Convento do Espinheiro, Historic Hotel & Spa - Évora

Beautiful hotel, expansive grounds. Atmospheric surroundings, an old convent/monastery converted into a modern hotel with full service. |Two restaurants on the premises, besides a bar. |Lovely to explore the premises; quiet little cathedral, a royal library, olive and orange trees in the garden. |Our room had a balcony overlooking the peaceful gardens, with rows of olive trees. |Breakfast was good; eggs made to order, cold cuts, fruit, juices, coffee. |It’s situated about 10 minutes by car, from Evora city. Spend the day sightseeing and come back to a very comfortable room. |Will definitely spend more days here, next time we visit.

We stayed here for nights in October 2025. It was wonderful. Our room was lovely. The restaurant and bar were great. Super breakfast. We used the indoor pool each day after touring the town. Great location for exploring the region. We knew it was outside of town, but were initially surprised about the location. We were worried that it would be a hassle to go to town and find parking. We were so relieved to find out it was super easy. The front desk team pointed out on the map where there is safe and easy parking just outside of the town walls, a brief walk to the Roman ruins. Super easy. Best was the staff....so friendly and helpful. This place is a special treat....you should go!

I had a wonderful stay at Convento do Espinheiro, Historic Hotel & Spa. The property is absolutely beautiful, with so much history and charm woven into every detail. The atmosphere is serene and welcoming, making it the perfect place to relax and unwind. The amenities were excellent, and I truly enjoyed everything the hotel had to offer — from the peaceful surroundings to the well-kept facilities. The staff were warm, attentive, and made the experience even more special. The property is spread out and be aware that there was a line for breakfast, so don't sleep in! Overall, it was a memorable and positive stay, and I would gladly return again.

This is a fantastic place that offers a memorable experience, definitely worth every penny spent. The in-house restaurant serves gourmet meals that are absolutely superb, providing a delightful dining experience. The SPA facilities are luxurious and well-maintained, perfect for relaxation, while the gym offers a good range of equipment and excellent amenities. The property itself is stunning, with beautiful architecture and lush surroundings that enhance the overall atmosphere. Staff is extremely friendly and always going an extra mile to make you feel special.

I was charged extra 50 euros per night for arriving with a dog. They sell you they are a pet friendly hotel. But if you arrive with a pet the pet is only allowed in the new part of the hotel and they will make a good business out of it.

Here you can experience long ago history, modern rooms and wonderful grounds. AND a full sized church from the original monastery (convento) is inside the hotel! Our room and bathroom were nicely sized with a comfortable bed and a nice view of the gardens. Getting around the different areas of the hotel can involve lengthy, circuitous walks but is probably due to having to build around parts of the old monastery. There is a very good restaurant and a full buffet breakfast. We were with a tour group and our coach took us to Evora. You will need a car/taxi otherwise because the town is too far away and the roads would be dangerous for walking.

The ugliest hotel room I ever saw for the highest price. After one night I couldn’t wait to leave. I asked for a refund for the remaining nights so I could leave early but the staff refused. I feel like I was robbed by paying 400 euros a night for such an unpleasant environment . The breakfast buffet was also very poor (I’d rate it 4/10) The whole hotel has a tired and creepy vibe, definitely wouldn’t recommend to anyone and obviously would never go back.

This is a beautiful and very relaxing hotel. I debated whether to stay in the historic center of Evora or stay here. I am so glad i made the choice of this hotel. It was such a peaceful setting and easy/quick drive to the town. We ate dinner our first night in the bar/lounge are and it was quite delicious. We also had lunch at the outdoor pool cafe the next day and really enjoyed that. The breakfast buffet was very generous and tasty. We had a deluxe modern room. It was very spacious and comfortable. I highly recommend Convento do Espinheiro!

We stayed here one night while visiting Evora and Elvas. The hotel is a former monastery that has retained a lot of the original structure, including the chapel and there is a newer section of rooms, which is where we stayed. They have done a very good job of combining old and new. We booked a "Design Suite" for the night. There was a 35 euro charge for our two dogs. They supplied beds and bowls. Reception had changed our room to a ground floor because of our dogs, which made it easier to take them out at night and in the morning. The beds were size appropriate for each of our dogs. The bed was very comfortable with nice linens. There were some expensive pieces in the room, like the Dolce & Gabbana chair. However, a pet peeve of mine is when hotel room design does not take into account how people will actually use the room. With our room, there was a large table that blocked outlets so I had to move the table to charge my phone. There should have either been a smaller bed side table or moved the outlets higher. The bathroom was very nice. Great shower and a Japanese toilet! The gardens and grounds are stunning. The gardens have numerous fruit trees that were laden with citrus and they face a vineyard. Breakfast was stellar. There was a selection of cakes, breads, fruit (really great selection), cheese, yogurt, meats, etc. It is a very large property and it is clear why they host more than 40 weddings per year. The staff was friendly and helpful. They offered a tour of the grounds, as well as a wine tasting. A word of warning - there is a pig farm nearby and it smelled very farmy when we arrived.

Less hotel/resort. More of a forest/lean to/fend for yourself situation. Pool is a bug filled cesspool. A/C out frequently and management is non-responsive. Overpriced and understaffed. Wildly disappointing. .

Amazing - one of the best hotels we have ever stayed in. The Convento elevated our trip to Portugal to one of our most relaxing and fun filled adventures. First, the service is 1st rate - the staff could not have been more pleasant and accommodating. Second, the setting was serene and the converted convent was a special touch. Our large spacious rooms were in the new addition -- and offered all the modern comforts. On our first evening we took advantage of the guided tour and wine tasting (both wonderful) and dined in the restaurant (which happens to be the old wine cellar) how awesome is that. The food was top notch -- in fact we we back every night and never repeated a dish (though tempting) because there were new wonders to explore. We also took advantage of the first rate spa services -- loved it. By day we took a taxi to Elvora and enjoyed walking around and the town and visiting the different sites (especially the Chapel of Bones and the Museum). Our only regrets were that we did not rent a car and explore the countryside villages (next trip). As we travel the world -- this is one place at this firmly on our return list -- and if you are coming to this lovely area -- only one place to stay, Convento do Espinheiro.

My husband and I stayed 4 days/3 nights for a nun convention in November (just kidding about the convention). Seriously, Espinheiro was a fantastic experience overall and I will try to do it justice. Overview: The hotel is a 2 hour drive/easy to find when driving by car from Lisbon. My husband drove to the hotel after our flight arrived in Lisbon at 6am and was able to navigate to Espinheiro via the Evora highway/street signage without using any maps. The property is a mix of old (the original convent) and new (hotel room additions, swimming pool, etc.) The hotel is a quiet countryside respite where you can just hang out, go to the spa, etc. and/or use it as your jumping off point for Alentejo region day trips as we did for wine tasting, etc. It was a very peaceful and relaxing start to our 2 week trip. Staff: We attempted to check in early at 8:30am and the reception staff were able to not only accommodate our request on a weekend day (their busiest time), but also encouraged us to go to the restaurant onsite for coffee and breakfast after our long trip while they moved our bags to the room. They made us feel at home and over the next few days through several staff shift changes and transitions, everyone we encountered had the same mix of friendliness and professionalism. The reception staff helped us through our seemingly idiotic questions about tipping (since their system does not have a way to add tips on your credit card w/o you asking to do so), where to exchange money, how to get a damaged rental car repaired when my husband had an incident with a tree (the hotel has a guy who comes onsite for repairs since apparently this is a common request?, but we missed him and they helped us find some wonderful men at the local Evora BP station who made the rental car as good as new with a detailed wash & buffing for 18 Euros). They also helped us plan our day trips to regional points of interest. The restaurant and bar staff were very accommodating as well. We were always out sightseeing each day at 5pm, but they do host a property walk of the extensive grounds and do a wine tasting at this time- so we did our own versions of these things. Room: Our room in the new addition to the hotel was spacious and well appointed (loved the D&G leopard print desk chair!). It was very quiet in our room, even when more guests were on the property for weekend trips and events. We did have a few large flies that wandered into our room occasionally from the sheep pasture next to the property, but not much you can do there. Overall cleanliness/daily room service was good. Restaurant: The breakfast that was served each morning was very grand by our American standards. Even if the hotel was at low occupancy during the week, they still had the same buffet set up and omelet station options as they did during the busy weekend. They always had sparkling wine, fresh juice and nespresso or drip coffee available but we saw British guests request and get their own pots of tea. I had their fresh cheese (kind of like a ricotta?) most days, plus their smoked salmon and some sort of eggs from the omelet lady while my husband thoroughly enjoyed the wide array of doughnuts along with his breakfast. We ate dinner twice at the hotel and tried a wide variety of their twists on Portuguese food- the chestnut soup, seafood risotto, cod, pork, etc.- these were good solid meals, but we had our best dinners on other parts of our trip. The dinner servings are large, so I was not able to finish my entrees. The bread served with dinner was so good (I always got the "corn" bread- not like American cornbread- and my husband tried the other breads like olive, tomato, etc. which were good according to him). They also give you a bowl of house spiced olives to start your meal along with the bread. We tried a dessert one night and it was ok...better to eat the bread and olives! Overall, this was a unique hotel and experience in the Portuguese countryside- thank you to the staff for a wonderful visit!