Bela Vista Hotel & Spa, a palace on the cliffs of Portimao
The Algarve Coast stretches from east to west along the southern edge of Portugal, where the ocean breezes are cool, the sun is hot, and the skies are clear throughout the summer. In the 1960s, the area became famous for its incredible Mediterranean weather and its wide beaches of white sand, called praias, where whitewashed cottages and tall lighthouses, the farbos of the ports, look out over the blue Atlantic. Along the Praia da Rocha, in the town of Portimao, the Bela Vista Hotel and Spa stands in a tall and stately mansion constructed in 1918, offering an amazing vista of the beaches and the ocean water from a bell tower in the corner of the building.
The towns of the Algarve, cosy, picturesque, and inexpensive, have become vacation meccas for visitors to Portugal, yet the Bela Vista was here before the rest, open as the first hotel in the Algarve in 1934. Today, the estate offers bespoke service and features the fanciful and light-hearted touch of designer Graça Viterbo, who favours a baroque emphasis on the bright blues of lapis lazuli in his décor. The hotel is a five-star luxury establishment that can boast of visits from the first president of Portugal, Sidónio Pais, and well as the last king of Italy, Umberto di Savoia. Guests enjoy private beach access along the low cliffs leading to the Praia Da Rocha, and the entire facility offer disabled access features, as well as an adults-only policy.
Bela Vista, part of the Relais and Chateau hotelier group, provides its clientele with 38 rooms and suites, housed in “Palacete” building, the “Bela Vista Jardim” facility, and the central “Casa Azul”. Under the aegis of Viterbo’s design, with themes of bright blues and yellows, the lavishly furnished rooms of the Bela Vista are graded into Junior Suite, Suite, Classic, Deluxe, Elegance, and the penthouse option, the Character. A 50-meter outdoor pool allows you to relax on the hotel grounds, and your concierge will be happy to arrange bespoke activities and tours of the area. The Spa and Wellness center, signed onto the L’Occitane label, offers five treatment rooms, including two rooms for couples, as well as a sauna, hammam, and a fitness centre that is open to all hotel guests.
