Portugal’s New Douro 41 Luxurious Lodge Is Altering The Douro Journey Expertise

One of the swimming pools in Douro 41

Courtesy of the hotel

It was the desk that I fell hopelessly in love with Douro 41, a new hotel in northern Portugal. (I’ve worked in hotels for nearly two decades, long before it was fashionable, so let me have a good time.) In far too many places, the desk is nudged into the corner of a beautiful hotel room and instead faces a boring white wall incredible view of the room.

With Douro 41 it was the opposite. The desk – big enough to spread out my notes and papers – stood in front of a solid glass wall, one of two in the room. Behind this glass is the magnificent landscape of the Douro River and the Douro Valley. Sometimes I saw the river cruises go by. Others, I just appreciated the shimmer and the sunlight sparkling. My companion had all these hiking and swimming ideas, but most of the time I just wanted to sit at my desk and look up from my computer and watch the world outside the window.

Granted, I’m a big nerd. And actually, it’s my job to write in hotel rooms. Most of the people who check into a hotel like Douro 41 are there to relax, not to work. But I digress over the desk because it’s an example of how important the view of the landscape is and how intelligently the hotel is designed to capitalize on it.

The bathtubs also have this wonderful view

Courtesy of the hotel

The hotel is a project by Discovery Hotel Management, part of a mutual fund that is buying and bringing to life distressed properties across Portugal. In 2019 they completed the complete renovation of the resort hotel, which is only about an hour outside of Porto. The oldest parts date from the 18th century when it was a riverside farm and a trading port for wine and firewood.

Discovery also expanded the hotel, adding a number of rooms built into the hillside with the best views. They are reached by a bumpy funicular that they spin as part of the adventure and experience.

Or maybe you could see it as the prelude to a bigger adventure and experience that Paiva walkways, a 5.4 mile circuit on elevated walkways about an hour away in the Arouca district, and the area’s newest attraction, the 516 Arouca Bridge. At 516 meters, it is the longest pedestrian suspension bridge in the world.

If the funicular is too much, you can of course always stay in the lower part of the hotel or take the stairs. After all, the experience should be relaxing.

A sitting area with a view of the river

courtesy of the hotel

This relaxation often takes place in contemplation of nature and its tranquility, be it from the guest rooms, one of the three swimming pools or along the riverside footpaths that start from the hotel. The landscape is more forest than vines, as the hotel is closer to the Atlantic coast than the terraced vineyards for which the Douro Valley is known. (It’s not actually in the Douro wine region, but rather in the Vinho Verde region, which doesn’t really mean guests do anything other than explain the origin of the house wine.)

General Manager Duarte Gonçalves da Cunha assures me that this is not a liability. “We are only different from a quinta (winery) hotel,” he says, noting that guests usually combine a stay in one of these hotels with a time at his property. “There is no visual impression of vineyards, so we don’t sell ourselves as a wine experience.

“But,” he continues, “we have 83 or 84 port references. This is most of what you would see outside of the Yeatman, the famous luxury wine-themed hotel and 2-star restaurant in the port area of ​​Vila Nova de Gaia, just across the river from Porto.

Some of the original buildings from Douro 41

RICCIE

They also have a knowledgeable and enthusiastic sommelier, Bernardo Pinho, who runs wine tastings upon request and oversees the combinations and the impressive wine list at the generally impressive gourmet restaurant Raiva (named after a nearby town). Chef Dárcio Henriques grew up on a farm and has a deep love for the land and the things it produces.

Between his childhood and today he worked with Joël Robuchon in Paris, opened the first Portuguese restaurant in Shanghai and received a Michelin star as a team leader at Céleste in London’s Lanesborough Hotel. (The only Portuguese to win a star abroad this year.) But for this project near him (he signed up as head chef in September), it’s still local products that inspire him.

The 41 in the name of the hotel refers to its location on the river at kilometer 41. Each dish on the Raiva menu contains a number that correlates with its location in Portugal and deep in Spain. From kilometer 1 comes the Atlantic sea bass, which is served with cauliflower puree and fish velouté, from kilometer 48 the wonderful autumn mushrooms, which are served with a crispy low-temperature egg.

Granted, there are a couple of sections, like the 123, that refers to the accompanying Swiss chard rather than the salmon that starred in this dish, but it’s still a worthwhile dish. I was a particular fan of the 897 cheese platter, which featured cheese from across the river valley. And as an allusion to the time and the international guests of the hotel, there is a fully vegetarian variant of the five-course menu, which is still closely associated with the river.

The view of Porto on the drive to the Douro 41

Courtesy Invictus Cruises

Also connected to the river is the ideal way to get to and from the hotel. Douro 41 has a partnership with Invictus cruises to take guests by boat from Vila Nova de Gaia, past Porto’s most colorful neighborhoods and architectural bridges, and upriver to the hotel’s pier. In fact, it’s better than looking out the window of my hotel room.