A faded stately home in Porto is transformed into Vila Foz

It’s easy to imagine why Avenida de Montevideu was once such a choice address for Porto’s well-heeled upper class. A breezy 20-minute drive from the city’s considerably more dense centre, the long esplanade in the Foz do Douro neighbourhood featured an ornate necklace of 19th-century palatial mansions whose grand fin de siècle Empire facades and sprawling gardens serenely faced the broad stretch of beach and the Atlantic beyond.
Only a handful of these stately homes have survived Porto’s gentrification, but the debut of the 68-room Vila Foz shows how a thoughtful and light-handed architectural intervention can so vividly rejuvenate a faded pile.
For this, full credit goes to the architect Miguel Cardoso and interior designer Nini Andrade Silva who faithfully realigned the building’s old bones to create imposing room-sets, especially in the public areas. Under their watchful eyes, a squadron of artisans scraped away a century of accretions, painstakingly reguilded pilasters, restored elaborate cornices and mouldings, whilst reworking iron gratings in curling staircases, and polishing gorgeously retiled walls and ornate Baroque fireplaces.
The result of this almost maniacal obsession with historical and aesthetical accuracy is that, from the moment one rolls in through the garden and pulls up at the stone steps, the hotel feels wonderfully out of time.
The momentum of the restoration also meant that it is only in the bedrooms that Silva has felt freer to experiment and be more playful in her palette of green hues, travertine, beveled mirrors and brassy hardware. Here, the eye is drawn especially towards the bed where the quotidian headboard has been replaced by an organic cut-out whose curved ridges evoke a rivulet curving upwards to the ceiling, the angles quietly counterposed by the asymetrically cut carpets and sharper lines of the stone flooring.
If additional privacy is required, the Manor House features a clutch of suites with bracing views of both sea and garden, alongside easy access to the in-house restaurant. And set deeper within the garden is a spa stocked with the usual suspects of Turkish bath, sauna, and indoor pool – though, to our mind, the rolling waves of the Atlantic, a few minutes walk away, are an equally compelling diversion.
Architect Miguel Cardoso and interior designer Nini Andrade Silva faithfully realigned the building’s old bones to create imposing room-sets, especially in the public areas
Under their watchful eyes, a squadron of artisans scraped away a century of accretions, painstakingly regilded pilasters, and restored elaborate cornices and mouldings
The momentum of the restoration also meant that it is only in the bedrooms that Silva has felt freer to experiment and be more playful in her palette of green hues, travertine, beveled mirrors and brassy hardware
Here, the eye is drawn especially towards the bed where the quotidian headboard has been replaced by an organic cut-out whose curved ridges evoke a rivulet curving upwards to the ceiling
The artisans also reworked iron gratings in curling staircases, and polishing gorgeously retiled walls and ornate Baroque fireplaces
If additional privacy is required, the Manor House features a clutch of suites with bracing views of both sea and garden, alongside easy access to the in-house restaurant
The result of this almost maniacal obsession with historical and aesthetical accuracy is that, from the moment one rolls in through the garden and pulls up at the stone steps, the hotel feels wonderfully out of time
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
Avenida de Montevideu 236
Porto
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.
-
Cafe Kitty is Soho's new theatre-land restaurant inspired by the world of cabaret
London’s Soho welcomes Cafe Kitty, the cool little sister of the Kitty Fisher’s Group, with intimate interiors inspired by the world of cabaret and burlesque
By Melina Keays Published
-
Canvas House’s wavy brick façade stands out in its suburban Toronto context
Canvas House by Partisans brings a wavy brick façade to its sleepy Toronto suburban neighbourhood
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Miami Art and Design Week 2023: the best fashion moments
The best crossover fashion moments at Miami Art and Design Week 2023, from Frank Gehry’s sculptural bag collection for Louis Vuitton to Fendi’s collaboration with cult collective Bless
By Jack Moss Published
-
The Algarve welcomes Austa, an all-day kitchen in touch with its heritage
From breakfast to dinner, Austa embraces honest eating and local community
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Marqí hotel brings a minimalist 1970s feel to Portugal’s Sintra coast
Danish duo Mikkel Kristensen and architect Mikas Emil’s mansion conversion offers dreamy, cinematic escapism at Marqí, a secluded boutique hotel
By Jessica Kelham-Hohler Published
-
The Largo brings craftsmanship and creativity to Porto
The Largo is the latest hospitality offering in Portugal's second city, conceived as an elevated residence with an art programme that connects it to the city’s creative community
By Tom Howells Published
-
Deep Impact: Portugal’s newest hotel is buried under the earth’s surface
Architect Manuel Aires Mateus masterminds the fifth property to join the Silent Living collection
By Lauren Ho Last updated
-
Former Algarve post office transformed into five bedroom hotel — Algarve, Portugal
By Mary Lussiana Last updated
-
Eneko — Lisbon, Portugal
By Mary Lussiana Last updated
-
Esqina Cosmopolitan Lodge — Lisbon, Portugal
By Daven Wu Last updated
-
Bairro Alto Hotel — Lisbon, Portugal
By Mary Lussiana Last updated