8/10 Good
Maureen B.
Jul 22, 2023
Liked: Cleanliness
House In the hills of North Portugal
Quinta Trás o Rio is a large house, set in the hills outside the coastal town of Viia Praia de Âncora. It has six bedrooms, a swimming pool, large garden and ample parking. Its location in the hills ensures cooling breezes for a comfortable temperature in Summer. Porto airport is 50 minutes away.
The house itself is stone built and rather rambling once inside. There are numerous stairs both inside and out. My ten year old grandson christened it : The House of Stairs. Families with toddlers should take care. The house is fully furnished in a rather old fashioned style. And could do with a refresh. The kitchen is small (we were 10 adults, plus five children) and large families will find this awkward at mealtimes.
The owner and his assistant were helpful in fixing one or two issues that arose during our stay. Overall, my extended family really enjoyed our two week stay at the house.
Two major points though. Firstly, the pool is not heated and hence quite cold, despite our mid-July stay. Houses at this price point should have pool heating, and other owners who do have this charge a weekly Eu 200/ week or so for this. Which most visitors are very willing to pay.
Secondly, the Wi-Fi is virtually non-existent. The mini router in the house has a range of 5 metres, and the speed of an old modem. This is not acceptable for a house of this quality.
Finally, the VRBO listing shows air conditioning under the facilites offered at the house. There isn’t!
Maureen B.
Stayed 14 nights in Jul 2023