Vinha Boutique Hotel - the Leading Hotels of the World

The rooms are clean, comfortable and spacious. The bedding and pillows make you want to give into jet lag and stay in bed all day. The hotel has a general feel of comfortable sophistication - like even though it's beautifully appointed, I could put my feet up. The hotel itself is located on the river with amazing views. It's a lovely (1 hour) walk into the town center of Porto. If you like being away from the hoopla and noise of the touristy part of town, Vinha Boutique Hotel is for you. If you want to book a meal at the Michelin restaurant, be sure to book ahead. We didn't and were unable to get a table. The sister restaurant in the hotel which served breakfast and lunch, however was very good. We had dinner there instead and enjoyed our meal. We visited in April and weather was not particularly nice, but the property has a gorgeous pool and outdoor bar/seating area which seemed like an excellent place to spend a lazy day relaxing by the pool, having a cocktail and enjoying. I would highly recommend staying here.

I stayed at the Vinha Boutique Hotel a week ago (end of May). I chose this hotel because I didn't want to be in the center of Porto, which is a bit stuffy. The center is 15 min. away by car and the hotel has a free shuttle service to Porto every day at 10.30 a.m. (drop-off point: in front of Sé Cathedral) with a return at 6.30 p.m. I stayed in a Deluxe room (room 109). A bright room in the modern part of the hotel, with a partial view of the Douro. Very nice bathroom with Bulgari welcome products (obviously, there are no Jo Malone products). The hotel consists of 2 parts: an old part (the Manor House) where the gastronomic restaurant is located and where there are the Petit Rooms, Signature River rooms, and some suites, and the "modern" building where the reception and the 2 restaurants are located. The hotel is decorated with great care. There's a lovely lounge next to the reception and a library on level -1. I visited the Sisley spa (I didn't have time to test it). Every guest is entitled to use the pool and its facilities (sauna, Turkish bath, hammock) for 90 minutes upon prior reservation. The gastronomic restaurant Vinha is supervised by Star Michelin Chef Chef Henrique Sá Pessoa (this is subject to a separate review for Vinha Restaurant). Breakfast is lovely (best-scrambled eggs I had). There is not really much to do around the hotel. The place is above all to relax. Starting June 1st the hotel has a boat taxi service operating to Porto center. I did not experience it as I left on May 29. I was disappointed with the private transfer organized by the hotel. They mentioned a private transfer in a luxury car (I was expecting a nice sedan car such as Mercedes) but got an ordinary van... For 45 Euros is not worth it. The air-conditioned system was a bit tricky as well as the light. Other than these minor problems, I enjoyed my stay. Staff is pleasant. Bear in mind that the hotel is not located in the center so you cannot go back and forth within a few minutes. A taxi ride from the center to the hotel is about 10 to 13 Euros. In summary: nice stay, quiet hotel. Good place for a relaxing getaway.

A great place to stay away from all the hustle and bustle and a short cab ride or a boat ride, which is free as a hotel guest to downtown Porto the people at the hotel are genuinely good hard-working people. The breakfast buffet is beautiful, fresh and plentiful. You can order from the menu which is included if you are Leading Hotel member I would recommend the new building on the higher floors, facing the river, the restaurant, which there is two are also very good, the properties is kept well-maintained. There is also a spa that as a Leading Hotels member you can use for free which I highly recommend. It has a steam room,Jacuzzis, indoor pool, saunas, and a small gym that has everything you need to get the blood flowing.

A really beautiful Boutique Hotel in Villa Nova de Gaia. The decoration of the hotel is eye-catching, the gardens are beautiful, the dining room was exquisite and the rooms are beautiful and very functional. The only strange thing about this place was the attitude and the service in the Spa. When I enter the place in order to swim they asked if I reserved a place. When I said I did not, they reluctantly let me in just this once because the place was not too crowded. Then I found out I was the only person in the swimming pool. They made me purchase my swimming cap, which was very weird. The showers and the bathrooms in the spa had no soap. When I asked for soap they told me I should have brought it from my room. The girl in The Spa had a nasty attitude. We had breakfast at the hotel and it was wonderful. The only problem is the location which is far from anything worth doing or seeing but still it was a five-star experience

We stumbled on Vinha hotel we were looking for hotels outside Porto, intrigued by photos of the rooms decorated in famous designer styles. The decor, the location, the level of service and the whole experience is beyond a Four Seasons level of quality. The gastronomic experiences in both the restaurant and bar were top shelf, and the staff combine knowledgeability with sunny Portuguese friendliness. We took advantage of the bikes to ride into town along the Beautiful Douro to the tasting rooms, spent hours in the pools and sauna and Turkish bath, and were amazed by the most unusual hot tub with waterfalls, pressure showers and bubbling jets one will ever see. Most guests seem to be European, lucky them to have such a resort, we will make a point of returning from the USA. Bravo!

Incredible architecture and interior designed, every single detail planned! Outdoor gardens breathtaking, people extremely polite and helpful, very high quality! Breakfast and dinner were delicious and we havent experienced better hotel in Portugal !