JO&SO - The Cool Hotels in Portugal

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Tavira
JO&SO - The Cool Hotels in Portugal

The Portugal stays we tell our friends about, handpicked by two Portuguese sisters 👭🏼 Boutique hotels, guesthouses and rural stays across Portugal.

We look for beautiful design, thoughtful service and good energy. Full reviews and booking: joandso.com We’re Joana and Sofia, two sisters born and raised in Porto. We love travelling and between the two of us, we have visited over 30 countries. We always try to find special places to stay – be it a fancy boutique hotel, a simple guesthouse or a rural cabin. JO&SO is a carefully selected collection of our very favourite places in Portugal – it’s like a list of recommendations we’d give to our friends who plan to visit our beautiful country. We also love getting to know the people behind the places we feature. We wanted to share their stories with you, and we hope you enjoy them as much as we do. We are here to help create new memories for like-minded travellers – those on the hunt for beautiful design, thoughtful service and good energy. More about us here: joandso.com/about-us

09/10/2026

Together with his wife Phoebe, Nuno Avillez Oliveira (known as Biskaya to friends) runs Amaria, an 11-suite boutique hotel set in a former quinta inside the Costa Vicentina Natural Park.

Nuno and Phoebe swapped city life for this protected stretch of Atlantic coast between Odeceixe and Aljezur, a place so untouched that nothing new can be built here, only old farm ruins rebuilt. In 2016, he discovered and bought this property, and a year later he moved into the habitable part of the ruined farmhouse, where he lived for a couple of years.

𝗪𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗮𝘁 𝗔𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮. 𝗪𝗮𝘀 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗵𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗹 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲?
Yes, it was something I started thinking about ten years before we actually opened. I wanted to change my lifestyle and to be closer to nature, in the Aljezur area of Costa Vicentina. I wanted to get back to basics, a purer essence of life, and I always liked hospitality at this level.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗿𝗲𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝘁?
This region had been calling me for several years. For more than ten years I studied the region of Aljezur, Costa Vicentina. When I found the land that Amaria sits on, there was no question about it. It’s beautiful: the location, the proximity to the ocean, the flora, the abundance of water on the land.

Comment AMARIA and we’ll send you the full interview, straight to your DMs 💌

📍 Amaria, Odeceixe, Aljezur · Costa Vicentina, Algarve, Portugal
📷 by JO&SO - The Cool Hotels in Portugal · with

06/10/2026

Comment LINK and we’ll send you more about our stay at Amaria, straight to your DMs 💌

Built from the ruins of a former quinta, Amaria is a rural boutique hotel with 11 minimalist suites, farm-to-table meals, a saltwater pool and a wood-fired sauna overlooking the Atlantic.

📍 Amaria, Odeceixe, Aljezur · Costa Vicentina, Algarve, Portugal 📷 by JO&SO - The Cool Hotels in Portugal · with AMARIA 👉🏼 joandso.com 🔗 link in bio

22/07/2026

Exploring 😎

28/07/2025

New on our Lisbon watchlist: The Verse, a boutique aparthotel tucked away on one of the city’s most historic streets. It offers 15 thoughtfully designed apartments — from cosy studios to two-bedroom homes with private patios or terraces.

We haven’t stayed (yet), but we’re intrigued. Here’s why 👇

🏠 Architecture by .arquitectos
🛏️ Interiors by — warm materials like oak, walnut, pink limestone and handmade tiles, plus custom headboards and lighting
🖌️ Cool artworks (including pieces by )
🍽️ All apartments include a living area and kitchen
🍸 Ground-floor bar and lounge for coffee, cocktails and occasional DJ sets
🌇 A top-floor apartment with a dreamy private terrace
🧸 Extra touches: pillow menu, in-room dining, babysitting, pet kits — plus a free private bar on arrival and a curated selection of books by Portuguese authors

📍 The Verse – Lisbon, Portugal
🔗 Save it for your next Lisbon trip – link in bio

👉🏼 joandso.com
📷

26/05/2025

This is our website “cover”. Some of you might recognise it. The photo was taken in 2015, back when JO&SO was just a tiny tiny seedling getting off the ground. 🌱

At the time, just after the economic recession that hit Portugal hard, we started noticing something special. A couple of design-led guesthouses popping up in Porto. Lisbon’s first boutique hotel. Gorgeous eco-stays quietly emerging in rural corners that no one knew about.

We started JO&SO as a fun side project—two Portuguese sisters with a shared love for travel and a genuine desire to share our hotel discoveries with you. 👭🏼📷 We also wanted to tell the inspiring stories behind these places, often run by people who had changed their lives to follow a dream.

Anyway—back to the photo! We were staying at , a six-bedroom boutique hotel in the rural eastern Algarve (highly recommended, btw), when we spotted this bed among the almond, carob, fig, orange and olive trees 🌳🍊We set up the tripod, hit the timer, and took a spontaneous selfie. We were just being very silly and having a giggle.

Later on, as our website was nearly ready to launch, we were still struggling to pick a “hero” photo. We were actually playing around with hotel photos when we realised—this was the photo.

A decade on, it still perfectly captures who we are and what JO&SO is all about: a sense of curiosity, sisterhood, and a love for discovering beautiful places.

JO&SO is still our way of sharing special places to stay in Portugal with like-minded travellers. A bit like the list we’d send to our friends.

👉🏼 joandso.com
🔗 Link in bio
📷 by

23/07/2024

Hotel das Amoreiras is a boutique hotel tucked away in a peaceful square in the heart of Lisbon.

Pedro Oliveira and his wife Alicia Valero passionately transformed the neglected buildings into a “small grand hotel,” featuring fine materials such as Portuguese marble for the bathrooms, velvet, and wood. Its design exudes the warmth of a countryside home with an international twist.

The hotel has 17 rooms, each boasting personally selected works of art and views of the verdant gardens of Amoreiras, the Águas Livres Aqueduct, and the historical building of the Mãe D’Água das Amoreiras Reservoir.

The hotel’s breakfast is sourced from small, family-owned local producers - a detail that we love.

Head to the link in bio for more details.

👉🏼 joandso.com
🔗 link in bio
📷 by

18/07/2024

A little while ago we stayed at The Lisboans, an apart-hotel set in a beautifully restored 19th-century factory in Lisbon’s Baixa neighbourhood.

All of the one or two-bedroom apartments feature a sofa bed, a fully equipped kitchenette, handpicked antiques, tailored handmade tiles, and handcrafted textiles made by local artisans. Every interior design detail is carefully curated.

Daily cleaning and laundry services are also provided, and a simple breakfast is delivered to your door each morning.

Just beneath the apartments is Prado Mercearia, one of our favourite spots in town, where you can taste delicious dishes paired with organic w**es. It’s also a grocery shop filled with a very good selection of products from local producers. 🍷

Head to the link in bio for the full article.

👉🏼 joandso.com
🔗 link in bio
📷 courtesy of The Lisboans

15/07/2024

Since we started JO&SO back in 2015, we have been fortunate to visit many beautiful and inspiring hotels and guesthouses all around Portugal. We have a growing list of places we want to visit, which we call our 👁 Watchlist. One of the places at the top of that list is Casas da Quinta de Cima, a boutique hotel surrounded by fragrant orange groves and wildflower meadows, located in the unspoilt eastern Algarve. 🍊

The hotel has preserved the original layout of its 50-hectare century-old estate, featuring ‘workers’ cottages’ that have been transformed into spacious suites, each with a living room, kitchenette, and a bathroom with both a generous shower and stand-alone tub. In addition to the suites, there’s a two-bedroom house with its own swimming pool, perfect for those with children.

Interiors feature underfloor heating, high ceilings lined with wicker, the use of traditional materials such as terracotta, wood, and marble, plus a touch of beautiful vintage decor.

There’s a communal stone swimming pool with sun loungers amidst the blossom-filled gardens, extending into a landscape of fruit trees. This is a place to unwind, slow down, and immerse yourself in nature. 🌿

Head to the link in bio for the full article.

👉🏼 joandso.com
🔗 link in bio
📷 by

05/07/2024

We’ve had this one-of-a-kind w**ery with architect-designed serviced apartments on our radar for a while. 👀

Azores W**e Company is located on the stunningly scenic Pico Island, in the Azores. The w**ery pays homage to Azorean w**e, capturing the tradition of old Pico w**eries where people would drink, eat, and sleep. There’s a tasting room, a restaurant, plus five stunning apartments, including four studios and a two-bedroom apartment.

The minimalist interiors are inspired by the almost lunar-like landscape, featuring bare concrete walls and ceilings plus floor-to-ceiling windows. Bespoke-made furniture crafted by local artisans, together with vintage pieces, mitigates the industrial feel of the building, adding comfort and warmth.

The building boasts a unique location, with views of the volcano and the sea, and is surrounded by “currais” made of volcanic rocks that shield the vineyards from sea breezes and strong winds. These currais contribute to the distinctive landscape of Pico, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2004.

Head to the link in bio for the full article.

👉🏼 joandso.com
🔗 link in bio
📷 by

**ecompany

03/07/2024

The Azores archipelago is a truly one-of-a-kind destination, home to 9 magical islands with magnificent lagoons, lakes, and volcanic pools. Surrounded by deep-blue Atlantic waters, the islands are known for their dramatic landscapes, abundant wildlife, and active pursuits. 🐳

To help you figure out where to stay, we’ve handpicked what we consider to be the best hotels in the Azores. From architect-designed apartments and modern beachfront villas to boutique hotels and eco-retreats set among tropical scenes, there are some wonderful places to stay and enjoy this remarkable destination.

Head to the link in bio for the full article.

👉🏼 joandso.com
🔗 link in bio
📷 by

Endereço

Monte Novo
Tavira
8670-312

Website

https://www.joandso.com/best-boutique-hotels-portugal, https://www.joandso.com/collections/best-boutique-hotels-in-the-d

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