Monverde Wine Experience Hotel

Style

Wine, dine, recline

Setting

Vinho Verde country

Monverde Wine Experience Hotel pleases the senses as effortlessly as a glass of crisp white. Resting along the Vinho Verde route in Minho, this arcadian retreat draws oenophiles for its well-aged setting and very own vineyard (making close-to-bed tastings all the more tantalising). But vintage bottles aren’t all that gets a luxurious lay down; each tricked-out room honours the region’s rolling-hills scenery and serenity. This pick gets full marks on our scorecards.

Facilities

Chambres

46, including 12 suites.

Checkout

Noon; check-in is at 3pm. Both are flexible, on request and subject to availability.

Plus de détails

Rates include a buffet breakfast. Vegan and gluten free options are also available, on request.

Also

One Prestige Room has been adapted for wheelchair-users, and all of the communal areas (including the vineyards) are accessible for guests with limited mobility.

Centre de fitness

Accès internet gratuit

Animaux acceptés

Piscine

Restaurant sur place

Service d’étage

Spa

At the Hotel

Golf course nearby, on-site vineyards, wine cellar and free WiFi throughout. In rooms: TV, air-conditioning, minibar, tea- and coffee-making kit, free bottled water, hairdryer, bathrobes, slippers and Damana or Vinésime bath products.

Our Favourite Rooms

The Classic Rooms are on the cosier side, but win big for their original, exposed brick walls and secluded setting. The Prestige Rooms give you direct access to the vineyards, but if your palate requires something stronger, we’d go with the Wine Experience Suite for its private bottle-filled cellar.

Poolside

Pick to paddle in any of the hotel’s three pools (open from 10am to 7.30pm): two are outside (one is adults-only, the other welcomes little ones) and the third is set inside the spa, primed for post-treatment soaks. At the outdoor pools during summer month, a seasonal bar is at hand for alfresco thirst-quenchers.

Spa

The Douro Valley’s all-encompassing serenity is matched at the Wine Experience Spa — a calming space in the hotel’s main house. Bespoke treatments focus on the healing benefits of grape-seed oil, harvested by hand from the hotel’s vineyards and made into hydrating moisturisers and scrubs. There’s also a Jacuzzi, sauna and steam room to bolster the restorative line-up.

Packing Tips

As long as you’ve a thirst for tastings, you’ll be good to go. Oh, and perhaps your favourite corkscrew for any labels you might want to spend the evening sampling a casa undisturbed…

Also

There’s a small gym at the hotel, too, for any fitness buffs craving a workout.

Enfants

Little Smiths are welcome; all rooms can accommodate a single rollaway at extra cost or a free baby cot, but this wine-focused retreat is better suited to over-18s.

Galerie

Food & Drink

Top Table

Take your tastings at one of the alfresco tables, watching over the hotel’s vineyards.

Code vestimentaire

Don earthy tones and heritage fabrics for an elevated country style.

Hotel Restaurant

The Minho region’s rich, natural landscapes are celebrated by head chef Carlos Silva at Monverde restaurant. Each fish-based dish is made with the morning’s catch, crisp crusts crafted from the Valley’s famed cornbread, and vegetables are all grown locally. Find your favourites among the à la carte options or plump for a four- or five-course tasting menu. Naturally, everything comes with wine pairings, too, deftly picked by your in-house sommeliers.

Hotel Bar

Set just above the restaurant, the hotel’s Wine Bar wears its name proudly: the walls are filled with a hearty list of labels from local vineyard, Quinta da Lixa, and there are in-house experts on hand to suggest glasses. If you’ve a taste for something stronger, barkeeps are equally skilled at shaking up whatever cocktail you may be craving. In summer, a seasonal bar serves cooling tipples — hard or soft — by the pool.

Last Orders

Breakfast hours are 8am until 11am; lunch is served from 12.30pm to 3pm, and dinner from 7.30pm to 11.30pm. The bar pours drinks between 11am and midnight.

Room Service

You can order a selection of dishes for in-room dining between 12.30pm and 11pm.

Planes

Porto’s Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport is around 45 minutes from the hotel by car, and has frequent routes between most international hubs. Private transfers are available on request, from €130 one-way.

Automobiles

If you’re planning on exploring more of the Douro Valley, a car will come in handy. There’s free parking (with electric vehicle chargers) at the hotel.

Worth Getting Out of Bed For

Courtesy of its rolling vineyards, Monverde is designed for all sorts of wine-focused forays. Private tastings and picnics are available without leaving the hotel’s estate, or you can head out to any of the time-honoured wineries along the 200-kilometre Vinho Verde stretch. Quinta da Aveleda and Quinta da Lixa are popular picks you may wish to start with.

Once your tasting fix is filled, there’s plenty of other spots to explore around the region. Stay close and wander around the mediaeval town of Amarante, which is also the starting point for the 30-kilometre Ecopista do Tâmega walking and cycling trail. The cities of Braga and Guimarães are slightly further away, but worth the visit for their 15th- and 13th-century castles. If you’d rather grab a snapshot of Minho’s architecture, walk one of the Rota do Românico’s self-guided circuits. There are train and boat tours around the Douro Valley, and mixed-ability hikes through the Peneda-Gerês National Park, too.

Earn or Redeem Points with World of Hyatt

This Mr & Mrs Smith hotel participates in the World of Hyatt loyalty program. As a member, you can earn and redeem points and enjoy exclusive benefits for qualifying nights. .