro in the town and make someone happy.

This hotel is advertised as a 5 ***** and i can catagorically tell you that this aint no 5 ***** hotel. Being an avid RIU customer we have stayed in dom rep 3*** + Riu Yacatan and mexico twice and these were 10 ********** by comparisom. The staff in the restaraunts and bars are lazy. The accomodation was pretty much as excpected for Riu, The hotel feels like a prison on the inside and pretty much looks like one (not that iv'e done time). The Cabo Verde's landscape is devoid of fauna & flora you may be lucky enough to see a couple of small wadders down at the truly magnificand beach,a better beach you will be hard pushed to find anywhere in the world go there before it gets spoilt. The food at the hotel was boreing and lacked imagination and veriety. Its a short walk into Santa Maria along the prominade,try not to feel to intimidated by the local Del boys they are poor and only want your business for arts & Crafts stand firm on your price though i would say as arule of thumb offer a tenth of the stsrting price Oh and beware of the english girls trying to sell property and time share they normaly get to you first. Cape Verd'e is a great destination if all you want is a beach hol because the beach is fabuluos pure white sand for miles and when you walk this beach you can turn around after 10 mins and not see a single sole in either direction (how cool is that). Our flights were changed to First choice and had i been able to cancel the hol i would have purely for that reason because frsit choice use the older Three by three aircraft wich are uncumfortable and not in good working order, wec ran out of water halfway outbound and they had the cheek to sell bottled water you couldnt use to W/C nor could you wash your hands no tea or coffe and home bound one of the toilets was out of order First choice is a shambles. Beware of the scam at cape verd'e airport they will take advanced bookings for xtra leg room on the return journey and charge you up front and when you get on the aircraft GUESS WHAT all the leg room seats have been allocated so if like us you paid for xtra leg room at your travel agents before you left stand firm with the cabin crew and ask to be seated in the appropriate seats. We will not be returning to cape verd'e and if we did it will not be in the Riu Garopa/funama...

Very dry and barren with no greenery at all . Lovely beaches though

well what can i say?When we landed it was like landing on the moon! The hotel is literally in the middle of no where! There is absolutely nothing to do but relax and if that is what you want from a holiday then Cape Verde is the place for you! The hotel I could not fault ,spotlessly clean, good food, comfortable rooms and a fantastic beach but absolutley nowhere to go . We did a half day trip around the island and there really wasn't much going on anywhere else on the island either , very dry and barren not a tree to be seen!

It is definitely up and coming....It just has not up and come yet! Glad we where only there for a week.

We left the hotel on several occasions to visit Santa Maria on Sal - which as expected was very poor. This is not a place to do B&B or self catering as there isn;t much choice. I never felt threatened or at harm - but several passengers on the way home told some real horror stories of getting lost at night and being threatened at knife point by the locals. My view is that as travellers you must always take precautions to protect your personal safety - anywhere you choose to go. The local economy is very poor - and local schools appreciate the gift of stationery from visitors. I brought a small christmas pressie from the uk for our maid and she really appreciated it. The beaches are magnificent - a lot like the carribean. This is a place of preliminary investment - dont expect the costas or tenerife because it aint anything like (yet). Go in ten years time and it will be. If you want peaceful paradise then go now before the diggers move in !!

We stayed here over Christmas and the New Year 07 - 08. This hotel at Christmas is a great place to be. The hotel was bedecked by christmas decorations (a bit weird when you are in the sun !) and the staff wore santa hats - and got really into the festivities. The gala dinners on Christmas day and New Years eve were fantastic - champagne flowed all night, and all manner of very expensive foods were on offer. Throughout the holiday we ate well and had good choice of food and drink. The staff even came around with fruit during the day whilst were were sunbathing. The hotel is very large - but there are plenty of places for sunbathing - no fighting for sunbeds ! The pools were very cold - especially the jacuzzi in the spa. The rooms were great - large, had a fridge, and fantastic shower - however, we did have noise from the corridors from children running around (we were surprised to see so many children there at Christmas). The beach was stunning - although the sea was very rough - not for a quick paddle. Weatherwise - it was overcast on a few occasions - but always warm with a constant breeze through the days - it got quite chilly at night - so you might want to take a wrap/cardi. Overall a fantastic holiday.

Thomson - would it be possible to have the opportunity to upgrade the seats on the plane please ? We did not have them on our plane - and 6 hours is a long time in a cramped seat.