Vila Gale Hotel

We recently returned from our fantastic surf holiday in Ericeira. I hesitate to write good things as I don’t want too many people finding out about this un-spoilt part of Portugal. Having never been to Portugal, we didn’t really know what to expect. We simply wanted to visit somewhere with good surf, guaranteed heat, great food packaged up in a traditional environment and we found it all thanks to Surfholidays…We pre-arranged to be picked up from the airport via Barata Taxis €55 each way as detailed in the welcome pack. Special thanks to Eric who was very welcoming and informative. They can also taxi you around the town, to the beach etc. on request. We stayed at Vila Gale hotel. The hotel is definitely a 4-Star but it’s not at all pretentious, so you feel very comfortable even in your normal beachwear… The reception staff were very attentive, providing us with lots of information on arrival including a very useful print out of the local bus timetable. Not forgetting the vouchers for our daily pool towels (luxury or what). We couldn’t afford a room with a view, but the hotel grounds sit on cliff face overlooking the Atlantic coastline, so I think it would be worth paying a little more to secure the view if you can. Breakfast is served until 10AM so you can have a lie-in should you need it. You are then greeted with an amazing all-you-can eat buffet including refreshments, fresh fruit, yoghurts, cereal, toast, pastries, cooked breakfast….you simply can’t get bored with this much variety. Breakfast can be eaten inside the hotel, or if you prefer, on the patio overlooking the sea. Then there’s the pool area - take your pick from 3 pools. The larger pool is freshwater for adults and ‘sensible’ junior swimmers. There’s also a good sized kids pool (chlorine) and a smaller round toddler pool. There are also plenty of sun-loungers, so you don’t have to get up at stupid o’clock to reserve a bed /umbrella. If you get bored staying poolside, you can always take advantage of their free gym and Jacuzzi…If I have one complaint, and this is minor really, I think the hotel should consider providing free Wi-Fi. They have it in the Lobby and bar but not in the rooms. It doesn’t cost much to introduce and keeps young and old happy! We took the bus to Foz do Lizandro (about 3 mins) 1 Euro per person. The beach is incredible with safe bathing to the left, disabled access onto the beach and constant surf (best for beginners/intermediates). Toby and the instructors at Na Onda are great – incredibly professional and very accommodating. Our son had the time of his life; it’s the perfect environment for teenage boys (and girls) who love the water…As for the evenings, we tended to take the scenic route along the cobbled coast front to the centre (5 mins). There we could take our pick of great places to eat –its wise to book, and as in most Mediterranean countries, they eat late. We thoroughly enjoyed our time, only wish we could have stayed longer so we could have done a little more sight-seeing – Karen, Rob & Joe (London)

We had a great week. Weather was good, and 3 nights Lisbon and 4 Ericeira was the perfect mix. We planned to visit Sintra after checking out of the hotel on Friday morning, but the weather was so good we just stayed by the pool instead. The hotel Vila Gale has a great location and the view was great from the balcony. We were in room 311. Food was great in Ericeira. We ate out each night, Tik Tapas, Tik Tak, Prim, and then Mar d’Areia - a fish place Alvaro recommended. Great food in all 3 places and good value. We didn't go out to any bars in Ericeira, we were happy to take it easy this particular week! The lessons were good, we told Alvarro we'd surfed before and were happy paddling out back so we surfed at the beach by the Vila Gale. I wasn't too keen on the rocks, but Alvarro let us know where was safe and gave us good tips and we caught quite a few nice ones, so all in all we were happy, and enjoyed the lessons. Great having an instructor between just 2 of us. We got buses to and from Ericeira which was handy, low hassle and kept the cost down, so happy enough there. All in all a great week, and I'd defo recommend Ericeira. We've been to Corralejo in Fuerteventura, Famara in Lanzarote, Taghazout in Morrocco (twice), and Ericeira was best all round destination so far I would say, defo for a town, but would have liked more surf. 3 days was our choice though!

We had a wonderful time in Ericeira, thank you! Your hotel recommendation and the surf school was a perfect fit for us. Barata Taxi was also very reliable and helpful. We enjoyed the surf classes very much.The town Ericeira, the short walking distances to beaches and through the whole town, the atmosphere and the restaurants was great. We made it to Lisbon by local bus, and enjoyed every minute! This is a hotel and a place where we would love to come back! - Ingun, Norway

Ericeira was fantastic. The hotel and pool were great, everyone was very helpful and all the information you gave us was really useful. Really enjoyed the surf lessons, again everything was well organised and everyone really friendly. We didn’t explore too much, we had a wander down to some of the southern beaches but didn't have a huge amount of time to travel anywhere else. The town was lovely and we both hope we will be back in the future

We all had a brilliant time although I wish I taken up surfing 30 years ago - great fun though hard work! The kids really enjoyed it and were much better than me! Your info pack re restaurants, beaches etc was great and we ate out at a different place every night. The food was fantastic (as were the prices). We didn't have a hire car so unfortunately didn't get to visit other places but it is now on my list of places to return to! I think we will definitely try another surf holiday. Also the taxi brothers were great! The hotel was fine for what we needed it for - the location is brilliant and the kids really enjoyed the pools - also nice that it wasn't full of tourists laying towels out each morning! Seemed to mostly Portuguese that stay there and all very nice. It was brilliant I would definitely recommend you (in fact I already have) and hope that we might travel with you again next year so any ideas - please forward – Sue (40), Kaitlin 12, Jake 10, Surrey

We had a great holiday, with most things delivering over and above our expectations. Hotel was great, really clean, family friendly, friendly staff, lovely pool area, great views. We couldn't really fault it. Ericeria is lovely, and we loved the fact that there were so many fantastic restaurants. Your guide sheet was great and helped a great deal when heading out for dinner. We liked the area but stayed within a few kilometers of the hotel this time (our toddlers were too busy having fun to spend too much time in the car). Foz beach really suited us well with lots to do for the children. Jim preferred Ribeira D’Ilhas for surfing.Thank you

We had a great time again, was really really chilled and the weather was brilliant – high 20’s to early 30’s every day, little or no cloud, no rain. Perfect! We spent 3 nights in Lisbon to begin, stayed in a lovely hotel at the bottom of the Avenida de Liberdade (Heritage – HIGHLY recommend it) and just did a bit of sightseeing, shopping, milling about. And by chance got to see Jack White playing in a really cool venue about 300m from our hotel! Hired a car then and drove out to Ericeira, which was as lovely as ever. Spent our days going on day trips to other beaches away from the town, Sintra, Cascais, or just lazing about at Foz de Lisandro/ Baleia. The hotel was nice enough, just as we remembered it from a few years ago. The breakfast is very good, facilities are decent, staff are nice, location is great and the pools etc are great. My only quibble with the place is that the decor is a bit old fashioned. I can’t see this feedback changing anything to be honest. It’s not a massive deal, and I’d prob stay there again, but it would be the main drawback of the Villa Gale in my opinion. Quite a few new restaurants popped up in Ericeira since we were last there 2 years ago, the best of which (that we tried) being a sushi place, Uni. Tik Tapas still remains the favourite though, think we ate there 4 times between lunch and dinner over the course of the week! Tik Taks is great too. Wish they had a Tik Tapas in Dublin! – John, Dublin

Great location, fabulous terrace and sea views, wonderful outside pools, very comfortable and clean with helpful staff. Only negative - bar drinks were expensive. Surf lessons were fantastic, excellent tuition. We loved Foz do Lizandro beach and walked there to surf. We thought the restaurants in Ericeira were very good. We particularly enjoyed the seafood restaurants with the ocean views. We hired bikes from Ericeira hostel and cycled to Riberia D'llhas to watch the surfers. We did not bother to go to Lisbon as we didn't have a car and enjoyed exploring Ericeira and relaxing on the beaches and at the hotel. Overall we had a fantastic holiday and would recommend the location and hotel to anyone who enjoys surfing. It was nice to visit somewhere which was unspoilt, uncommercialised and not full of British tourists!

We had a great time in Ericeira! The surfing part was great. Ericeira town itself was lovely. The pack you sent was very helpful and the restaurants were good and very reasonable. We spent a couple of nights in Lisbon and made a trip to Sintra too. Really liked both places but were glad when it was time for us to head to the coast and just lie out in the sun! I think I might spend another week there in Spring and hopefully figure out this surfing thing! - Fiona & Sandra, Dublin

We had a fantastic short break to Eiriceira . We arrived on a Saturday morning into lisbon and hired a car. The directions were excellent that we got from Surf holidays and we were parked up in the Vila Gale hotel within 1 hour from arrival. This was my second time staying at the Vila Gale and I have to say it’s one of the best hotels I have ever stayed in. It is not 5 star décor or facilities but if you want lovely service, 100% cleanliness and the most idyllic location then you have come to the right place. The hotel has the most spectacular views. I opted for a room with sea view balcony. This hotel is a must when visiting Ericeira, it is within walking distance of all excellent seafood restaurants and bars in the town . The breakfast and room service menu is excellent too . Incredible value for money .. I would highly recommend hiring a car to visit the Beaches and close by attractions especially Sintra this is a must see

The hotel, beaches and restaurants were all fabulous. Ericeira is a beautiful place and we really enjoyed our holiday there. The welcome pack was really helpful also

We had an amazing time in Ericeira - didn't want to come home :(. The hotel was excellent again, our third time back. Thank you so much for getting us a room closer to the sea, the view was lovely!  Surfing was amazing.  We had such a good time.   It was so much fun.  The first week was a bit rough now, there was a lot of falling off, but the second week was perfect, I really got into it.  The instructors were brilliant as always.  They looked after us really well and they were good craic too!  They organised for the group doing lessons to get together for dinner both weeks, was a really good idea and we had two great nights out with them. Unfortunately, despite our best intentions, we didn't venture out of Ericeira... we did make it to the night club Ourico though and you were right, six o'clock does come round fast!  We did venture up to Ribeira d'Ilhas and Coxos, the waves were a bit too big for me but was cool watching the other surfers.  We also found this great cake shop on the square, used to go there for a coffee and cake and then sit out in the square and watch the world go by - it was bliss.  Thank you so much Nicky for organising everything, it was a perfect holiday and I really can't wait to go back!

What a great family holiday we had in Ericeira, with our 3 girls, 18,15 and 12. We Stayed in Vile Gale Hotel which was fantastic, two large outdoor pools overlooking the sea, with plenty of well looked after sun loungers. Supper Buffet Breakfast, to start the day, great rooms with Balcony and sea views..wow. Ericeira town was brilliant, small coppeled stoned streets with plenty of shops and restraunts. Surfing was Fantastic, at Fos do Lasandro beach with Na Onda surf school , superb instructors and great Bars/restraunts on the board walk at the beach, to relax with a beer/coffee after 2 hours in the water.   Plenty of other beaches, but we just loved Lasandro. Did not hire a car, there is no need as everything is so close to the hotel ,plenty of places to eat  with in a 5 min walk. Fos do Lasandro beach is a lovely coastal 20 min walk, or a 5 euro  taxi ride away.  The Bamboo Bar was our favorite Bar, with free wifi, and great Cocktails and shakes. The restraunts were great and very inexpensive, plenty to choose from. We spent from 50 euro to 70 euro on evening meals, for the 5 of us (all adult meals) including wine or beers - Neil, Donna and Girls, Dublin

We had a great holiday thak you. We found Ericeira to be a quaint little town with great restaurants and lots of interesting  shops.  The hotel location was fantastic and it was fine. The bedrooms could do with updating but it was acceptable. I hadn't realised before we left that the surf beach was not actually the one beside the hotel so it was a bit of a disappointment to have to travel to that however when we got there we saw terrific it was (Foz Lizandro) and the Na Onda surf team extremely helpful and friendly. Your recommendations for Tik Tac and Tic tak tapas were spot on and  we ate in both a few times.  Also the taxi driver you suggested was great and hugely entertaining.  I hope this is of some help and thaks again. I will recommend you to friends - Deirdre, Ireland

The holiday went great, just what we needed! Here is some feedback: We did two nights in Lisbon (first time there and loved it!) then hired a car at the airport and drove up to Ericeira for the week. Ericeira: Lovely fishing town. Great restaurants, coffee shops, some bars and shops. It suited us perfectly but if you were looking for crazy night life, maybe not the best choice. We ate in a lot of the restaurants but our two favourites were Tik Tapas (great food and atmosphere) and Esplanada Furnas (amazing fish and best views, expensive). Hotel: Best location in Ericeira, good facilities, worth the extra money for a room with a sea view. Some of the negatives would be hotel car park is tiny so most days you need to circle the area looking for on street parking. Breakfast is a bit of a zoo with the large numbers of guests and food would be average. Food at the pool bar is way over priced, so best eat outside of hotel. Surf School: They seemed pretty disorganised the first few days because of the weather. Every afternoon we came down for the lesson we were informed that the lesson had just been put back another hour. So a little frustrating but soon you just get used to it!  However once on the water the instructors were excellent and really came into their own. Most days the class sizes were reasonable small, so it was easy to get some attention. So all in all I'd have to recommend them

We had a brilliant week in Ericeira thanks. Hotel was fantastic. The area, beaches and restaurants all provided everything we needed.  Surf lessons were a bit disorganised on the first day, but were fantastic once i got into them

We had a fantastic time! The hotel was great, really well located in Ericiera. The pools were great although they were'nt deep enough for jumping or diving! The hotel staff were really friendly and helpful. Breakfast was lovely, lots of choice and it was all fresh and tasty. The surf lessons were very good. The instructors were very helpful, friendly and fun! The surf beach is pver a 20 minuute walk so we just got a taxi for about €4 each time. We can also recommend the mojitos from na onda! Ericiera was a lovely quaint small town. Its was'nt full of drunken tourists which was perfect. We ate in tik tak twice because my partner had monkfish with prawns and rice the first time and we needed to go back so I could order it for myself! Highly recommended and very reasonably priced. The bakery on the square deserves special mention for their pastries! We did'nt venture as far as lisbon or sintra. We were quite happy relaxing by the pool or at foz beach!

The breakfast was poor: fruitsalad quite soft . Some peaches  out of tins (in summer!), poor bread. Second class meat. The hotel was quite good. Great swimming pool area . I had bad luck with waves of 4 metres and a bad current the first day. But then there were very good waves. The  beaches were nice – not crowdy.  The restaurants were ok too

We had a great time!  1.    Hotel was good – very convenient, beautiful location, rooms and public spaces very acceptable. 2.    Ulisses from the surf school is a top man – we had a lot of fun with him; also very knowledgeable about the locality, surfing generally, excellent English.  He worked hard to make sure we had a good time.  I would recommend him to anyone.  3.    Town has real charm/character.  Great restaurants. 4.    Beaches are also very good indeed – weather was great which helped!  Recommendations – we organised our own hire car with Iberent.  I would not do that again – we had to wait 45 mins for them to arrive for us both on arrival and departure.  Persuade you clients to use you!! Very best

We had a great time in Ericeira. The hotel was class, clean and very well kept. Ericeira was great, unspoiled with hardly any tourists and the people were friendly.The surf was good, much better than Lahinch (when I was there this summer).The guys from the surf school were cool and very easy going and also very professional. Foodwise I can recommend Restaurant Prim (just off the square) for steak. We had seafood in Tik Tak which was delicious. We would definitely go back and book with Surfholidays again. Take it easy. Gary, Tipperary, Ireland

The surf holiday was absolutely fantastic, the hotel was amazing.  The surf was savage when we were there, we mainly went to Foz do Lisandro and it was really consistent. Quite a sharp takeoff but a lovely left that I enjoyed all week. Also went to another beach that i just can’t remember the name of, but it was essentially 10 mins north of the town, and there was monster surf there, probably some of the best surfing I’ve ever done. All in all a great holiday and have been recommending you since. John, Dublin 

Thank you for organising what was a brilliant holiday! We had a class time, absolutely amazing surf holiday!  Surfing was so much fun! Everyone at Na Onda was really friendly and the instructors were so nice. The hotel was very nice, staff were very helpful and the location was incredible, it felt like we were on a boat we were so close to the sea.  Ericeira was lovely, pretty little town that was very chilled out.  We couldn't believe how cheap it was to eat out, we tried most of the restaurants you recommended, they were all really good, we really liked tik tak.  Will definitely be going back next year! Oh and you were right, it was a lovely walk to the beach! Kate, Dublin

Thank you so much for organising such a  super surfing holiday in Ericeria, Portugal. We had an absolute ball. Na onda surf school were absolutely brilliant, the lads that were instructing were great fun but also so passionate about the surfing that it was hard not to get as enthusiastic as they were. As we were there for two weeks we ended up doing 10 days of lessons with them. The whole set up was really professional, we always felt safe and knew we were being watched over by them all. The Villa Gale was a fabulous hotel, the amenities were great and if i was going again i would defiantly stay there again. Ericeria was such  cool Little town and we found lots of fun even when it was quiet during the week. I would recommend Tik tak, tik tapas and also "La Pizza" which is off the main square opposite the surf ericeria shop was Delicious food. All in all we had a ball and i have already given your details to lots of my Friends as i would recommend the trip to almost everyone. Thanks once again and you will defiantly be hearing from me in the future. Take care Louisa, Ireland

We had a fantastic surf holiday. The hotel was really nice, thank you for the recommendation on that.  Toby and all the surf guys really looked after us well, I didn't quite get the hang of the surfing, but i'll keep trying. Ericera is an amazing place, we were just disappointed to be missing the reggae festival there this weekend. The whole holiday was really enjoyable and relaxing.Thank you so much for all your help. Hopefully be on to you for next year. Therese, Cork

We had a brilliant time. The place was lovely and the Hotel was really nice. We will definitely consider bringing a group back next year and stay in the Eco lodges if possible. Thanks for your help. Paula, Dublin

I really enjoyed the week in Ericera, the town itself is beautiful, very authentic and laid back. I loved that we didnt come across one Irish/English bar!!! The hotel I must say, for the price, was amazing! The staff couldnt have been more pleasent and helpful, the breakfast could fill you up for the day and the location could not have been more perfect! We surfed on four days with the surf school. Overall we had a fantastic time and I have recommended the surf holiday to friends in work. We will definately be returning to Ericeira and would definately stay in Vila Gale again, perhaps in September. Regards, Maire-Therese, Portsmouth

Town is great, very handy to Lisbon, lovely setting, great food.  Hotel was gorgeous, great pool area, nice rooms, good overall value. Shane, Dublin

Hotel was fantastic, great facilities with lovely pools, food and views over beach and Atlantic. We really liked Ericeria town; Tik Tak was probably the best restaurant, Bamboo Bar for drinks and cocktails and Limpoco restaurant & bar at Lazandro beach is also really good with great views. The surf was very powerful and the surf instructors were really good and there were lots of them. All in all, it was really enjoyable surfing holiday - so thank you. Imelda, Dublin

Great surf holiday in Ericeira. Great surf, great weather, Foz do Lizandro beach is class and the guys at Na Onda surf school were sound. Town is nice, quiet during the week, a class atmosphere at the weekend. I have never seen a town so clean. Cool little shops around town. The hotel was grand, views were amazing, breakfast was ok , the fruit very tasty. Overall, good spot would definately recomend the town and would go back. Diarmuid, Waterford and Deirdre, Roscommon – Ireland

Ya we had a great time. The town its self was nice and chilled out not to much in the way of pubs and clubs but we made your own craic. Restaurants were beautiful and the price of food and drink was fairly cheap. Hotel was brilliant, location, facilities and breakfast were perfect. It made the surf holiday for the girls whom all loved the pool and the views.The surf school were very good. The lads were very helpful and kept a close eye on us all, so the men could relax and not worry about the girls getting into trouble. All in all we had a great week and would definitely go back. Thanks a million, Ray – Galway, Ireland

We had a fantastic time, the hotel was really nice, thank you for the recommendation on that.  Toby and all the surf instructors really looked after us well, I didn't quite get the hang of the surfing, but i'll keep trying. Ericera is an amazing place, we were just disappointed to be missing the reggae festival there this weekend. The whole surf holiday was really enjoyable and relaxing. Thank you so much for all your help. Hopefully be on to you for next year. Therese, Ireland

Was a great surfing holiday the town had some beautiful restaurants like Pinta & Pedra Dura. The food was reasonably priced. There is plenty of shops which to brows and buy, some gems like Rustica and surfing gear outlets we thought were great. The people are all very helpful. There was one nightclub which was jammers, but good craic and unusual credit card drink buying system. The hotel view, rooms, location, food, staff and hospitality was great. The surfing was very good, the instructor were very helpful and has very good English. Think we will try the surfing again. In all a great holiday and think we would go back to Ericeira again. Tom, Ireland

Thanks for everything. Had a great holiday. Super place

Holiday in Ericeira was terrific.  The views from the hotel room were amazing.The surfing was a blast -  Norm, UK

Great place - it was our honeymoon and the hotel was perfect. Ericeira is charming, friendly people, great beaches, amazing surf and top Cuisine - especially the seafood