Quinta da Casa Branca, Funchal

...very nice little hotel called Quinta da Casa Branca. It is part of the Estalagem hotel chain and is included on a list of small luxury hotels of the world. Our travel agent Expedia had this hotel down as four stars so we were surprised when we turned up to see that the hotel had five stars on the gate. So who was right Expedia or Estalagem?

~Location~
Madeira is off the coast of West Africa, it is an steep sided granite mass ...
...bay on the southern coast. Quinta da Casa Branca (QCB) is located in the relatively quiet holiday apartment area of Casa Branca. QCB is north of the main hotels along the cliffs and west of Funchal's city centre. The hotel is on a crescent shaped parcel of land with an entrance gate in the northwest corner on Rue da Casa Branca.

~First impressions~
From the gate you can only see the hotel's reception area and bar all clad in ... more

~Introduction~
During our holiday to Maderia recently we stayed at a very nice little hotel called Quinta da Casa Branca. It is part of the Estalagem hotel chain and is included on a list of small luxury hotels of the world. Our travel agent Expedia had this hotel down as four stars so we were surprised when we turned up to see that the hotel had five stars on the gate. So who was right Expedia or Estalagem?

~Location~
Madeira is off the coast of West Africa, it is an steep sided granite mass sat out in the Atlantic ocean. The capital of this small island is Funchal in a bay on the southern coast. Quinta da Casa Branca (QCB) is located in the relatively quiet holiday apartment area of Casa Branca. QCB is north of the main hotels along the cliffs and west of Funchal's city centre. The hotel is on a crescent shaped parcel of land with an entrance gate in the northwest corner on Rue da Casa Branca.

~First impressions~
From the gate you can only see the hotel's reception area and bar all clad in glass, wood and dark grey stone. Mrs Cad loved the open style of the reception area and of course I liked it as well as I had chosen the hotel. Underneath the reception area are the rooms and to the east is a larger two storey extension on the side of the hotel. From the gate you enter the reception via several steps on to the grey stone clad roof and then turn left, up two more steps to the wooden floored reception. The reception is seemingly manned day and night, as I never saw it empty. Behind the reception area there is the Deck Bar with seating both inside and outside as well as stairs leading down to the rooms. From here you can see the gardens, the pool and a large white building on a separate piece of land. We later found out from watching TV that they call the American drama West Wing 'Casa Branca' or the 'White House'. We later discovered that 'Quinta' means mansion or manor, so we roughly (and probably incorrectly) translated QCB as the 'Mansion of the White house'.

~Check-In~
The reception were always helpful and very good. We discovered this within a few minutes as I was still feeling ill after my bad flight and the taxi ride from the airport at 25 Euros (£17.50). The receptionist directed me downstairs to the toilets, whilst Mrs. Cad booked us in. I came back ten minutes later to find an empty reception and no wife. Normally a missing wife is not a problem, but it is when she has your passport and money. The receptionist appeared and directed me to my room. Mrs Cad was already inside cooing like mother hen and the luggage had been bought down the stairs and to the room by a porter. The check in was so quick that I had missed it!

~The Room~
From the reception all rooms are down the stairs to the single long, slightly darkened corridor. This corridor has all the rooms on the south side and is lit all the time. The corridor has wood flooring similar to the reception area and wood panelled walls with framed prints of English watercolours by Turner, Constable and others opposite each room door. Our room no. 111 opposite a print of Turner's 'The Vale of Ashburnham' was well furnished with twin beds, bed side tables, two lounging chairs, a small table, a long dresser with mini-bar and a TV. The double glazed doors at the far end led out on to a small contained patio with two wooden sun loungers including cushions and a small table, there was even an ashtray with QCB branded matches! The patio led out onto the gardened area to the south of the hotel, were there is a path that leads to the pool or the health club. The plants between the path and the patio screened you off from most of the path so the room felt private.
Back inside the double wardrobe is located between the sleeping area and the bathroom. There was plenty of room for all our clothes and a small safe-deposit box. The cost of this was 10 Euros (£7) deposit and a charge of 9 Euros (£6.30) per week. A lock and key is available at the reception, where you have to pay the deposit in cash. The twin beds were a little hard, but I soon got used to them, as I did the bedding of sheets, blankets and linen. There are two pillows provided for each bed a large and a larger size, all good for snuggling into. The TV had 30 channels mainly in Portuguese, but also in English, French, German and Spanish. We tended to watch BBC World, CNN, CBN and MTV. I never managed to find anything that had any adult content so I'd consider this a plus for those with younger family members.
The bathroom was a good size with a sink, a bath, a WC and a bidet, with the last two items divided from the main bathroom by a door. The sink had a large mirror, a small adjustable face mirror, a shaving point (230v) and a hair dryer. The bath had a shower attachment with bathmat, a handrail, a retractable washing line and a red alarm cord. For washing courtesy shower gel, body lotion, conditioner, soap and shower cap were provided and restocked as necessary. There was a whole range of bath towels, bidet towels, hand towels and face cloths that were changed daily as well as two QCB branded bathrobes for your use during your stay.
An item I nearly forgot to mention was that the room has it's own air-conditioning unit that runs quietly and can be left on at night if you wish. Also an item we didn't use was the courtesy umbrella that spent all it's time in the wardrobe, it was a nice touch if it had ever rained. Overall we were very impressed by the room the furniture and everything provided for our use.

~The Garden Pavilion~
Breakfast and lunch were served in the Garden Pavilion restaurant near the pool in the southwest corner of the hotel complex. Breakfast is from 7:30 to 10:30am in this glazed wooden framed building. There is seating outside on the decking under parasols or inside on the green shiny marble effect flooring. Outside the chairs are wicker with cushions, inside the chairs are metal and have cushioned seats. There is a rather large step up into the room, which needs a little care when you are trying to exit the room as the combination of door frame threshold, narrow shoulder width opening and high step lead to a few stumbles by us and other guests. A minor problem, though once remembered you rarely stumbled again.
For breakfast the food is laid out at the far end of the room on a marble effect unit that is nearly the width of the room. There is a large range of foods available from cooked foods such as sausage (frankfurters), bacon, scrambled egg, mushrooms, tomatoes, diced potatoes and baked beans. Alongside is the cool food with meats, bread, cereals, fruits, homemade yoghurts, fruit juices, sliced melons and my favourite, little muffin cakes. If that isn't enough there is a cooked menu that serves items like fried eggs and bacon or any arrangement that you could think up. You only have to ask although they may run out of some items later on the morning. Tea and coffee is bought to your table by the waiter who will also ask you for your room number. The tea is not the greatest, but the coffee is much more pleasing to taste. Coffee is supplied with warm milk so if you prefer cold milk you will need to ask.
We loved the breakfast menu and the setting. We normally pigged out on the cooked items so we didn't have to stop for a large lunch. By the end of the second week I had to drag my overfull body away from the table, rest and then work off the calories in the pool.

Lunch is served from 12:00 to 3:00pm, the lunch is menu based with a good selection of salads, sandwiches, toasties, omelettes or hot food. There is also a dessert menu available of ice creams, fruit or trifles. As I mentioned earlier we tended to have a light lunch of a sandwich and a bottle of water. I say light lunch as the sandwiches were quite large and had a side salad with it that was quite filling. As we were not full board a lunch would cost us around 18 Euros (£) for two sandwiches and a bottle of water.

~Casa da Quinta~
Casa da Quinta is the restaurant located on the pathway to the Garden Pavilion, it can also be used by members of the public as a side gate is opened up for access to the Rue da Casa Branca. Casa da Quinta is an older style building and is the only example on the whole hotel complex of an old building, on further investigation I discovered that this was the original 19th century building. There is seating inside and out, though it is necessary to book ahead. We only ate twice at this restaurant, though the first time was our first night and we were too tired to really appreciate it. The second time was much better and we appreciated the detail to attention displayed by all the staff. The menu was a little limited, though the range was good with meats, fish, poultry and vegetarian meals to chose from. The cooking, presentation and taste of the meals were faultless. The wine selection was very good and all bottles of wine we had were the best of the best. The desserts were a range of ice creams, fruits and cakes. Despite this being one of the most expensive restaurants at 70 Euros (£49) for two adults, it was certainly one of the best of the holiday. It was one to remember for the right reasons, more so due to the excellent serving staff.

~The staff~
The service at QCB was excellent all the time, the staff are courteous and very attentive of all the guests needs. They were always very helpful and would disappear to get something if it wasn't to hand. The best service was at the restaurants, where all staff spoke good English and probably a little German or French. They were the most efficient, precise and professional group of waiters and waitresses that I have ever been served by. It was even difficult to pour you own glass of wine as they expertly removed if from your grasp and poured it delicately into your glass.
There were other divisions of staff who all had a particular set of uniform, so it was easy to distinguish them from one another. The waiters wore black trousers, a white shirt and a little black waistcoat. The waitresses had similar black trousers, though they wore a white jacket instead of a blouse and had no waistcoat. The cleaners wore a blue and white striped dress with white aprons and black shoes. The chambermaids had a uniform of black dress and white apron. Even the gardeners had a uniform of olive green trousers and jacket.
All this militarily arranged division of service staff was very good as you knew exactly what their roles were, what they could do to help you and how much English they spoke. The waiters and waitresses were very helpful for food and drink, the chambermaids supplied towels, the cleaners got a broken light bulb fixed and the gardeners. Well the gardeners were hard to see only appearing behind a bush in their well camouflaged outfits during early morning and late afternoon, like band of lost Amazonian tribe.
All in all every member of staff at QCB that we met or served us were very professional. Their manners were impeccable and they were always ready to please or help at the drop of a hat. The service at QCB was the best that I had ever received and full marks go to all the staff.

~Swimming pool~
The heated pool is open from 9am to 7pm in the summer months. It is located in the south-west corner of the hotel grounds. It is near the Garden pavilion and is accessible via a stone paved ramp through a foliage covered stone gazebo. The pool is surrounded on all four sides by bushes and trellis, giving the area a very private feel. The stone arch gazebo's are on the north and west sides and cover you from the main hotel area. Underneath the north end are two toilet blocks one male and one female. Each has two doors, one for a WC and sink, whilst the shower and changing room were behind the other. The loungers around the pool were wooden with cushions and towels ready for you use. There are twenty loungers arranged around the pool on the north, south and west sides. Each pair of loungers has a small low table and a parasol in a moveable plastic or concrete base.
The pool itself is about 20m long by 10m wide, (64'x32') it is 1.35m (4'5in) deep at the shallow end increasing to 1.65m (5'5in) at the deep end. Access to the pool is via some concrete steps built into the pool with a stainless steel handrail. The pool is heated and in the summer this was set at a well maintained cool not cold temperature.
The pool is well maintained as although it would get petals and leaves in it during the day it was always clean by morning. The staff tend to stay away from the pool during the day, but you can go to the Garden Pavilion and order lunch or drinks and a waiter or waitress will bring it down to you at the poolside. The best loungers for all day sunshine are in the northeat and southeast corners along side the east wall nearest to the white house. We spent a few days around the pool and I eventually managed to work my way up to about 30 lengths in one sessions. Mrs Cad particularly enjoyed the pool area as there was plenty of shade for her to hide her pale blue Scottish skin and protect herself from getting burnt. Mrs Cad even got talking to a French woman, whilst I entertained the woman's children with my repertoire of juvenile French and silly swimming games in the pool. All in all the pool is perfect for all ages and I will dearly miss it.

~Health Club~
The Health Club is located in the basement of the two storey block in the southeast corner of the complex. To gain access you will need your keycard that you use for your room. Inside there is a gym area with mirrors on one side, a rowing machine, multi-gym, bicycle machine and a jogging machine. All the gym items were manufactured by 'Technogym', which is a make I was familiar with. I managed to use all the items easily, but there is no member of staff in attendance to help if you ever got stuck.
Also available in the Health Club are a Jacuzzi, a sauna, a steam room and a relaxation room. The Jacuzzi is in a separate room to the left of the entrance. There is a shower in this room and a chair to leave towels. It is a small Jacuzzi and could probably seat up to four in comfort, it is best sampled as a couple as there is enough room for two to float around in bliss. The controls are located on the side of the Jacuzzi so you don't have to get out to increase the bubbles.
The sauna, steam room and relaxation room are all part of one large room at the rear of the Health Club. The sauna and steam room are separated from the relaxation room by doors and have their own shower area. The sauna is of a standard size and could seat up to six on two decks or two lying down. The controls for the sauna are on the outside and are easily to use. The steam room can seat up to seven people and its controls are outside the cubicle, although this time we had a little trouble in trying to work them. As a result we nearly cooked ourselves as I put the temperature too high, we left before it got to the top temperature and had a lie down in the relaxation room. The relaxation room is a darkened room with low lighting and ambient music playing soft, gentle sounds. There are six beds lined up along one wall with spaces between each of them. You can lie here listen to the music and fall asleep like I did.
The one item that is not free in the Health Club is the massage room or The Spa, here you can have a massage from a suitably qualified masseur. To book you will need to go to reception select a time and a week day as it is not available at the weekends. Mrs. Cad had a stone massage (sorry ladies I can't remember the proper name) and she really enjoyed it. The massage cost 80 Euros (£56) for a 45 minute session, this was one of the cheaper massages and had to be paid up front.

~Conclusion~
We really liked this hotel there was enough available for both of us and we would definitely go back one day. The staff were great, the food was good and the rooms were really excellent. I would recommend this hotel to couples and young families alike. I would not recommend this hotel to families with teenagers as I think there is little to do. The only real disadvantage that I could see with this hotel is that there is no lift or ramped access for any guests confined to a wheelchair. It is a shame as this would be the perfect place to rest, relax and spend some time.
So at the end of the day I thought that Estalagem got it right. Quinta da Casa Branca is worth five stars and maybe a little more.

~Further information~
Qunita da Casa Branca
7 Rue da Casa Branca
9000-08 Funchal
Madeira
Portugal

www.quintacasabranca.pt

Thank you for reading, rating and commenting.

Martin.
 

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