The Pedras Salgadas Treehouse Spa & Nature Park in Bornes De Aguiar

Jun 1

Written By Sky

Nestled deep in Portugal’s interior, Pedras Salgadas Spa & Nature Park exudes a gentle, timeless atmosphere. The spa was founded in the nineteenth century, centred around mineral and thermal springs long valued for their healing properties. Today, the original pavilions and walkways remain, carefully restored by Pritzker Prize–winning architect Álvaro Siza Vieira, who preserved the site’s romantic, old-world charm while subtly updating it for the modern age.

Modern additions sit lightly among the trees. Twelve prefabricated eco-cabins and two elevated treehouses, designed by Luís Rebelo de Andrade, introduce a distinctly contemporary note. The project earned international attention, including Building of the Year honours in 2012.

We chose to stay in one of the compact treehouse structures, Garça Real, and the experience fully lived up to its reputation. Suspended among branches, the space feels both cocooned and exposed, with forest views intentionally framed through glass. It was intimate, clever, and profoundly memorable, but also felt cinematic, as if you were the star in a science fiction film rather than at a spa retreat.

Pedras Salgada s water is well known across Portugal and can be easily recognised by its green bottles. It flows directly from the ground here. Several small kiosks throughout the park serve mineral water straight from the source, allowing you to taste water pumped directly from the earth. Drinking it on site offers a simple but satisfying sense of connection. It’s as pure as water can get! As guests, you enjoy unlimited supplies of both bottled flat and sparkling water.

A well-portioned breakfast is served in your room. Beyond the spa itself, trails wind through the grounds, and complimentary bicycles are available for exploring the surrounding landscape at an easy pace.

Our visit began with a photograph in an architecture magazine, compelling enough to draw us to Portugal and more than an hour inland from Porto. Standing there, camera in hand, retracing that image, it was clear why. Pedras Salgadas does not compete with modern spas or traditional bathhouses elsewhere in the world. It occupies its own territory entirely, one where history, design, and nature continue a long, unhurried conversation.