Dreams Madeira Resort Spa & Marina

“I recently stayed at the Hyatt Ziva Madeira, and honestly, it was a fantastic trip that actually exceeded my expectations. The dining was a definite highlight. The food was consistently good throughout the stay, and the restaurant staff were attentive and genuinely helpful. What surprised me most, though, was the variety of activities. Aside from the standard sports options, they offered some really cool experiences like stargazing and art classes. It was a nice, unexpected touch that you don't always get at a resort, and the team running both sport and art activities did a great job. I also highly recommend checking out the spa. It is an additional cost, but it's absolutely worth it. If you go during the morning hours, it feels almost completely private. It was incredibly relaxing, and the spa staff were just as wonderful as everyone else we interacted with. Overall, it's a very well-run resort with a great staff. I had a really nice vacation here and would definitely recommend it.”

“We requested and agreed to pay for an upgrade that was for a 2 bedroom suite. We wanted to make this a memorable holiday for our family and wanted the kids to have their own room. On arrival we were told they were sorry they could not honour the upgrade be wise they had given the room to come one else, but that they would pay for our parking instead, and the kids (13.5 and 11) would sleep on a sofa bed, but not to worry because it is a “large sofa bed”. I requested an extra bed, to be told that they do not have this available. My 13.5 year old’s legs were hanging off the edge of the sofa bed. We had to add chairs to the end of the sofa bed to fit him. He is barely 1.50m or 5ft tall. I asked to speak to the manager - “sorry he is not available, but will be available tomorrow 10am”. This was 11pm. I asked for extra pillows for the sofa bed - none were provided so we took from our master bedroom bed. The following morning we once again pointed out we needed extra pillows and were assured by the reception team they would do everything they can to make it up to us for our bad experience. It was our first day and first visit there, so we spent the day exploring the resort (which is enormous), only to come back to the room to find nothing had been done. I telephoned reception and asked to speak to the manager. “Sorry he is not available”, then who is below him, “Trying to find out if he is available”, then who is above you “trying to find out if he is available”. Sorry?? Eventually managed to speak to Arthur, assistant manager. Explained I already accepted the inferior room to the one we booked, and just want to enjoy the rest of the holiday, and all I am asking for is 4 extra pillows but nobody is listening. Absolutely shocking customer service. Unfortunate because it is a good hotel, but has the potential to be so much more. The food is ok, restaurants are difficult to book and not open every day. It is an 8am free for all to book on the app. Some staff are pleasant but most are not local or even Portuguese speaking so you won’t get an authentic experience. The beach is rocks and non existent. But the sea is beautiful. Overall, we are bitterly disappointed and would 100% not recommend. Cut your losses and choose somewhere else.”

“**Beautiful Resort with Great Facilities - Not Quite A Five-Star Experience** We had a wonderful stay at Hyatt Ziva Hotel & Resort Madeira. The resort is absolutely beautiful and feels more like a small town than a hotel, with plenty of facilities and space to explore. The rooms were spacious, modern, and very comfortable. A small detail that made a big difference was the blackout curtains that actually overlap, keeping the room properly dark in the morning. The variety of restaurants was excellent, offering something for everyone’s taste. The pools were another highlight, with multiple areas to choose from, a fantastic ocean pool, and fun water slides. The hotel’s app was also very useful and made it easy to book restaurants and find information during our stay. The location is another big advantage. Compared to Funchal, which often has more cloud cover, this area enjoyed much better weather during our visit, making it a great base for exploring Madeira. That said, there are several areas that should improve before this can truly be considered a five-star experience: • Pool areas: There are far too few umbrellas. The upper pool had around 32 loungers but only four umbrellas, with two umbrella sockets left empty. • Pool bar: Drinks were regularly unavailable by the middle of the day because ingredients (such as mint for mojitos) had run out. This felt like poor planning rather than bad luck. • Pool service: At a five-star resort, I would expect staff to regularly clear away empty glasses and occasionally walk around offering drinks or taking orders from guests. • Sunbed reservations: By 8:00 a.m., many loungers were already reserved with towels, often remaining unused for long periods. This should be managed much more actively. • Staff enthusiasm: While some employees were excellent, the overall level of hospitality didn’t consistently match a five-star standard. More genuine enthusiasm and proactive service would make a significant difference. • Main square seating: More chairs would make it easier for guests to sit and enjoy the evening entertainment and activities. • Accessibility: With so many stairs throughout the resort, better transport assistance between levels would be appreciated. • Splash pool area: Although there’s a section for young children, the surrounding seating area is not particularly attractive or practical for parents. • Wi-Fi: This was by far the biggest disappointment. The hotel Wi-Fi was extremely poor—well below what you’d expect from any modern hotel, let alone a five-star resort. Overall, we really enjoyed our stay and would happily return. The resort itself is stunning, the facilities are excellent, and the location is fantastic. However, improving the service standards, Wi-Fi, and a few operational details would elevate the experience from a very good resort to a truly outstanding five-star destination.”

“The hotel itself was really good, building and acclamation were great ! The room is very spacious and clean, the only negative point is the door insulation with the hallway and with the room next door. We had a communicative room and had neighbors for just one night but we could hear everything, from music, discussion to shower. Overall the food was good, breakfast is varied and we tried carvao, sabor and the French brasserie. What is not mentioned is that all restaurants are not open every night and you can’t book the restaurant yourself days before. I had to set up an alarm at 8:30am to book the sabor .. A big thanks to ALL FOREIGNERS staff who are the only ones that actually smile and care for the customers. They try very hard to please us (special mention to Carvao and The Brasserie team). Some training for Portuguese staff to be more friendly would be welcome. We were very surprised to learn that we had to pay extra 10€/day for the parking. When you are booking an all inclusive 5 stars hotel in an isolated place, you don’t expect to pay additional charges for parking your rental car.. Finally we were quite surprised by the expeditious check-in without much information given (breakfast hours, facilities location…) and checkout in 2minutes without final invoice for additional charges, not even a question on how our stay was…”

“Beautiful hotel, very nice and smiling staff. The food and the drinks are amazing.So many activities, especially in the pool. Aquagym, aqua bike, aqua dance, waterpolo… I was nervous to try them but the teacher is very nice, encouraging and has a good music playlist for the activities. She does the exercises with us, makes positive comments when we do the exercises well and explains us how to be better at the exercises.”