Dá Licença: Hotel in Estremoz

In Estremoz, in the heart of the Alentejo hills, Dá Licença is a countryside hotel that bridges art with nature.

A modern retreat in the heart of the Portuguese countryside

A two-hour ride from Lisbon, a few km from Estermoz, Dá Licença is a concept hotel combining hospitality, art, and nature.

Designed as a summer resort, owners Victor Borges and Franck Laigneau decided to open their doors to guests on a quest for a unique lifestyle. Perched on top of a hill, Dá Licença is surrounded by century-old olive trees, fig-trees, cork oaks; and a land rich with white and pink marble. Having belonged to nuns, and later becoming an olive-growing collective in the 80s, the property’s 3 buildings were renovated for five years in collaboration with local architects Procale. Today, the place has been reinvented as a rural retreat where volumes, pure lines, dark granite floors, whitewashed walls, large openings to the outdoors and modern furnishings are combined with an eclectic selection of furniture, tapestries, and ceramics. Everything coexists harmoniously and conveys a minimal and contemporary atmosphere.

The hotel offers 3 rooms and 5 spacious suites from 50 to 180m2. They are decorated with side tables, bedside tables, lamps, and other objects designed by Borges himself and made by the local craftsman Francesco Pluma. Some suites have private swimming pools, and others are furnished with gardens and terraces. The bathrooms have marble tubs, showers, and sinks are all hand-carved.

The restaurant offers an ever-changing menu with products from their own organic garden. The hotel has a large lounge with a teardrop-shaped fireplace, two geometrically shaped pools, and an underground art gallery.

Dá Licença is a unique place that combines the Alentejo way of life with its owners’ own artistic vision.