Estremoz Winery & Hotel
Estremoz, Portugal
Hospitality
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
Marta Vaz
Marta Meirinhos de Castro
Joana Milhais Ferreira
Marta Martins
Sofia Taveira
Joana Fraga
Mirto Florou
Federica de Maria
Mafalda Cotrim
Amr Ragae
António Salgado
Klaudia Drewa
Natalie Motyckova
Mohamed Same
Karla Hiltmann
Diogo Castello-Branco
Consultants
P4 - Artes e Técnicas da Paisagem
Fusão
A400
