Quinta da Lila

Set in the verdant hills of the Serra de Monchique in the western Algarve, on a 3.3-hectare estate of stone-walled terraces, olive, lemon, orange, tangerine, and rare Pera de Monchique apple trees, cork oaks, and strawberry trees used for the local medronho firewater, Quinta da Lila sits in a serene mountain setting with three historic plunge pools converted from irrigation tanks, one fed by a natural spring of fresh mountain water flowing year-round, with the wider Algarve coast within a short drive south.

Acquired in 2021 as a ruined farm abandoned since the 1980s, with original sales contracts dating back to 1897, Quinta da Lila was restored under the creative vision of StudioArte with interior and art concept by Concepto Studio, using cork insulation, biocal plaster, and underfloor heating from electric heat pumps with hot water supplied by solar. Three houses sleep up to twelve in total or each separately: The Yellow House, The Granite House, and The Baker's Cottage. The estate also includes Monchique's first eco-friendly vineyard, with over seven thousand vines of Syrah, Viognier, Cabernet Sauvignon, Alicante Bouschet, and Touriga Nacional planted in 2024 on terraces that grew vines from at least 1793 until phylloxera wiped them out in the late nineteenth century.