Pousada Castelo de Palmela – Historic Hotel

Amazing place. Everything was perfect.

Ótima estadia num hotel diferente e muito agradável

We loved our stay 2 night stay at the Castela De Palmela perched high above the town! Our very, large comfortable rooms were in the Convent with views over Palmela and to the ocean. Great atmosphere, wonderful staff, and comfie beds. We arrived during the blackout - they had generators and electricity so we were able to enjoy a delicious dinner in the restaurant there, along with a plentiful breakfast buffer the following morning. Amazing places easy to explore from there in Setubal, Seisimbra, Cabo Espichel ( amazing)and Dinosaur foot prints. Easy drive back to the Lisbon airport to come home.

For setting and history this hotel scores very highly. The room was large and the bathroom excellent and there was a nespresso machine but don’t expect a lot of frills. The restaurant severs up hearty no nonsense fare. The traditional stew, described as a soup (Sopa Caramela) was a meal all by itself. The bream was unfussy and tasty and the noodles with prawns was also good. The crème brulee was home made and excellent where as the chocolate temptation which sounds exciting looked like a commercial chocolate fondant. If there was a weak point it was the breakfast pastries, you would expect the pastel de nata to be good but it was poor, other elements such as cheese, hams, yogurts were good, hot food was OK, just not hot. The buffets on Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas Day lunch were good value, though if you do both there is a little commonality in the appetizers and desserts. Enjoyed the traditional cod on Christmas Eve. Note, there is no heating so a jumper is advisable for the evenings, if you need to warm up a bit there is heating in the bar and library The castle next door is great for an evening wander and sun set views before dinner.

What a gem and a perfect way to end our 3 week trip to Portugal. The hotel is connected to the castle, so we had museums and architecture and history right next door! The hotel is the perfect luxury boutique hotel to enjoy the stunning surroundings. We loved it. The Tavern attached to the hotel is a must go. You feel like you’ve slipped back into time.

Stayed for three nights on a group tour of Portugal. Large bedroom with good bathroom. Friendly staff but service was variable. First night there was no room maintenance provided. Restaurant is in the cloisters surrounding the central courtyard. Food again ranged from good to poor. The breakfast on the final day was ruined by the admission of 60 guests from a coach tour who were not staying at the hotel. Hard to recommend.