Fortaleza Do Guincho

Fortaleza Do Guincho

Two stone cannons still guard the entrance to Fortaleza do Guincho, a 17th-century fortress turned 27-room hotel on the cliffs above Praia do Guincho, where the Atlantic hits rock instead of sand. The building sits inside the Natural Park of Sintra-Cascais, close to the Cabo da Roca lighthouse and among the most westerly points in Europe, with Cascais seven kilometres away and Lisbon and its airport roughly thirty. The fortress holds 27 rooms across Classic, Superior and Junior Suite categories, the largest opening onto balconies with uninterrupted ocean views; Classic rooms, set lower in the old fort, get only a partial sea view through a small window. What separates this address from other clifftop hotels along the coast is chef Gil Fernandes's Michelin-starred restaurant, running inside the fortress since 1998 and built around Portuguese ingredients and the Atlantic itself, with a second, more casual spot for cocktails and afternoon tea when a tasting menu feels like too much. A member of Relais & Châteaux, the hotel's other amenities include a terrace with sunbeds, a small library, a diving club, arrangements with nearby golf courses and a spa, and a doctor on call. Couples marking a wedding night or honeymoon will find the setting does much of the work; families are looked after too, with a playroom and babysitting available by appointment. City tax of two euros per person per night is collected on arrival, and pets are welcome for a small fee. It is a hotel built for people who want the ocean view and the Michelin kitchen to justify the drive out from Lisbon, nothing else. A 17th-century fortress on the cliffs above Praia do Guincho, now a 27-room Relais & Châteaux hotel with a Michelin-starred restaurant run by chef Gil Fernandes since 1998. Junior Suites and Superior rooms open onto ocean-view balconies; Classic rooms see the sea through a small fortress window.