Estremoz Winery & Hotel

Estremoz, Portugal

Hospitality

1.234 m2

2024

Set within the rural landscape of Alentejo Central, in the municipality of Estremoz, Estremoz Winery Hotel is a proposal for a five-star rural hotel that builds on an existing agricultural estate and its dispersed built fabric. The project begins with a careful reading of the site as a constellation of former dwellings, stables, and support structures, shaped by topography, long views, and native vegetation. The ambition is to transform this scattered condition into a coherent hospitality destination while retaining the estate’s rural character and sense of continuity.

The masterplan is organised through a sequence of arrivals and shared programmes that structure movement across the terrain. Reception establishes the first point of orientation, followed by spaces dedicated to wine tasting, a restaurant and coffee house, workshops and events, a multipurpose room, and a small wellness offer that includes spa, pool, and bar. Hotel accommodation is arranged in two main bodies, combining adapted volumes with new construction, and complemented by operational and technical areas that support the daily running of the site.

Across the intervention, the architecture is designed to sit low and integrate with the landscape. Buildings follow existing levels and align with the terrain to minimise visual impact and preserve the natural ground as much as possible. This approach is reinforced by a material strategy that draws on local construction cultures, including stabilised rammed earth, local stone, and lime-based plaster. These choices aim to extend vernacular logics into a contemporary setting, while supporting local supply chains and material circularity.

Accessibility is treated as part of the project’s spatial clarity. Ground level is conceived as a continuous and permeable plane, with pedestrian routes calibrated to existing slopes and designed to remain legible and obstacle-free. Turning zones, corridor widths, and accessible sanitary provisions are integrated across the main programme, supporting universal use without altering the project’s overall spatial intention.

In sum, Estremoz Winery Hotel proposes a form of rural hospitality grounded in the intelligence of what is already there, where landscape, pre-existence, and new programme are brought into a single, carefully structured experience.

Status

Ongoing, Private Competition
Awarded 1st prize

Client

OVERSEAS

Design team

Diogo Sousa Rocha

Duarte Ramalho Fontes

Sofia Taveira

Joana Fraga

Mirto Florou

Federica de Maria

Marta Meirinhos de Castro

Mafalda Cotrim

Amr Ragae

Marta Martins

António Salgado

Klaudia Drewa

Natalie Motyckova

Mohamed Same

Consultants

P4 - Artes e Técnicas da Paisagem

Fusão

A400

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