Location
Algarve, Portugal
Year
2026
Area
2,400 m²
Client
Oliva Hotels
Status
In progress
Duration
30 months (ongoing)
Design team
Marta Sóbria, Inês Calado, Tomás Reis
Photography
Atelier Nørd
(The project)
A 24-room boutique hotel of white courtyards, deep shade and a long reflecting pool.
Casa Branca reinterprets the whitewashed courtyard houses of the Algarve as a small hotel. Rooms are arranged around a sequence of shaded patios that lead down to a long pool.
Shade as architecture
Thick walls, deep reveals and planted pergolas keep the rooms cool without heavy air conditioning. The hotel is due to open in spring 2027.
Opening in 2027
Construction is well underway. The first courtyard and the pool will be complete this winter, with the hotel opening its doors in spring 2027.
(The brief)
A 24-room boutique hotel that feels like a village of courtyard houses, stays cool through Algarve summers and uses as little energy as possible.
(Our response)
Rooms cluster around shaded patios that lead down to a long reflecting pool. Thick walls, deep reveals and planted pergolas do the work that machines usually do.
Lime-rendered wall sample under Algarve light
(Materials)
A quiet palette.
Rare to find architects who care as much about the joinery as the façade. Every detail was considered, and nothing was precious.
Miguel Sousa, Director, Oliva Hotels