In our apartment was a sign stating: "difficult roads lead to beautiful places" and that couldn't be more true. On our arrival we negotiated the winding and narrow route through the hill villages and got collected by Daniel on the top of the mountain. Instead of driving through the gate we had to follow his car down a steep gravel road ("public road") we would never have chosen voluntarily... but in the end it was well worth it and we learned from Daniel and Luís that a more direct road to the premise is currently being built and will make taking the gravel road unnecessary in the future. Later we found out that there is also a more relaxed route coming from the other direction which also leads to the gravel road.
The whole premises, encompassing the two apartments, the hosts house, garden, pool, gym etc. are surrounded by a stone wall. You enter through a metal gate and can safely park your car. The location is wonderfully situated overlooking the sloping garden and landscapes below leading to the sea. The roof of the apartments serves as a huge terrace with artificial grass which provided a soft ground to practice Yoga with a grand view. The two rental apartments are side by side and share a patio with a divider in the middle. Our neighbours were very quiet so the proximity was fine. Unfortunately the gardener made more noise one morning by using his motor saw to maintain some bushes... it might be a good idea to ask him to start such activities in the afternoon if possible. The apartment is very cosy and stylish with a mixture of modern and antique furniture. The bed is antique with a rather hard mattress (which squeaks on the slightest movement) and some bruises became a reminder of passing by the bedposts ;) The kitchen/living space is very well equipped with all the amenities you could ask for. Luis and Daniel were very forthcoming and offered us a bag full of chopped wood and some heat tablets so we used the inhouse fireplace twice. It was romantic but turned the apartment into a sauna ;) The bathroom is modern as well but the shower cabin might be a little small for bigger people. We were a little apprehensive to book the accommodation since we read in a previous review about birds being held captive in a cage on the premises. The aviary however is very spacious so we hope it is enough for the birds to lead a near to natural life.
Luís and Daniel are great hosts, very helpful, polite and respectful. The language barrier lead to some misunderstandings in English but they were very apologetic. We would definitely recommend this tranquil place as it is very relaxing and all the fairy tale castles are close by. But make sure to ask a local how to get to Pena Palace instead of just relying on Google Maps (shown route taking just 20 minutes)... the only suggested road turned out to be closed for public traffic (red road signs fixed permanently) and trying to find a small detour let us experience a 2 hour long memorable offroad adventure in the bushes and ultimately needing to be rescued ;)