Village by Boa

'It’s like a little village,' said Mr Smith as we arrived outside our front door. He probably wasn’t paying attention, since I do all the travel planning, but the clue is in the name at Village by Boa, a former working-class housing complex turned boutique aparthotel.

We were checking in to one of the family-friendly suites, which sit behind the main building, even more hidden than the hotel itself. In fact, we nearly missed the entrance, as check-in takes place at the reception in the Village by Boa boutique, a fashionably minimalist space filled with carefully curated local food, wines and beauty products. The rest of the building houses guest rooms and a gym — so far, a typical boutique hotel — until you get to the private courtyard at the back and the former homes that once made up Bairro do Silva, part of a 19th-century project that grouped houses together to make a neighbourhood within a neighbourhood. While there is a whiff of gentrification around any former working-class area being stylishly spruced up for tourists, the fact that the old residences have been transformed into a collection of mini homes has retained the spirit of the place, and in fact was the reason that we — or rather I, as Mr Smith’s personal travel agent — had picked it.

Usually 'aparthotel' are words I definitely do not want to hear. They conjure up images of bland corporate hotel rooms and sad little dining-room tables. But we had a three-year-old Mini Smith in tow, so the practical additions of a separate living room and a fully equipped kitchen seemed like a sensible choice. And when I saw the effortless style of Village by Boa and its soothing neutrals and minimalist furnishings, all finished with layers of textiles and oversize ceramics, aparthotel living suddenly seemed a lot cooler.

It definitely got instant approval from all of us. Stylish enough for parents, with a private garden that our three-year-old loved. As did we, for our much-needed alfresco morning coffees. The very thoughtful welcome package was a big hit too, filled with goodies from the shop, such as chocolate that we had to fight Mini Smith for, a bottle of wine for us to enjoy later when he’d gone to bed (here’s hoping the travel had tired him out), and a very fun touch: a packet of popcorn kernels to make use of the kitchen.

Hungry after the trip, we ripped open the chocolate, dumped our bags, took our Instagram pics (Village by Boa’s design is definitely something you’ll want to show off) and headed out in need of more sustenance and that night’s dinner. We did briefly pick up The New York Times Cooking: No-Recipe Recipes book, which was a great addition to the kitchen, but even that seemed too much effort. Instead, we winged it at the nearby market, Mercado do Bolhão, which very handily, since we’d booked a room with a kitchen, was just a five-minute walk away. Was it where locals go? Probably not, but we loved it anyway. You can’t get a glass of vinho verde while browsing at the supermarket. We did cheat a bit on the cooking, though — we couldn’t resist the ready-made platters of locally sourced prawns, sashimi and ceviche at the fish counters. When in Portugal, seafood is the only way to go — that and a few pastéis de nata for an easy and delicious dessert.

Turning the key when we got back felt like returning to our own little Portuguese pied-à-terre. The staff are there at reception if you need them, but there’s a separate door next to the shop for hotel guests, so you don’t really see anyone except the occasional neighbour. We felt so at home. The market became our go-to spot for provisions. We ate so many pastéis de nata, we knew exactly where to go for our favourites. We even had morning chats with other guests over coffee in the garden, just like living in a village. And we did cook one night, if boiling water for the freshly made pasta we picked up from the market counts as cooking. So the kitchen wasn’t entirely wasted on us. We just took it easy, that’s all — and that’s what holidays are for.