The InterContinental’s pool area
Cascais, on the Atlantic coast of Portugal, has a fabulous summer climate, culture, history, cuisine, convenience ? and a bijou hotel to enjoy it all from, as LUX discovers
“You have to go to Cascais – it?s the light, and the atmosphere but really the light” says Tony, the legendary manager of the staff cafe at Vogue House, Condé Nast‘s London headquarters, and as Portuguese as salt cod.
Tony and I have had this conversation numerous times over the years. When I got my own office and PA, meaning I didn?t visit his Hatch canteen any more, we would talk on the stairs or before I hosted a client in the Vogue House boardroom, as he organised snacks.
Follow LUX on Instagram: luxthemagazine I was intrigued not only because Tony was a local, but because he was particularly passionate about a place that is not really on the international radar. People speak of the coast south of Lisbon, or up towards Porto, but Cascais (pronounced Cash-kise), on a map, looked intriguing. It?s only 20km or so from the Portuguese capital, but past the mouth of the Tagus river and on a stretch of coast that angles sharply around into the Atlantic. It is a historic resort town and only a few kilometres from Sintra, the hilltop town that is a destination for tourists from all over the world.
A deluxe room
Cascais being a weekend resort for the well-to-do of Lisbon, is not teeming with luxury hotels, with the exception of one: the In...