In the critical month of August 2009 Portuguese hotels welcomed more guests than in 2008, but due to lower prices revenues were down over the last year. In terms of Americans, hotel overnights jumped 7.2 percent in August. Hotel guests from the U.S. increased 20 percent over August 2008, and revenues increased a startling 27 percent. Overall, revenues fell 2 percent from 2008 to 989 million euros in August -- an improvement over the 8.5 percent drop for January to Aug. 1. The total number of hotel guests moved up 0.4 percent to 1.69 million in August, with growth in the domestic travel market as more Portuguese spent their summer vacation in their own country. In the first eight months of this year Portuguese hotels welcomed 8.96 million guests. 2009 was a record year for Portuguese tourism.
The Portuguese government said it has not backed off its commitment to nation-wide investments in tourism infrastructure. Most of the new hotel properties are designed to take advantage of a historic site, or are of great natural beauty.
Pousadas de Portugal is putting the final touches on the largest property it has ever launched, a new Pousada in the city of Porto. Set in the historic 1750 Palácio do Freixo, the new property has rooms in the adjacent historic mill complex called Moagens Harmonia, along with a spa, gym, pool, restaurants, and a river dock. With 75 rooms, the Pousada do Freixo, in Porto, is the largest Pousada in the national chain of hotels in this historic and naturally beautiful area. The former palace has sweeping views of the Douro River as well as extensive gardens. Visit www.pousadas.com.
Opened since June 2009, the four-star Douro River Hotel & Spa with about 38 rooms and suites is set on the Valley of the River Douro. In the town of Cambres, near Lamego, the hotel is on the river. It is part of the chain of Style Hotels, as well as Hotusa. The Douro River Hotel & Spa has two dining rooms, meeting rooms, as well as a lounge bar, wellness center, two pools (one with a view at the top of the hotel) and a kids club. Visit www.douroriverhotel.com .
Set to open in Spring 2010, the Design Hotel Douro 41 is a dramatic new, modern design hotel set on the Douro River, in Castelo de Paiva. Built on the left bank of the river, the hotel offers 42 rooms and a D41 spa with an interior heated swimming pool, steam bath, panoramic sauna, gym, Vichy shower and five treatment rooms. There are three bars, a marina, two pools and a panoramic restaurant with views of the Douro Valley plus 25 stand alone bungalows. Visit www.designhotels.com .
The family-run Fladgate Partnership ,whose Port brands include Taylor's Fonseca and Croft, is opening a new wine-based hotel at the end of the year in Gaia, across the Douro River from Porto. Visit www.fladgatepartnership.com .
The Yeatman hotel in Vila Nova de Gaia is located on the steep terraced slopes of the town, where port wine has been stored and aged for centuries. The hotel will have 12 suites and 70 bedrooms, each with a terrace and private garden that offers visitors views of the river and the city of Porto. The hotel will also have a restaurant, a Port bar and lounge with 11 meeting and event rooms. Next to the hotel will be a wine spa. The Yeatman Spa will be the first of its kind in Portugal and will include outdoor and indoor swimming pools, gymnasium, children's club and a magnificent garden. It will be developed by the Fladgate Partnership and will feature products from its own vineyards. Visit http://theyeatman.com.
While Portugal is seeing growth in five-star resorts is, another trend is in low-cost hotels throughout the country. Star Inns specialize in affordable and comfortable hotels throughout Europe. The group will open its second hotel in Portugal in the northern city of Braga during 2010. It already has one location in Porto. The Porto Star Inn opened in October. The Star Inn Braga will offer 100 rooms at 29 euros per night as a standard rate, and will be located along the main route into the city on the Rotunda of Maximinos. The CS Group that owns the famous CS Vintage House Hotel and Solar da Rede in the Douro Valley opened three new hotels in 2009. In Porto: CS Vintage Oporto Hotel is scheduled to open in 2010 with 150 rooms. Visit www.hotelstarinn.com or www.cs-hoteis.com .
The new four-star hotel in Batalha is set in gardens and parkland. The Villa Batalha has 94 modern rooms and suites, each with a balcony with views of the surrounding countryside. The hotel offers an extensive range of on-site facilities, including a tennis court, putting green, two restaurants, an al fresco café, library and concert area. A notable feature is the spa and gym which is one of the best in the region and includes a massage parlor, beauty and hairdressing salon, sauna, footbath, ice fountain and Scottish, steam room and a Vichy shower. Visit www.hotelvillabatalha.com.
The Hotel INSPIRA Santa Marta a four-star property with 89 rooms and the first of the new hotel brand Inspira Hotels, is opening in Lisbon on Dec. 15. Set in Rua de Santa Marta, Lisbon, very close to Avenida da Liberdade, Lisbon¹s main thoroughfare, the project incorporates aspects of sustainability based on the Inspira concept. Visit www.inspirahotels.com.
The Altis Avenida is a new four-star hotel right in Restauradores Square, in the historic heart of Lisbon¹s city center and the main shopping district. All 72 rooms are equipped with the latest technology and designed with an elegant 1940's décor from the time when the building was first built, maintaining the original combination of styles, fabrics and furniture. The bar & restaurant on the top-floor offers a view over the city. Visit www.altishotels.com.
On the Atlantic Coast, an hour from the Lisbon Airport, the five-star Tróia Design Hotel by Blue & Green opened in 2009. The sandy Tróia Peninsula's new five-star resort has 61 rooms and 144 suites. A key feature is the Blue & Green spa with 15 treatment rooms and more than 70 health and beauty options available. Other facilities include four swimming pools (two indoor and two outdoor), the Koala children's club, two restaurants, three bars and a conference center with capacity for up to 1,000 people. Future plans include a concert hall for shows and other types of large-scale entertainment, plus a casino. Visit www.troiadesignhotel.com.
A new Pousada opened in February in the old world city of Viseu, offering a historic home base in the heart of the Dao wine country. This 84-room hotel formerly housed the São Teotónio Hospital, which originally opened in 1842. In March 2007, work began on the conversion using designs by architect Gonçalo Byrne. It has been refurbished into a modern hotel with a wide range of amenities, but has still maintained many of the original architectural features, such as the three statues of Faith, Hope and Charity atop the hotel's entrance. Facilities include a regional restaurant, bar and a modern spa. The Viseu location is the first in the Pousada chain designed with a relaxing Indian theme. Each room is equipped with modern conveniences such as
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