Escape & Unwind in Elegance with Large Private Pool & Amazing Views (Free Wi-Fi)

Thank-you for your review. The entrance to the gate, which was damaged through unprecedented weather conditions, has been repaired. This was done as soon as it was practicable. We will get in touch with Google as they state the beach is 19 minutes away from the villa.

We do identify, within the advert, that we live in the Algarve and provide 24/7 support for all visitors. Additionally, we clarify this in our communication a few days prior to your arrival, by stating “we will always be on hand to help you”. Our accommodation is autonomous from the villa and does not overlook you in any way, so complete privacy is what you have. The remaining comments fall under the area of nature, which we have reduced or zero control. The entrance to the gate, which was damaged through unprecedented weather conditions, has already been repaired. This was done as soon as it was practicable. We do have a gardener who works every Saturday, and one part of his work is to clear the leaves. All the trees around the villa are “evergreen”, which drop some leaves daily rather than shedding entirely once a year. When we greet the guests, we do state that if there is anything of concern, please let us know and we will resolve it. If we were made aware that leaves in the pool were an issue, we would have been more than happy to clear them daily rather than twice a week with the robot pool cleaner. We do provide a net by the pool that guests can use to collect leaves that are blown into the pool, if they want to. Regarding the cats, we are in the countryside, and they are here to do a job. We would prefer to have a concern with seeing a cat on the land, which we can control, rather than mice or rats on the land which we would have difficulty controlling.

There is nothing we can do with the driveway from the road to our property as we do not own it. The driveway is owned by the local council as it leads to the area ‘Fonte’, which provided water for the local community. Fortunately, being a council driveway, it is maintained with a hard surface, rather than dirt tracks which many other properties in the area have. Regarding your reference to breakables in the house, if we were made aware of your concern, we would have been more than happy to have removed them for you. We do say to all new arrivals, “if there is anything that you find does not work to your expectation or have any concerns with anything, please let us know and we will rectify it for you.” This is by no means, an empty statement. We want all travellers to enjoy their stay at our villa and will do anything to accommodate this. Our advert does state this is a “home from home” accommodation, not a ‘sterile, minimalistic holiday rental’ and the many photographs show very clearly the contents for all future travellers to make an informed decision prior to booking.

Thank you very much for your review. It is important for us to have the accommodation and outside area set correctly for full comfort Best wishes to you.

Thank you very much for your review. It is very important to us, as our reputation is our future. Your review and immediate re-booking for next year endorses this. So glad you enjoyed your time here at Quinta Fonte do Cascalho and it was great to see a complete family enjoying some relaxed time together. Best wishes to you and your family.

Through refusing us or our agents access to the property at certain times or asking us to leave the premises before a job is fully completed, you denied us the ability to fulfil our commitment to ensure the full safety and comfort of our client. Conversely, by the same action, you also denied yourself the right to complain that things were not done. As a private owner, we personally ensure visitors are safe and comfortable and will “move heaven and earth” to ensure this is the case. When there are times an outside influence completely out of our control threatens this, we have a clear set of procedures to ensure remedial action is taken, covering four priorities: 1 - Safety, 2 - Comfort, 3 – Communication, 4 – Entertainment. We also have a local network of professional and resourceful tradespeople who respond immediately to rectify problems. In this case, while you were out of the property, we were notified via our security alarm system there was a power anomaly. Priority 1 (Safety) was initiated, immediately, by isolating the affected part of the power supply and request an immediate visit by the ‘power distributers’ to ensure the incoming power supply stability. The conversation during their visit was not as you depicted above. When stability of power was established and made safe, tested and phone conversations, all in Portuguese, (the native language), we used our best efforts to persuade them to repair the distribution board whilst they were there. They stated their responsibility was for the delivery of power to the house which terminates at the first fuse cut-out. They were not allowed to touch house boards and we would need to use an independent electrical engineer to repair the damaged item. It just happened, that the engineer they recommended for our area was the one we use. At no point was the house without any electrics. The next morning, repairs were made to the distribution board item and the affected sockets were tested, therefore priority 1 was complete. We did advise you immediately that everything was safe and working by telephone, so cannot understand why you found the need to unplug the fridge/freezer to use the washing machine. Incidentally, we have two fridge/freezers, just in case one breaks down. We did offer immediate replacements for the two chargers that were damaged, but you declined. Your remark relating to “putting up with lights turning on and off at night, unprompted” was never brought to our attention, however, the light you are referring to is an external security light, installed for everyone’s safety. The resolution to this problem would have been to either draw the curtains or lower the electric security shutter on the relevant window. Alternatively, if we had been informed that it was an issue, we would have de-activated it for you. Priority 2 (Comfort) was achieved within an hour of the power anomaly, through us purchasing and installing the first of two portable air-condition units. The second unit was sourced and purchased the following morning. Unfortunately, you denied me to access the premises to install it, so the conclusion of priority 2 was delayed. Priority 3 (Communication) was achieved a day later by our internet provider, through the replacement of the router and the testing of the internet connection. Therefore priorities 1 to 3 were completed with tradespeople in the premises for less than 2 hours. Priority 4 (Entertainment) was deferred at your request where you stated that the “absence of a TV would help repair the rifts within your family and improve communication”. In relation to the pool drain cover, you requested we postpone our scuba-diver visit during your stay, so therefor, not in a position to complain that nothing was done. The cover was secured on the day of your departure. Contrary to your assertion in the review, we have never said our electrical contractor was the cause of the problem. The last visit by our electrical contractor was a year prior, on the 26th of July 2021, for the installation of a new water heater. We also note that you used the word ‘fire’ four times in your review which is categorically untrue. There was no fire! The cause of the power interruption was an increase in voltage on one of the three live inputs to the house and, we did identify to you in writing during your stay, that our local municipality made a public announcement to all residents of an “anomaly affecting power supply” apologizing for any inconvenience and asked for understanding. Referring to the matter of the flyscreens; we did explain to you that ‘covid’ restrictions had only just been lifted in Portugal and that we were waiting for a visit from the engineers. During that communication we did ask why you would have the doors and windows open and the air-conditioning on. Your reply was, quote: “It is of no concern to you when, why or if we choose to use aircon over leaving the windows open with screens. We pay for that choice.” There was a complaint by yourself that one of the fire extinguishers was missing from the house. I explained that for client’s safety we have 3 times the minimum requirement for the house. I immediately retrieved the one that was in for annual service and left it by the front door, however, we noted that it was still there when the property was vacated days later. You have also proven yourself to be untruthful when you denied any knowledge of the damaged wash line; blaming subsequent guests, our cleaner or gardener, until we identified otherwise with the date and timestamp of the photograph of the damaged item. The VRBO Premier Host program, which we are part of, is an “invite-only program that acknowledges property owners who consistently provide quality traveller experiences to their guests”. It is not attained by luck, but by hard work and dedication on our part to ensure our client’s safety and comfort. Our eighty-seven 5-star reviews to date, endorses this. Four are from guests who have visited our property after your stay. One of those last reviewers stated the following: Quote from the owner "it's your holiday so we will do everything we can to make you feel like you're on vacation". No empty statement, Barry and Tina know how to find the perfect balance between support where needed and privacy. Another stated: The owners Barry and Tina are the loveliest, most genuine people I have met. They went above and beyond to make us feel very welcome. If we needed to know anything they were at hand. They even sorted out my car hire for me at a great price and had it delivered to the villa when I had trouble finding a car. “The lip of truth shall be established for ever; but a lying tongue is but for a moment”. (Proverbs 12:19)

After 12 years and over 400 visitors, this is the first time we have experienced this situation. Rather than respond to this review in detail we believe the photographs and extensive description of our villa contents, location and about us says it all. Plus, all our previous “exceptional” reviews speak volumes. We note this is the first time you have used HomeAway and at the time of your departure, you informed us that your stay was most enjoyable and comfortable and all was friendly when you left. Your subsequent communication of assumptions and issues that had nothing to do with the property was promptly dealt with by us. We will not be drawn into discussions relating to ‘value of your stay’ after its satisfactory completion, especially when those issues are nothing to do with us or the property. A less experienced owner or manager may have responded differently.