Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas has just announced the debut of its first property in Europe, Six Senses Douro Valley.
The resort, set in the Portuguese UNESCO World Heritage area of the Douro Valley, comprises 57 rooms and suites all furnished with eco-friendly materials in an effort to blend nature with traditional Portuguese style. New York based Clodagh Design is responsible for the hotel’s décor, using natural stone, wood and water as design elements throughout the property. Guest accommodations include Superior, Deluxe, and River rooms, as well as larger suites and villas with one, two and three bedrooms.
There are several dining venues at Six Senses Douro Valley, and the property’s culinary team is led by Chef Paulo Matos. The Vale d’Abraão Open Kitchen and Dining Room serves breakfast, lunch and dinner in a casual environment that includes both an outdoor terrace and indoor spaces. Guests seeking a more formal dining experience can visit the Quinta Bar and Lounge, which will open late in the afternoon and offer a variety of cuisine prepared on the open wood-burning ovens at Josper Grill, another restaurant at the resort.
Six Senses Douro Valley is also introducing The Wine Library, a unique entertaining venue serving tapas, cheese and smoked hams and local sausage. The plates are paired with a selection of wines by the glass, allowing guests the opportunity to sip on local vintages while enjoying classic films shown on a large screen in the venue’s covered stone terrace.
Oenophiles looking to immerse themselves even further in Douro’s local culture can participate in an instructional program guided by leading Portuguese winemakers from the surrounding valley and the resort’s wine directors. Participants will be educated on every stage of the wine making process, from planting and stomping, to eventually blending their own wine.
When it’s time to relax, guests can visit the Six Senses Spa, a 24,000 square foot facility comprising 10 treatment rooms, a heated indoor swimming pool with water jets, a steam room, Sauna and Laconium. The spa menu includes a grape-based treatment using freshly picked fruit from the Douro orchards. Also, through the spa’s Visiting Practitioner program guests will have access to over 100 of the world’s best wellness healers, practitioners and experts.
Other facilities include an outdoor swimming pool offering views of the Douro Valley, an activities hut and gym with aerial yoga and on-site personal trainers, and meditation nests spread throughout the forest.
Six Senses Douro Valley is located 88 miles from Porto International Airport with helicopter arrivals catered for at the nearby Porto de Lamego helipad.