Palace Hotel do Bussaco

The ambience of staying in an old world palace! Such incredible decor & loved the history & the garden’s & natural forest surroundings

The hotel fully met our expectations – a truly beautiful palace-castle with unique historic charm. The surrounding park and gardens are absolutely stunning – a perfect place to relax and enjoy the atmosphere. Our room was of a standard size and quite comfortable, although it could use some renovation. The TV, for instance, was a very old model – small and oddly out of place in such a majestic setting. The restaurant was excellent: the food was varied and delicious, and the staff were warm and helpful. Overall, the hotel feels elegant and refined. We stayed only one night, but it's the kind of place where you’d ideally want to stay for at least two to four nights, as my wife wisely said. A truly chic and memorable experience. Akop and Alla

My kiddo and I felt like we were experiencing living like real princesses. This historic building, the gorgeous grounds were straight out of my dreams. We LOVED the forest walk nearby, with the famous steps with water flowing down (which is a MUST to go on the walking trails in the forest!), with gate where Jesus was thought to have also crossed under. The forest itself is so lush, it's a magical place! We loved sitting in the grand room (on the main floor) to have a cocktail, as we played a boardgame and read our books. The hotel staff went out of their way to help us when we messaged our questions/concerns about a bad storm that was said to be coming (it passed us thankfully), and took great pride giving us a private tour to describe the history of the building before showing us to our room (which I believe they do for all upon check in). The breakfast which is included was amazing, as is the stunning ball room you get to sit in.

The building and interior take you royal times. It's as if you are in a museum, but you can touch everything and sit on the old chairs. - true masterpieces. Respectfully, for sure. The atmosphere is very soothing. It's very calm here. If you happen to stay when there are no loud guests or big companies in the property, you'll be lucky to enjoy trully quite dinner time and peaceful time in salon with a glass of porto. Everything here makes you slow down, lower your voice and just relax or enjoy the details of the preserved interior. Yet please remember: it's not a gorgeous palace covered in gold, but place for the royal family and their guests to stay during hunting time. It's pretty modest, yet awesome. If you opt for dinner here, try meagre fish for the main dish. It's worth of the gourmet attention.

The setting of the hotel in a Royal Palace and a nature park makes it unique. The building is a 19th century wonder with furnishings that were extravagant. The connection to the peninsular wars and Wellington are shown in the murals. The food was excellent and the dining room impressive. The staff were discrete and helpful. To do justice to the gardens and the park would require a visit of at least two days.