Viceroy's Portuguese Debut Channels Rustic Elegance

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VICEROY AT OMBRIA ALGARVE

Designers: WATG, Promontorio Architects, Wimberly Interiors

Location: Algarve, Portugal

On offer: In the rolling hills of Portugal’s Algarve region, Viceroy makes its European debut with a soulful countryside retreat that reimagines village life through a contemporary lens. Design firm WATG helmed the project, tapping its in-house studio, Wimberly, for interiors and Lisbon-based Promontorio for architecture. The resort’s whitewashed buildings cascade into the terrain, stitched together by cobblestone paths, citrus groves, and a central praça—a traditional Portuguese plaza that serves as a communal gathering space. Rising above it all, a 30-meter clocktower serves as both village crown and navigational beacon. The design team conducted extensive research on traditional Portuguese villages to gather cues from the country’s rich heritage of craftsmanship, incorporating indigenous materials like limestone, oak, and handmade tiles. The latter anchors the architecture in place, while solar and geothermal systems whisper a quiet commitment to sustainability. The property’s 141 rooms and residences embrace rustic elegance, warmed by locally woven textiles and handcrafted furnishings, with travertine-lined baths, live-edge wood shelves, and panoramic views over the landscape.

Standout features: In the lobby, Lisbon-based artist Carolina Queiroz Cunha’s custom reception desk riffs on the geometry of traditional Portuguese azulejos (blue and white decorative ceramic tiles), while Finnish sculptor Tuulia Penttilä’s hand-formed door knockers—shaped like bird’s eggs from oak and sandstone—offer poetic nods to renewal. A design-through-food ethos defines the six dining venues, from the wood-fired warmth of Café Central to Solalua’s inventive takes on local seafood, including crab-stuffed doughnuts and beignets with goat milk ice cream. The recently opened spa, developed by wellness consultant Greg Payne (formerly of Aman), invites reconnection through thermal pools, intention-setting experiences, and a signature treatment called the “Ritual of Love”—a sensorial journey through breathwork, botanicals, and emotional recalibration. Even the property’s historic castle has been reborn as a clubhouse, where vaulted ceilings, vintage leather-strapped lounge chairs, and panoramic valley views complete the portrait of a retreat where tradition and design harmonize.