Quinta Fonte Grande

Geometry Rising

A newly constructed hideaway on one of Melides’ twin hills, this bright, modern gem offers sweeping views and indulgent isolation snuggled up beside ancient church ruins. Melides village, its lagoon, and wild stretch of beach extends in the foreground, while behind this villa for rent in Portugal dramatic pine and cork-tree forests climb the serra into the rural countryside.

Built into an outlying slope next to an ancient chapel high above Melides village, this vivid, modern cubic home offers a 360-degree view, capturing the varied landscape around it. Covering two levels, the home under the olive trees is an open-plan architectural study. Wall-sized windows slide away from the shared common areas (living and dining rooms and kitchen), placing the pool and its shady, furnished terrace as the home’s centerpiece. Each of the four bedrooms is fresh, panoramic and trim, with en-suite bathrooms showcasing either gem tone tiles or refreshingly white, spa-like amenities.

Around

Location. Location. Location. This newly constructed villa for rent in Portugal is only minutes from the hotspot of Melides, with its lagoon, beaches, and art scene, and a quick half hour from hip Comporta. The historical town of Santiago de Cacém is 15 minutes away, and there are trails into the cork oak and pine forests right out the door for those seeking simpler escapes. Hip global nomads have marked modest Melides, a former fishing village, as their new favorite playground, riding in on the coattails of French designers, international architects, entrepreneurial urbanites, and modern art collectors. Melides’ landscape differs from the greater Alentejo region due to the Lagoa de Melides, or lagoon that surrounds the community, containing a stunning variety of flora and fauna within its protected ecosystem. Waterbird habitat is abundant here, and eels from the waterways make a popular catch for local diners.

Located south of Lisbon along a rugged and relatively deserted stretch of the Atlantic, the Alentejo is a world of vineyards, rice paddies, and cork oak groves that crisscross low-lying fields and rolling dunes. Inland, the higher altitude relief of the Serra de Grândola features single track trails, gurgling streams and a 19-kilometer circular route, the Vereda de Melides. The well-heeled neighboring village of Comporta is also now zigzagged by shops, cafes, and restaurants, and the pretty outposts of the rich and famous. A land of decided contrasts, the area still offers simple coastal cafes serving grilled sardines, alongside more well-heeled dining rooms. Lovers of the laid-back and rugged will thrill with horseback rides along the rolling surf, and beaches extending for miles offer an abundance of outdoor recreation activities.