I would not recommend staying here in winter!
First…the pros:
Fast wifi
Nice Terrace
Friendly host & responsive
Great location
Cons -
The place was freezing! I slept in TWO pairs of socks, sweats, sweatshirt and was still freezing. I could not sleep at all the first night. Awful. I think I was finally able to fall asleep around 3am. I was beyond uncomfortable. I spent most of the night in the fetal position trying to keep warm and woke up many times in the few hours I slept.
There is no heat though the listening says there is - there’s a space heater that really didn’t work to heat the full unit. It shuts on and off and generates no real heat. Catarina brought me a new heater the next day, and she was responsive and apologetic, but one out of the two nights I was staying there was pretty unbearable
The bed was AWFUL- I could feel every coil in the mattress and it made me wish I had the extra money to go to a hotel.. I tossed and turned all night and would have slept on the couch but it The bed is very short too, oddly. I am only 5’6 but when I did move to my back, my feet essentially dangled off the bed.
The pillows are flat and junky.
The doors in the flat - wow. They get stuck all the time and are a total pain.
These trips and travel are about managing expectations. I didn’t expect a flat in a beach town to be glamorous, but I was hoping to unwind here in this flat a bit, and that didn’t happen at all.
The key to the front door of the building really does not work as other reviews have mentioned. Catarina will leave you tips and tricks, but, the door is an issue that should be addressed. Fortunately, neighbors would buzz me inside.
The temperature, bed, and overall feel of the place really didn’t meet any of my expectations in the slightest. It’s akin to maybe a 2 star hotel or a motel in the states.
I couldn’t wait to leave and go to my next stop. Catarina was lovely and tried to help (I alerted her of my experience) but really, it was just overall a bad experience. I should have stayed at a hotel. I would not recommend this to anyone, at least not in the winter time. I could see that in summer it could be a blast and you wouldn’t have the temperature issues I did. Overall, this was really disappointing.
Cascais itself is wonderful and vibrant and the ocean is breathtaking. Again, in spring or summer this flat may be perfect but not in January. Lesson learned.