Unique Places to Stay in Portugal

Want more than a standard hotel room? Portugal has wonderfully unusual places to stay: rooms inside castle walls, wine-barrel suites in the Douro, stone houses in mountain villages, cabins by crater lakes and design suites among vineyards. Here are some of the most unique stays in Portugal, with what makes each one special and how to get there.

Quick answer: sleep in a castle (Óbidos), a wine barrel (Pacheca in the Douro), a vineyard suite with a skylight for stargazing (L’AND in the Alentejo), a restored farming village (São Lourenço do Barrocal), a schist or granite village house (Piódão, Monsanto), or a striped beach house in Costa Nova.

Why book something different

Many of these places have only a handful of rooms, so they feel personal and quiet. The setting is the point: you wake up on a castle wall, in a vineyard or next to a lake. Several are in the countryside, so check how you will get there before you book.

Castles, convents and palaces

• Pousada do Castelo Óbidos: inside the castle. The pousada sits within the walls of Óbidos castle, with a small number of rooms and suites in the old palace and more in the Casa do Castelo next door. In the evening, the walled town empties out. Óbidos is about an hour from Lisbon by express bus or car. Check prices.
• Bussaco Palace: a fairytale royal palace in a forest. Built as a royal hunting lodge in a neo-Manueline style, it is covered in carved stone and tiles and sits in the walled Buçaco forest near Luso. The state has put the building up for a long-term concession with a major restoration planned, so check that it is taking bookings for your dates. Check prices. See the Buçaco forest.
• Pousada Convento de Tavira: a former convent in the old town, built around a courtyard and a few minutes’ walk from the old bridge over the River Gilão. It closed for building work in the first half of 2026, so check it has reopened for your dates. Check prices.

See the best pousadas.

Wine country

• Pacheca (Douro): sleep in a giant wine barrel among the vines. Quinta da Pacheca, near Lamego and across the river from Peso da Régua, added ten barrel suites in 2018. Each sleeps two and has a round window looking over the vineyards. Check prices.
• L’AND Vineyards (Alentejo): suites with skylights over the bed. The Sky View suites have a retractable roof, so you can fall asleep looking at the stars. It is a working winery near Montemor-o-Novo, about an hour’s drive east of Lisbon, with a spa and a well-regarded restaurant. Check prices.
• São Lourenço do Barrocal (Alentejo): a restored farming village. Owned by the same family for around two centuries, the estate below the hilltop village of Monsaraz has rooms and cottages in old farm buildings, a winery, a spa and big open land for walking and riding. Lake Alqueva is close by. Check prices.

Villages and nature

• Piódão: schist houses in the mountains. The dark stone village tumbles down a steep hillside in the Serra do Açor, and at night it is lit up and very quiet. Roads in are narrow and winding, so allow time. See stays. See Piódão.
• Monsanto: granite houses among boulders. Homes are built under, around and into huge rocks below a hilltop castle near the Spanish border. It is best with a car. See stays.
• Areias do Seixo: an eco-retreat in the dunes. This small design hotel near Santa Cruz, on the coast west of Torres Vedras, has rooms with fireplaces, a heated pool, an organic garden and a short walk to the beach. It is under an hour’s drive from Lisbon. Check prices.
• Sete Cidades Lake Lodge (Azores): cabins near the crater lakes. Small pod-style cabins with kitchenettes sit a short walk from the blue and green lakes of Sete Cidades on São Miguel. Hire a car, as buses are limited. Check prices. See Sete Cidades.

By the sea

• Costa Nova: candy-striped beach houses. These old fishermen’s storehouses, painted in bold stripes, sit between the lagoon and a long Atlantic beach near Aveiro. See stays. See Costa Nova.
• Farol Hotel (Cascais): by the lighthouse on the rocks. A 19th-century mansion by the water, with a modern wing and rooms styled by Portuguese fashion designers. It is a short walk from Cascais station, with trains to Lisbon. Check prices.

Practical tips

• Book early: small places sell out first, especially in summer and in September for the harvest.
• Check access: village houses can have steep steps and no parking at the door.
• Read what is included: some rural stays charge extra for tastings, dinner or transfers.

More: the best luxury hotels in Portugal and a romantic trip to Portugal.

See also: glamping in Portugal.

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