Just back from a week at the Stella Maris with my husband and eight month old baby. We had a one bedroom apartment on the fourth floor which at first I wasn't too happy about but actually worked out great as it was lovely and private. The apartment was very nice, the sofa in the living room was a little worse for wear and a few marks on the walls but other than that it was great. Fantastic kitchen which we put to good use having a baby! Air conditioning worked really well even though we didn't really need it much as it was Oct. Weather was absolutely perfect! Pool was really nice but beware it is freezing, you get used to it when you're in for a while but not ideal for babies. Kids pool and playground is on the other side of the building (freezing too!) and really nice. The entire hotel is absolutely spotless, and the cleaning staff are fantastic. The Stella Maris is situated in a quiet location which suited us perfectly, there are about 6 restaurants about 3 mins walk away which are nice, couple of seafood ones, a chinese, pizza place etc, along with a supermarket. There are loads more about fifteen mins walk away but we tried to get there with the pushchair and it just wasn't possible, on one part of the road there is no path, just sand and it was quite deep and too hard to push the pushchair through. The beach is about 10-15 mins walk away, but well worth the trip, its absolutely beautiful. We paid €12 for two loungers as we needed shade. You have to go down 80 steps (I counted!) to get to the beach and on the way back after you have climbed that there is a steep hill to climb too. We went into Albufeira only once, it was €11 one way in a taxi, and Vilamoura once which was €13 each way. Both definately worth a visit.
My only complaint is with the reception staff, not very friendly or helpful. On our second last night we had a problem with the apartment below us, there were teenagers in it and they obviously had their friends in with them and were partying from early evening till about one, music up loud and out on the balcony shouting etc. Our little boy couldn't sleep and was really upset. When we went down to reception to complain the man on reception wasn't at all helpful, asked what did we want him to do "throw them out"? They did get them to be quiet eventually though but they obviously made a huge mess as it took the cleaning staff about two hours the next day to clean the apartment, dont know what happened to them after that as we didn't hear anything from them the next night. I have no idea why a group of young people would want to stay there though as it was all young families and older couples! Anyway overall we really liked the Stella Maris and would return.

just returned today from a 3 day stay at the stella maris ,, from the minute you walk in the door the hotel is so clean , peacfull and looks very expensive ,, we were greated at reception very quickly and were given room 17 ,, fabulous room with no faults ,, right on the pool ,, what more could you ask for ,, exellent location for a quiet getaway ,, good resturaunts 5 mins away ,, or we went into town 10 euros a taxi ,, all in all great place , and exellent value for money would deffo be back

On arrival staff were friendly & helpful. When they found out it was our honeymoon we had a bottle of bubbly in an ice bucket with glasses & a selection of fresh fruit delivered to our room all courtesy of the hotel. The apartment was Very clean, lovely, tasteful decor, large clean bathroom with a really good shower. Felt like we were in a brand new hotel. Pool was clean & plenty big enough with plenty of sunbeds ( we went in September). Little shopping centre 5 mins walk up the road with a selection of restaraunts serving cheap chinese (good value), lovely pizzas, 2 fish restaurants, a few typical Portuguese restaurants selling grilled meats & bolognaise etc as well as an ice cream parlour. Fantastic beach was 100 metres up the road & a 15 minute taxi ride to albufeira (€24 return). My wife & I loved this place & deliberately chose it due to the quiet location. For night life u would need to go into albefuira so if quiet nights on the balcony sipping a drink, reading a book on the beach or by the pool is for u then this is the place to go. Overall we loved it & would definitely return. I'm 38 & my wife is 30 & both found it a great place to chill out & de stress. The negative reviews seem to be from people who wanted night life & kids entertainment. I noticed 1 review complained about the lack of British tv!! Lol. Trust me, this place is lovely.

Stayed here at the end of August for 5 days with my girlfriend to get away for a few quiet day to chill-out. We were not disappointed. We arrived at 10am in the morning, our rooms weren't ready but the staff were very accommodating. It was mid-twenties, so all we wanted was the pool :).

We arrived at the pool between 11am and 11.30 each morning and didn't have to worry pool side beds, there were plenty available and no overcrowding. We ate lunch at the pool cafe every day which was very nice and not too expensive.

The crowd at the pool was mainly couples and a few families with young children, who were well behaved to be fair.

The aparthotel was one of the nicest I have ever stayed in. Having done a few of the continental ones, the cleanliness, quality and space was second to none we have stayed in and the balconies were very big.

The only downfall is the buffet at night. We decided to stay in the hotel the night before we left and its not great. It was €17.50 per head, and to be honest it's pushing €8-10 for what you get, not even that nice and a 10 min taxi to the old-town, hence the 4-star rating.

Well worth it though and would recommend to couples looking for a quiet get-away or families.