PORTUGAL’S pousadas may be run by the State, rather like Spain’s paradors, but they certainly don’t give that impression. Each of these individual places to stay is in a restored historic building or reflects the character of the region through its architecture or food.

Despite the often glamorous surroundings and excellent regional restaurants, staying in a pousada in the north is also good value. For more information, visit www.pousadas.com.
Torreira

THE Murtosa/Torreira pousada is a comfortable and modern waterside villa. that would not be out of place in the swanky coastal belt of New England, thanks to its sea-inspired decor. There are fish motifs everywhere — on room number plates and lampshades, while the furniture has the sun and sea-bleached look of driftwood.

The sun terrace overlooks a lagoon, with the city of Aveiro on the opposite shore, and you can sunbathe, eat or drink while watching the moliceiro boats as they ply the calm waters. In the evenings, retreat to the brown slate-walled bar and try one of 18 types of port.

Details: 00 351 234 860180, B&B doubles from £62.

Amares

THE industrial chic interior of this historic pousada, reminiscent of the SoHo Grand in New York, appears shocking next to the 12th-century monastic exterior, but the minimalism would probably have felt quite homely to the former Cistercian residents of Santa Maria do Bouro.

The restaurant — the monk’s kitchen — has changed little since the 12th century. You serve yourself breakfast and lunch from a vast table hewn from a single lump of stone that used to serve as a chopping block.

The area is known for its oranges, and an orange tree can be found in the cloisters next to the open water channel that burbles through the centre of the hotel.

Details: 253 37 19 71 B&B doubles from £75.

Guimarães

:A FORMER Augustine convent, the Santa Marinha is one of two pousadas in Guimarães, the first capital of medieval Portugal. Blue, yellow and white azulejos, traditional Portuguese tiles, decorate its walls, with one central stairway featuring a huge mural.

The old wing, recently renovated, is the best place to stay. Here, each double is formed from two former prayer cells and still retains some of the original features, including stone benches set into the walls. To the rear lies a tranquil garden where moss-edged stone steps lead to a secluded pond.

Details: 253 511249, B&B doubles from £75.

São Bento

THE Peneda-Gerês National Park feels more Alpine than Portuguese, and the Swiss chalet design of this pousada in the middle of the park matches this perfectly.

It was originally built as a weekend retreat for a rich businessman so that he could go fishing in the nearby lake, which brims with trout, carp and pike. The restaurant, where you can try these fish for about £10, feels almost Moroccan, with copper lamps hovering over stout oak tables.

There are 29 rooms at the Gerês/Caniçada pousada, many with vaulted Madeira ceilings, but only ten have balconies. If you can’t get a view from your room, there is always the lounge bar or a sunny terrace, weather permitting.

Details: 253 649150, B&B doubles from £62.

Viana do Castelo

A TWISTING road takes you to the summit of the Monte de Santa Luzia in the Atlantic coastal city of Viana do Castelo. This pousada was built as a hotel in 1918 and transformed into a regional pousada a few years ago. While this means that the size and decor seem less friendly than other pousadas, it has a superb location, overlooking the Lima River and the ocean beaches of Cabedelo. Completing the view is the 15th-century temple of Santa Luzia.

The restaurant is a little formal but the regional menu is far from it, with local warming dishes such as hake gratin and sweet torta de Viana pancakes.

Details: 258 800370, B&B doubles from £65.

Vila Nova de Cerveira

HERE an entire 13th-century hamlet, complete with church, manor house and outbuildings, has been transformed into a quiet and comfortable pousada. Rooms at Dom Diniz are large and decorated in a rustic style, with deep red tiled floors, heavy wood furniture and blue and white tiling. Some rooms have private suntrap courtyards.

The only modern addition is the restaurant, from where you can watch swallows flitting above the Minho River as the sun sets over the Spanish region of Galicia on the opposite bank.

Details: 251 708120, B&B doubles from £62.

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