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It is not the most famous town in the Portuguese Alentejo. But Vila Viçosa, just 40 kilometers from Badajoz, can compete (and win the game) to spare with others much better known and just as beautiful as Évora, Elvas or Monsaraz. The aristocratic past that concerns us even far exceeds this trio of aces from one of the most charming Portuguese provinces in the neighboring country. Not surprisingly, Vila Viçosa is home to both a 13th century castle (including a moat and towers) and a monumental Ducal Palace linked to one of the last monarchies in Portugal, that of the Braganzas.
Its 110-meter -long façade is completely covered in marble of different colors, since we are in one of the towns that mark the route of this material in the Alentejo, next to Estremoz and Borba. Within Vila Viçosa there is also a hotel that is a full-fledged ode to this limestone, as well as one of the best hotels in the region.
Most of the marble that sprinkles each of the facilities of this five-star hotel built in what was an old oil mill (this area is also famous for this product, in addition to its wines) comes from a nearby quarry, that of El Rei , owned by the hotel owner. Even so, other types from half the world were also used, from Italy to France, Turkey, Brazil or Iran. What we were saying: a true tribute to marble.
Visit a marble quarry
Moreover , one of the activities proposed by the concièrge del Marmòris is to go down to the depths of the quarry, a route of no less than 157 meters of descent, aboard an all-terrain vehicle. Others: a cultural tour of Vila Viçosa (with compulsory entry to the Doge's Palace, its many convents or churches, its viewpoint or its Casa de los Arcos ), a visit to the Marble Museum or a wine tasting.
On your way back, you have to try the jewel in the crown of this five-star hotel, the 900-square-meter spa, carved entirely out of marble. Chosen the best in the world in 2015 in the novelties chapter and the best in Portugal in 2019 in the World Luxury Spa Awards , the Oscars of these temples of well-being at an international level, you can give yourself a massage between stalactites.
The luxuries of the Arab Suite
In addition to the four treatment rooms, it also has an indoor pool and an outdoor pool with warm water that communicates with the hotel's, built under an impressive mural of, of course, marble. The rituals come from the hand of Karin Herzog , the world's leading brand of cosmetics with active oxygen used by celebrities like Madonna and Kate Middleton.
The splendor of marble continues on the floor, the reception, the restaurant, the Pink Room (used for events and weddings and whose rock color is precisely that: pink) and especially in the Arab Suite (the hotel with four others, in addition to 44 designer rooms), the one chosen by the royal families of countries such as Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Qatar or Abu Dhabi, so popular in recent days because King Juan Carlos is there.
A stay at the Alentejo Marmòris Hotel & Spa is not complete without trying the delicatessen at its Narcissus Fernandessi restaurant, which offers the best of Alentejo cuisine but with a contemporary interpretation. The product most used by its chef, Pedro Mendes , an eminence in Portugal, is the acorn , but also the rest of the fruits of the fields that surround Vila Viçosa and that he transfers to his dishes depending on the season.
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