Built in 1773 on the foundations of an early 17th-century chapel dedicated to Saint Gregory the Great, the Sanctuary of Senhor do Socorro is an important Baroque pilgrimage complex in Portugal’s Alto Minho region. Situated on the slopes of the Serra da Labruja, close to the Portuguese route of the Camino de Santiago and overlooking the valley of the River Labruja, Cerdeiras House Hotel shares part of its history with the sanctuary and was formerly the property of its rector.

A house shaped by successive layers

The house evolved through successive, undocumented periods of construction, abandonment, and reconstruction. Its original core, with elements dating to 1747, was likely a simple, single-storey parallelepiped structure. Traces remain within the surviving granite and schist facades, whose construction reflects the site’s geology. The wider ensemble developed from this early core, reflecting a rural architecture with agricultural roots while displaying a richness and dignity that distinguishes it from its immediate surroundings.

The building expanded organically in both footprint and height before being reconstructed again during the first half of the 20th century. A reinforced concrete portico structure was introduced internally, while the volume of the earlier, by then ruined, building was retained to form an L-shaped body around a courtyard accessed from the street. Only parts of the original facades survive, including details whose character and finish reflect the building’s former status.

Restoring, reconstructing, and adding

With the rehabilitation of Cerdeiras House and its conversion into a hotel, Tiago do Vale Architects introduced different approaches across the existing fabric, allowing distinct periods, uses, and memories to coexist without mythologising the past.

Traditional elements that had disappeared, including skirtings, roof coverings, window frames, and shutters, were reinstated in simplified forms on the surviving facades. Clearly distinguished from speculative restoration, these interventions enhance the existing structure while reducing the visual impact of later additions. Partially lost components, such as the granary, were reconstructed through contemporary interpretations that refer directly to their former appearance without creating ambiguity around the time of intervention.

The new volumes accommodate the spatial and performance requirements of the hotel and are deliberately contemporary in character. Their simple, horizontal forms remain subordinate to the original structures, which are emphasised through contrast.

Reorganising the ensemble

The organisation of the complex responds to the existing site. The connection between the house and granary is re-established along a pre-existing wall, from which routes extend towards the new bedroom wing. The former courtyard becomes the house’s main living room, while ancillary spaces are placed behind granite retaining walls that recall those traditionally used across the property. Occasional staircases connect the succession of terraces.

Between the house terraces and the granite swimming pool, conceived as a reference to the irrigation tanks of the Minho region, a small auditorium provides a place from which to watch the sunset.

Entering the house

The entrance through the former courtyard gate acts as an introduction to the ensemble. Its large opening is reinterpreted as a domestic-scale doorway, incorporating references to the vernacular architecture of Alto Minho. Window seats recall traditional namoradeiras, while timber slats refer to local granaries and copper sulphate-pigmented paint draws on local vernacular architecture. These elements are brought together within a contemporary design language.

Beyond the threshold, a spiralling vertical plane organises circulation and filters views, protecting the heart of the house. This central room retains the character of an outdoor patio, with a patterned hydraulic-tile floor and a large skylight that brings sunlight, moonlight, and views of the night sky into the space.

The stair follows the same vertical plane and culminates in a broad opening overlooking the sanctuary and surrounding tree canopy, drawing filtered morning light into the interior.

Social spaces and the reconstructed granary

The ground floor of the existing house contains the hotel’s social spaces, including the living room, dining room, and a small winter room. An accessible bedroom, laundry room, wine cellar, and bathroom are also located on this level.

A new corridor connects the house to the reconstructed granary, where the kitchen occupies the ground floor. Although contemporary in construction, its cupboards, pink marble, and handmade tiles draw on the vernacular architecture of the Minho region, using memory as a source for the new design.

The upper floor of the granary contains an additional dining area that opens southwards towards the valley. A slatted timber screen filters views and helps regulate solar gain. The reconstructed building follows a traditional structural system, with oak beams and joists supporting a chestnut floor. A similar approach is used for the roof, where treated pine boarding beneath the tiles is combined with insulation and waterproofing.

Bedrooms overlooking the valley

On the upper level, a large suite and two further bedrooms occupy the existing house. Within these rooms, high skirtings, timber window frames, and shutters reinterpret details commonly found in houses of this kind, while the roof reinstates the region’s vernacular construction system. Traditional features are combined with contemporary elements, including minimal recessed skirtings within the new partitions, creating a gradual transition between old and new.

The corridor towards the upper floor of the granary culminates in an outdoor patio framing an olive tree. This threshold connects the existing house, the granary dining room, and the new bedroom wing. Within the new wing, simply designed bedrooms place the surrounding Labruja valley at the centre of the experience.

Continuity and transformation

The project retains the character of a fragmented ensemble formed from autonomous but interconnected volumes, set within a terraced landscape defined by substantial granite walls. Its overlapping layers remain rooted in the materials, traditions, and building practices of the region.

Cerdeiras House Hotel forms a further stage in the process of reconstruction and adaptation that has shaped the property since 1747, continuing its history of permanence and change.