Hotel berhampiran Nascente do Rio Este, Póvoa De Lanhoso

This Pousada is located in an old Monastery. The owners have done a super job of creating a modern up to date hotel out of what was a former Monastery. The conversion from Monastery to Hotel had been tastefully and sympathetically done. This Pousada is a bit remote to get to and in a small town that has two cafe bars. We arrived here on a Sunday when the two local cafe bars were closed leaving us with no alternative but to dine an the Pousada restaurant. The meal was acceptable but a bit expensive for what it was. On arrival it is necessary to check in at Reception which is on the first floor. Ordinarily this would not be a problem but it is a problem when 30 or so guests are trying to check in at the same time with one small lift only available for the guests and their luggage. It took us half an hour to reach our room. Our bedroom was far too small to accommodate two adult guests. There was nowhere to leave a suitcase open which most touring guests living out of a suitcase need to do. Lighting In the bedroom was a waste of space. Impossible to read a book in bed. Our bedroom was badly designed. The bathroom door opens out on to the wardrobe door and bumps into the person using the wardrobe. The rail in the wardrobe is too high to be used with ease. You need to be a Giant to reach the coat hanger hooks. There were no instructions as to how to work the air conditioning. There were no instructions as to how to work the television. In the bathroom there is a notice from the hotel asking guests to save water. The hotel could lead by example and provide a plug for the wash hand basin. The wash hand basin plug was noticeably missing. This is because the wash hand basin did not have an over flow pipe. Within a few seconds the basin would fill with water and cause a flood. Whoever thought of installing a hotel wash hand basin that you could not use properly ought to be reprimanded. This hotel need to take out all the existing plug less wash hand basins and replace them with new wash hand basins with plugs and overflows. The cost should be recovered from the person who designed such stupid plug less wash hand basins. The one good thing about this hotel is the fact that the Toaster at Breakfast did work.

Hotel bem localizado mas oferece poucas comodidades. O SPA é pago, o que estando um tempo mau no exterior dava jeito ser gratuito, pois não existe mais nada que se possa fazer (mesa bilhar sempre ocupada - logicamente), nem uma sala de estar condigna.

Very nice location. Very beautiful view. Nice breakfast and the rooms have a good size. Bed very comfortable and has air conditioning. The staff is nice, but not as attentive as they should be in a 4 start hotel, and that is the reason why I didn’t gave a 5. They didn’t know that we paid the room online before the check in, and asked to pay again without checking for exemple. They have games room, and bar, but both weren’t open and the bar had no one to serve you, it seem that was closed.

Hotel super céntrico, pequeñito, me imagino que recién renovado ya que las instalaciones estaban muy bien, muy simpático y agradables todos los empleados, las habitaciones (la 102 )muy bien quizás un poquito pequeña, para mi gusto le faltaría un poquito mas grande para estar mas desahogado, las que dan a la calle peatonal se escuchan algunos ruidos cuando las gentes pasa gritando, el el desayuno correcto tiene de casi de todo para hacer un buen desayuno pero la sala es pequeña y hay que pedir hora para desayunar. Pero en general muy bien, no tiene garaje, tiene concertado uno sobre 150 /200 metros y hay otro publico muy grande mas o menos a la misma altura. Sin duda volvaria y lo recomendaría.

We weren’t wowed by this place, I think an average rating is fair. Check in was fine, the price of the room I think is too much but choice of hotels is more limited in this region. The room was a little dated but the bathroom was better, everything was clean. A minibar fridge with not much in it which is helpful for bringing your own drinks. The bed was two singles put together, but also the sheets and duvets were for single beds put together which is always a bit strange when you’re a couple. Be careful with the room you book, I didn’t pay enough attention. We booked a superior terrace room with view to the dam. The view can’t be seen from the room really, our view was of the back of the kitchen. The terrace is a balcony like section with a short wall and then a road, which is an access route it seems for some guests and staff. I just didn’t feel like there was much privacy in the room with the door open or sitting out on the terrace, I’d have preferred a balcony if I was doing it again. I did check if I could upgrade and unfortunately nothing was available, so my fault but study the rooms carefully. We spent a lot of time listening to next doors TV through the wall, we complained but ultimately its poor sound insulation and even when the guy turned it down a bit we could still listen along to Sky News headlines. The breakfast was quite good, wide selection in the buffet, restocked regularly. The glasses are stupidly small so you get about theee sips out of them and you’re up to refill again, these should be changed. We found the dinner not as good, and very expensive. €4 for a single slice of bread and some olive oil, service was patchy. The ambience isn’t amazing and the guests skew a bit geriatric. The restaurant choice close by is quite small and all really require a drive, but we had a better time elsewhere. The pool is nice, there are numerous areas to sit and admire the very good view. The pousada itself is an interesting venue. Of all the places we visited on our northern Portugal trip we found this hotel the most disappointing - not because there’s anything massively wrong with it but just the little things I’ve mentioned here dragging the experience down. We may have been the wrong clientele, the guests mainly seemed to be older groups and couples who perhaps enjoyed the older style hotel on offer.

We crashed at the Pousada Mosteiro de Guimaraes mid-afternoon after a morning exploring Guimaraes. We were almost at the end of our two-plus week trek. We were ready for down time. We spent a lovely afternoon walking the grounds, swimming in the beautiful pool [allowed though the pool wasn't yet officially open], having drinks on the terrace, and having dinner in the hotel restaurant. It was a delight.