"In the eastern corner of the Algarve, where wide empty beaches run down to warm seas, Hospedaria is framed by rolling fields flecked with wild flowers. A century ago, this was a post office and general store, and an inn where locals gathered and danced, but last year it was transformed by two energetic romantics, Rui Liberato de Sousa and Nuno Ramos, alongside Lisbon architects Atelier Rua. They preserved the bar’s period tiles, adding neon lighting to illuminate glinting bottles. They carved out a sitting and dining room, both with high wicker-lined Algarvian ceilings and filled with old portraits and contemporary photographs. Beyond, in the lavender-scented garden, water trickles into the pool in the still summer heat as guests spill out into private leafy enclaves. And everywhere a feeling of luxurious timelessness, radiating beneath that blazing Portuguese sun."

"High above the city, Palacio Belmonte was built for the aristocratic Cabral family in 1449, and has been enlarged and refined over the centuries. There are myriad terraces and azulejo-tiled staterooms, along with a pool shaded by the orange trees, an immense library and 10 characterful bedrooms, including one with 360-degree views over the Alfama neighbourhood and the River Tagus. The most fantastical suite, Ricardo Reis, has centuries-old frescoes, discovered beneath layers of flaking paint during a renovation. It's little wonder guests want to live here forever."

"Tiny Quinta da Côrte stands high above the Douro River which snakes through the steep vine-covered slopes that produce Portugal’s finest wines. Dating back to the 17th century, the local schist stone and hand-painted tiles have been restored, courtesy of Pierre Yovanovitch, to preserve the spirit of the four-bedroomed main house, with another four rooms in adjoining buildings. The hub is the large kitchen where in winter you could expect a twist on bacalhau and in summer, on the terrace, roast octopus accompanied by buttery white and velvety red Quinta da Côrte wines. Save time for a dip in the infinity pool in the shade of the old cork tree."

"Comporta, without a shadow of a doubt, will be the summer hotspot – so glamorous, so fashionable and such wonderful interiors shopping, particularly for mid-century treasures and chic rattan pieces. This wildly beautiful Portuguese surf town so beloved of well-heeled Parisians, including Christian Louboutin (who is set to open his own hotel here) used to be all about the villa scene, until the Quinta da Comporta opened a few years ago. Rustic glamour prevails throughout this new hotel centred around a white-washed farmhouse and a collection of cottages and loft-style suites."

"Just two hours east of Lisbon, São Lourenço do Barrocal is a fabulously restored 19th century farmstead hotel in the heart of the golden Alentejo region. For the ultimate Portuguese road trip, start in Lisbon before taking to the meandering rural roads to savour the rolling Alentejo landscape, with its fields studded with cork trees and Neolithic dolmens, olive groves and pampas-style plains. Barrocal is like some sort of a Portuguese Shangri-La with a wonderful farm-to-table restaurant, thriving winery, not to mention excellent horse riding on site, plus plenty of cultural landmarks to take in, including the UNESCO World Heritage town of Evora with its sun-baked Roman temples, cathedrals and churches. And, of course, it's home to the chicest spa: a sophisticated, utterly professional and totally indulgent idyll with the best Susanne Kauffman treatments."

"One of the finest examples of Romantic architecture in Porto, 19th-century Torel Palace stands out from the crowd courtesy of the flamboyant domed skylight which crowns its four storeys. Interiors are no less striking with a beautifully restored grand central staircase, rich stucco work and a library which inspired the hotel’s literary theme; its 24 rooms are named after Portuguese authors. Bedrooms are quirkily different, luxurious and fun with high ceilings and huge windows."