ALGARVE P L U S
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STAY PLUS
...and royalty
S
ITUATED IN BEIRA ALTA, Santar has the
discreet charm of a countryside village, known for its wine farms, owned by the same families for centuries. Not an obvious destination for weekends or holidays in Portugal – except for wine experts. Thanks to projects like Valverde Santar Hotel & Spa, it is now on the bucket list of everyone who enjoys staying in manor houses with a royal past, going for long walks in the vineyards and ancient gardens and tasting high quality wines.
Royalty Santar was known for a long time as Cortes da Beira – the elected place for aristocrats to gather when in Beira.
It was a village that housed many noble families who owned wine farms there for centuries and used to visit frequently to host or attend family reunions or simply to get away from the city stress. Until this day, you hear people say: “This was the Marquess’s favourite flower” and you get the feeling that people felt respected by the ‘royals’, some of whom went on to choose to make their country house their permanent home. That is also the story behind Casa das Fidalgas, one of the most relevant Santar farmhouses, with four hectares of vineyards and three of gardens. The house was built in the 17th century and, after many generations and various changes, in 1975 its owner – Pedro Brum da Silveira Pinto – donated the farm to the
