If you have decided to go big on your wedding in Portugal and you are looking for opulence, history, grandeur and all the other bells and whistles, then perhaps Vidago Palace is for you. For some venues, the description ‘Palace’ might seem a little over the top, but you find that in this case the venue is truly worth of its name! It was originally built by Dom (King) Carlos in the 19th century as a nice spot for him to spend some time at the natural Spa that is located there and whilst it has not been fully modernised to make a 93 bedroom, 5 star hotel, it has lost none of its magnificence and you will struggle to find a more stunning wedding venue in northern Portugal! As well as the palace itself, there are 250 acres of mature woodland, a golf course and of course the Spa itself.
The ballroom will comfortably seat 250 for a wedding, although smaller spaces (the wine cellar and winter garden) are also available. Furthermore there are various outdoor spaces that can be incorporated into your wedding, so it can be a wonderful venue if you want to enjoy the Portuguese sun as a part of the day. Below you can see a video which showcases the hotel itself (without focusing on weddings), which gives you a feel for the place. As you will see it is not one of those musty old palaces that is really in need of a lick of paint and they have not been afraid to modernise the facilities where appropriate.
One thing to bear in mind with a venue such as this, is that you will be somewhat isolated, as it is in the middle of nowhere (!). There are no big cities nearby, although there is plenty of beautiful countryside. Your guests will either have to stay at the Palacio itself, or there are some options in the nearby city of Chaves (around 20 minutes away (on the Spanish border). As part of our work as destination wedding planners, we often help to organise the guest accommodation and where required transport to and from the airport and to off-site hotels at the end of the evening.
The Vidago Palace is one of the more expensive options for a wedding venue in northern Portugal, but given that it is quite isolated, the costs are quite reasonable compared to other 5 star venues in or around Porto for example. In the Summer, rooms are available for around €250 for example, which given the luxury and splendour of the location is not a bad deal.
If you want to find out more about Vidago Palace and other fancy (or less fancy) wedding venues in northern Portugal, then let us guide you through your options. We work with a number of very high end venues such as this (as well as many more affordable and more intimate venues) – just let us know what your dream wedding looks like and let us do the rest!
