Erected in 1773 on the foundations of a chapel dedicated to Saint Gregory the Great, the Sanctuary of Senhor do Socorro remains one of the most important pilgrimage destinations in Portugal’s Alto Minho region. Sharing the grounds of the sanctuary, Cerdeiras House Hotel is a unique restoration project by Tiago Do Vale Architects, situated on the slopes of the Labruja Mountain Range, neighboring the Portuguese Way of Saint James and commanding wide views over the Labruja River valley.

Cerdeiras House Hotel in Ponte de Lima, Portugal, was a rural estate and has since been converted as a hospitality project shaped by rehabilitation, reconstruction and contemporary additions. The original core, with elements dated to 1747, would have been a simple, single-story structure, whose presence can still be seen in the surviving façades carefully built in a combination of granite and schist reflecting the site’s particular geology.

© João Morgado Photography

Ponte de Lima is Portugal’s oldest village, just an hour north of Porto in the lush Minho region. Famous for its iconic medieval bridge, crisp Vinho Verde wine and laid-back riverside charm, it offers an authentic, historic escape away from Portugal’s heavy coastal crowds. Like so many buildings in the Portuguese rural landscape, it grew organically, both in footprint and height, through successive extensions. It was reconstructed once again during the first half of the 20th century.

Of the original construction, only parts of the façades survive, yet within these, there remain elements which, by their nature and finish, reflect the building’s former status as the property of the Rector of the Sanctuary.

The rehabilitation of Cerdeiras House and its adaptation to a hotel therefore required distinct approaches, respecting the past without mythologizing it in a coexistence of different times, uses, and memories, dispersed throughout various parts of the construction.

© João Morgado Photography

Simultaneously, partially lost components (such as the granary) were reconstructed.

The former courtyard becomes the main living room of the house, while outbuildings are set behind granite retaining walls, echoing the solutions traditionally employed across the House’s terrain. The successive terraces are connected by the introduction of occasional staircases.

Between the terraces of Cerdeiras House Hotel and swimming pool unfolds a small auditorium, a place from which to contemplate the sunset. The entrance, now made through the old gate of the courtyard, acts as the ensemble’s calling card.

The hotel’s social spaces are organized on the ground floor, which includes, within the pre-existing house, the living room, dining room and a small winter room. These are complemented by an accessible bedroom, a laundry room, a wine cellar and a bathroom.

Following a new corridor that links the house to the reconstructed granary, one finds the kitchen, occupying the ground floor of that structure. Though of contemporary construction, the kitchen employs materials, details and design choices evoking the popular architecture of the Minho (cupboards, pink marble, hand-made tiles).

© João Morgado Photography

On the upper floor of the granary, a dining area complements the kitchen and opens to the valley to the south.

Bedrooms are located on the upper floor. Within the pre-existing house is a large suite and two bedrooms. In these spaces, traditional details intersect with contemporary elements (such as recessed, minimal skirtings in the new partitions) in a smooth, seamless transition.

There are four bedrooms (one of them a “presidential” reserved to the owners) in the restored section of the house, plus three more in the new wing (one of them “presidential” for guests, one with a free-standing bathtub)  .

The house also has a swimming pool, a spa and wellness center. For planned services, they will provide and serve special dinners (both outside and in the dining room) and special breakfasts. They will also provide wine and gastronomy experiences and accommodate corporate events.

The corridor leading to the upper floor of the granary culminates in a threshold space marked by an outdoor patio framing an olive tree.

© João Morgado Photography

Cerdeiras House Hotel is another episode in the long process of reconstruction and adaptation that has shaped the House’s history since its foundation.

Cerdeiras House Hotel, also known as Capim Limão Country House, is currently open for guests.