If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (inclusive of taxes and fees) available in the next 60 days.
Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (EUR297.00), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.
In the Cima Corgo wine region of the Douro Valley, Quinta Nova de Nossa Sonhora do Carmo hotel and winery sits on its own hilltop on a 120-hectare vineyard estate – and goes a step further than simply pleasing fans of a Portuguese red. Sure, people come for the wines but also to learn how they’re produced and to absorb the history of the estate. Connecting with the landscape here is vital – seeing the grape on the vine then swilling the end product with a view of the valley is what it’s all about. Throw in some of the Douro region’s finest food, and you’ve got the full-bodied experience. Premium rooms in the main house lean towards more classic Portuguese styling, and Superior Terrace rooms, decked out in wine-blushed tones, have tranquil terraces just steps away from the vineyards.
11 all, six in the main part of the manor house, and five more with terraces and vineyard access.
Check–Out
12pm, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 3pm.
Prices
Double rooms from £250.43 (€297), including tax at 6 per cent.
More details
Rates include a traditional Portuguese breakfast with fruit, preserves, homemade pastries, garden-fresh fruit juice, and eggs cooked to your liking.
Also
One of the superior terrace rooms is wheelchair accessible.
Hotel closed
The hotel and restaurant close from 23 to 27 December. The wine tours and facilities are unavailable between 23 and 27 December and also on 1 January.
At the hotel
Wine museum, wine shop and tasting room, wine cellar, board games available in the bar, free WiFi. In rooms: Free WiFi, tea and coffee-making facilities, complimentary still and sparkling water, plant-based 8950 toiletries.
Our favourite rooms
Premium rooms in the heart of the hotel are refined in feel and elegantly furnished, but we’re plumping for one of the comfy Superior Terrace rooms for that extra whiff of adventure. Decked out in subtle pinks, reds and purples, these rooms have direct access to the vineyards, giving you a keener connection with that awe-inspiring landscape outside. Each comes with its own terrace, set with comfortable seating from which to make the most of the river and valley vistas from sun up to sun down – prepare jaws for a genuine floor drop.
Poolside
The outdoor pool might be the most panoramic in Portugal, with views over the vine-strung terraces and neighbouring hills.
Packing tips
Swimwear for the outdoor pool, sturdy shoes for hiking the vineyard trails and the latest edition of Hugh Johnson's pocket wine book to guide you on your vinous journey.
Also
Take some time to visit the estate’s little chapel, built in 1795 to protect sailors navigating a tricky section of the river below. Inside, you can visit the statue the men prayed to: a granite effigy of Nossa Senhora do Carmo (Our Lady of Mount Carmel).
Children
The hotel doesn’t specifically cater to children, but under-fives can stay for free, and five to 12-year-olds stay for the price of an extra bed in the room.
Sustainability efforts
First-class local suppliers – the closer the better – are chosen to reduce transportation distance and environmental impact. The restaurant is a member of the Slow Food movement, sourcing seasonal ingredients from the region, supplemented by fruit, vegetables and herbs fresh from the garden. And, of course, there’s the wine that couldn’t be more local, with grapes grown just outside and processed in the onsite winery. The vineyard itself is a place where heritage Portuguese vine varieties are lovingly preserved. Several kilometres of walking paths and signage have been installed around the estate so guests can fully enjoy the setting while learning about the grapes, the biodiversity of the site, and the production process for the dreamy whites, reds, rosés or ports they will later clink together up on the valley-view terrace. Half of the proceeds from a selection of the vintage bottles in the wine cellar go straight to a Quinta Nova-founded organisation that supports the education of children and young people in the Douro Valley.
The best table is without doubt a terrace table. Sit beneath the old curling vine and raise a glass or five to that remarkable scenery.
Dress Code
Think unfussy LBD or casual linen.
Hotel restaurant
At Terraçu’s Winery Restaurant, chef André Carvalho has worked alongside winemaker Jorge Alves to create a fine dining menu that celebrates the best seasonal offerings of the Douro region. There’s an à la carte list of delicately balanced dishes – special nods go to the free-range chicken stuffed with pistachio, truffle and mushrooms, and the cod confit with truffled mashed potato. There’s also a highly recommended three or five-course tasting menu: the diner picks the dishes, which are then paired with wines from the winery. The interior dining room is a classic, table-clothed affair, a fitting tribute to this historic family residence, with a view out to the more romantic terrace dining space.
Hotel bar
Sample wines by the glass or the bottle in the Aeternus bar, which is well stocked with Douro reds, whites, rosés and ports, or invent an occasion worthy of a vintage bottle from the cellar. Each year a selection of these special wines are earmarked to benefit the Bagos D'Ouro Association, founded by the hotel to support the education of children and young people in the region. Buying a bottle gives the doubly warm fuzzy feeling of a heritage wine in the belly and the knowledge that 50 per cent of the purchase price is going back into the community. Also consider adding a Portonic (port and tonic) cocktail to your tab – it’s a firm favourite here.
Last orders
Breakfast is served from 8.30am to 10.30am, lunch from 12.30pm to 3pm and dinner from 7.30pm to 10pm.
Room service
For in-room dining there’s a menu of lighter meals, or you can order from the standard â la carte restaurant menu.
The Quinta Nova estate sits on a hill overlooking centuries-old vine terraces, the Douro Valley and the broad curves of its famous river.
Planes
The nearest airport is Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport in Porto, around an hour and 40 minutes’ drive from the estate.
Trains
Use the Douro railway line for a scenic chug along the river past vine-clad hills and alight at Ferrão station – you can book a free transfer to the hotel from here.
Automobiles
It’s around an hour and 40 minutes’ drive from Porto and around four hours’ drive from Lisbon. After the winding climb up to Quinta Nova, park up and head straight to the terrace for your reward: fresh air and a welcome glass of the estate’s finest, with a view that doesn’t disappoint.
Other
Arrive by boat at the quay, which is just five minutes away, and hop onto your free hotel transfer. Or, make a more dramatic entrance using the helipad.
Worth getting out of bed for
The estate itself has enough activities to keep you entertained for days on end. Try lazy wine-tasting sessions bolstered by high-end tapas from the house chef, take a wine tour to find out about the production process from start to fruity finish, or view the collection of vintage port-making paraphernalia and bone up on traditional production methods at the onsite wine museum. Summon your inner vintner on the ‘Winemaker for a day’ experience, where you can bottle, cork and label your own wine to take home (or ditch the endurance test and just crack it open – no one’s judging), or take to the vines themselves for a grape harvest. Grab a water bottle and your walking boots, plus a free map from reception, and stride out for a self-guided tour of the estate trails. Alternatively, opt for a laidback tour of the scenic Douro River by boat.
Local restaurants
You’d be forgiven for not wanting to stray from the gastronomic heaven of Quinta Nova cuisine. But if you do venture out, you’ll want to make a reservation at DOC restaurant, domain of chef Rui Paula, to try the impeccable seasonal meat, fish and seafood dishes. Grab a table on the suspended riverside terrace and gaze across the boat-studded water to the white-fronted dwellings of local villages and dramatic green slopes behind.
As wine producers ourselves, some would say that it's ‘like taking coals to Newcastle’ for us to holiday at a winery hotel in an alternative wine region. And for a long time, we've avoided it. But this trip has undoubtedly revitalised and reactivated that enthusiasm, introducing us to an extraordinary area that we knew very little about.
Flying direct into (the super smart and very international) Porto airport is the first tick, and given that hilltop countryside stay Quinta Nova de Nossa Senhora do Carmo (or Quinta Nova as we came to know it) is a two-hour drive inland, we opted for a private taxi rather than the stress of hiring a car.
Hotel staff helped us with this and Emmanuel from the Douro Feeling Collection was waiting at arrivals to whisk us off to the Douro Valley in a sleek Mercedes sedan. Mr Smith was feeling more relaxed already.
And what a drive it is, starting on the flat floodplains surrounding the city, then rising up through pine forests and bare hillsides, through white-and-orange-painted, cobblestone villages perched on increasingly steep slopes. Then down through olive groves and terraced vineyards that are beginning to turn autumnal shades of brown and gold, eventually catching our first glimpse of the mighty Douro River, carving its way westwards towards the Atlantic.
Quinta Nova is well worth the journey: it is quite simply stunning. The freshly painted white walls of the winery and hotel buildings stand out in sharp relief against the dry, terraced, vineyard-covered hillside, and it is surrounded by tall cedars, dark parasol pines, and almond and olive trees.
As we get closer along the drive we admire the network of schist stone dykes and walls covered in bright red Virginia creeper and Bougainvillea. It is a feast for the eyes.
On arrival, there is a buzz of activity and noise on the vine-covered terrace, with an eclectic mix of languages being spoken by guests enjoying a late lunch – and plenty of wine flowing. On the terrace, other guests are nestled in comfortable sofas and loungers near the pool and Princess, the house Beagle, is stretched out in the sunshine (a heavenly 27 degrees).
Away from the bustle of the terrace, the hotel has the calm, relaxed atmosphere of a country house, with quiet, tastefully decorated lounges, shelves full of books, and a magnificent wooden galleried interior section of Terraçu’s restaurant, our destination for dinner and breakfast.
Our bedroom is beautiful – more tasteful shades of olive, mint and forest green, with complementary chestnut browns and taupes. We chuckle initially at the fact that it is a twin-bedded room, but the beds are extraordinary – very high, old fashioned, solid wood, small double-size cradle beds with wooden steps on one side to get into them (yes really!).
The ensuite bathroom has a huge old-style shower that reminds me of my childhood home, all marble and stone, with the theme continuing to the all-natural, environmentally sensitive, bath and body products that are provided. French windows open out onto the most dramatic view south-west along the valley which you can never tire of.
As we stroll through some of the vineyards later, planning a route for a run the next morning, the challenges of viticulture in this area become increasingly apparent. As does the prospect of a run, given going any distance on the estate involves a steep incline either straight up or straight down.
We are already in total awe of how the Portuguese have cultivated vines in this inhospitable landscape. In some places there are terraces containing only one row of vines, creating wonderful contours and patterns on the hillside, but an absolute nightmare to farm. Some of the vines, we are later told, are over 100 years old; a field blend of red-grape varieties planted by hand a century ago, resulting in powerfully intense wines that are not for the faint-hearted.
Our apéritif, while sitting on the terrace watching a glorious sunset, was a Porto tonic: a deliciously moreish mix of white port, tonic and mint, and a twist of orange and lemon peel – definitely now on the cocktail list chez nous.
For dinner at Terraçu’s, the hotel’s highly respected, slow-food-championing restaurant, we splurge on one of the estate’s mighty ‘Centenarian’ red wines. This wine was inevitably going to overpower whatever we ate; however the short, regional menu provided a delectable range of choices for the carnivorous Mr Smith as well as my more pescatarian/vegetarian penchant.
The restaurant staff are knowledgeable and friendly and, with gentle jazz playing in the background, the ambience is calmer and quieter than at lunchtime, which we have learned is due to the influx of daytime visitors who combine a winery tour with a tasting-menu lunch.
The following day we run, we walk, we tour the winery, and we taste. We also go on an evening boat trip, all organised by the extremely efficient Quinta Nova team, who cater to our every need.
Unquestionably, everything here revolves around wine, its history and links to the landscape, the climate and the river. As a guest, you embrace it and feel fully immersed. It is the hotel’s raison d’être and they do it effortlessly well. We'll be raising plenty more glasses in their direction.
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