Portugal Restores a Medieval Retreat Near Its Easter Pilgrimage Village

The latest addition to the Portugal's pousada collection is Pousada de Santa Maria do Bouro in Braga. This historical pousada, formerly a medieval Cistercian monastery; beautifies Bouro, a tiny village of a handful of houses above the Cavado River's lush banks.

Originally founded in 1162 and rebuilt many times, the present structure dates to the 18th century and is attached to a wedding chapel still in use. It serves adventure travelers to Braga, Portugal's ancient northern religious center famed for its Easter Week processions.

Guest rooms are austere modern equivalents of monks' cells. The former kitchen is a dining hall, and its massive, pyramidal brick chimney is a monumental skylight. Guests use a tennis court and small oval swimming pool, nestled into the semi-wild grounds, which retain their ancient paths and stone walls. A stately courtyard is planted with orange trees.

Modern Appointments are Quietly Wedded to Medieval Architecture

Skills masons labored for three years on this roofless ruin, consolidating walls and rebuilding large parts of the upper floor, the cloister, and the dining hall. The building's absent pitched roofs were replaced with 'green roofs', flat decks covered with soil and planted with ground cover. Custom hardware is used throughout, including brass window frames which are virtually invisible from the exterior.

Air-conditioning created a unique challenge, because it is obligatory for a five-star hotel, but against the nature of a centuries-old building. Minibars, also a difficult requirement for the small guest rooms, are recessed into the walls.

This monastic retreat towers like a prehistoric monument, a man-made artifact that was once nearly lost to nature. Reconstruction fully echoes its former abandon -- flat roofs overhung with bits of vegetation, a roofless cloister. Vibrant beach towels hanging out to dry from windows and children scampering down the stone staircase to the pool are signs of a magnificent ruin come to life.

Back