The Writer’s House

Povoa de Varzim, Portugal
4 guests
2 bedrooms
1 bathroom

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Stylishly Comfortable: A property designed with great style and with amenities that offer a relaxed stay.

Apartment: A collection of rooms forming one residence, typically in a larger building

Urban: Cosmopolitan, big city locations

Words and Flowers

A quick train ride from Porto and an easy walk to the beach, this flowery, plant-abundant oasis is named for António dos Santos Graça, the late writer/ethnologist who chronicled local maritime culture. The happy, colorful apartment occupies a boutique-lined pedestrian street in the resort community of Póvoa de Varzim, and features an intimate street-facing balcony and a sundrenched, private terrace.

Fresh and cheerful, this flat reimagined by interior designer Miriam Seixas is a pretty, pastel location. It's a throw-open-the-windows kind of space, enlivened by traditional patterned tiles and color bloc accents, with high ceilings and hardwood floors. Made brighter by mural art inspired by Matisse cut outs, glossy tropical house plants, Calderesque mobiles, and graphic wall montages, it features a leafy motif that carries into wallpaper and is harmoniously offset by rattan and cane furnishings. Vibrant, sun splashed and creative, the Art-Nouveau-era architectural statement features an intimate back terrace that inspires sunbathing by day and candlelit alfresco dinners by night.

AROUND

Located on a pedestrian street that is part of the legendary Camino de Santiago pilgrimage, this vacation home for rent in Portugal overlooks small town shops and boutiques, and is set a quick walk from the nearest beach in a small coastal town only half an hour from Porto. The small resort city of Póvoa de Varzim is a favorite spot for daytrippers from Porto and Portuguese weekenders who come for its huge crescent beach backed by residential towers and waterfront buildings housing cafes, shops and restaurants. The beach is lined by a cobbled promenade, and the town’s historical center is off limits to cars.

Povóa’s center features traditional architecture, mostly from the 18th and 19th centuries, clad in azulejos, or traditional blue tile paintings, that tell the tales of the region’s maritime history—the rich stories recounted by the apartment’s original owner in his books and manuscripts on the region. Fishing made Póvoa, and the ancient Castelo still guards the town’s harbor, filled with small colorful fishing boats that continue to bring in a daily catch.

Póvoa’s light golden sands extend for nearly 10 kilometers north and south of town, some sections marked by rocky outcroppings, and all of them windswept. Surfers prefer the Aguçadoura section of the beach, and other areas feature classic striped tents and loungers for rent. The nearby town of Vila do Conde is a picturesque former shipbuilding and seafaring village with a historical town center.