Six Senses are famous for their dedication to wellness and relaxation. The hotel has an admirably green set of eco-credentials and everything in the course of your stay is geared towards getting you to stop. Relax. Reconnect.
Rooms are large, light-filled and modern. Stripped oak floors are dressed with thick wool throws for an unashamedly luxurious feel. Panorama Suites have sweeping views of the river and vineyards from giant panoramic windows while Duplex Suites have views from the tub too. The Pool Villa occupies converted wine cellars and comes with its own garden access and private plunge pool.
Spend your days pampering yourself. Start a new regime. Take a Pilates class. Try aerial yoga. Stroll the trails through the hotel’s grounds stopping at meditation spots or to climb a tree in the tranquil forest. Spoil yourself with tailored treatments at the award-winning Six Senses spa, where you can lounge in the sauna or steam room and luxuriate in a herbal bath. Arrange a massage with a talented masseuse or sign up for an ayurvedic treatment using potent local ingredients. Recline in the heated spa pool and gaze at the scenery through enormous floor-to-ceiling windows, or step outside and sink into the unheated saltwater pool, soaking up the far-reaching views as it drops off infinity style into the valley beyond.
Take afternoon tea in the comfy, contemporary Quinta Bar & Lounge or, if you’re in celebratory mood, go straight to cocktails. Feeling peckish? Pair your drinks with a selection of tapas. Ask reception for a card to use in the interactive Wine Library and, under the guidance of leading winemakers from the surrounding valley and the hotel’s own sommelier, help yourself to small bottles of wines from throughout the Douro Valley. Should you want, there’s the opportunity to be a winemaker for a day as well and, in season, take part in the ages-old tradition of stomping the grapes.
Later, if you aren’t too relaxed for dinner, stroll to the contemporary restaurant Vale de Abraao, renowned for its seasonal produce, organic home-grown harvest and inventive cooking. Courtyard tables with pretty views are arranged for al fresco eating but for the finest dining experience snag the chef’s table to be able to see the brigade and their culinary theatrics as they prepare and host a meal right before your eyes. Inspired by the chef and his team? Try a cooking class to learn the techniques for preparing Portuguese dishes. Assuming you can fit it in between trips to the spa, treatments and tastings of course…