Noble House Evora: The Pros and Cons of Staying Here

Noble House Evora (officially Noble House Essence Evora) is one of the more highly rated hotels in Evora. On the surface, it’s easy to see why. Its location on a sleepy, atmospheric medieval road near Evora Cathedral looks great, and many of the hotel’s various rooms are very photogenic. Some of the rooms in Noble House Evora are downright cheap, too.

But is Noble House Evora all it’s cracked up to be? Yes and no. Parts of it are great, but there are also some drawbacks. My review goes over all these positives and negatives to help you decide if Noble House Evora is right for you.

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Initial Impressions of Noble House Evora

My initial impression of Noble House Evora was good. I loved how old the exterior felt and the solitude of its location. Inside was no different. It had lots of touches that hearkened back to Evora’s origins, like the Roman wall along parts of the building. It reminded me of our stay in Volterra, Italy, which happens to be one of my favorite stays to date. That alone made me very optimistic about Noble House Evora.

As I walked through the hotel, spread across two buildings on opposite sides of the road, I was wowed by its size. It seemed as if Noble House Evora was a never-ending maze of courtyards, terraces, common areas and guest rooms. Its size made it feel more luxurious than the average hotel.

On the other hand, Michelle’s initial impression was less than stellar. To begin with, she was driving, and since it wasn’t clear what to do with our car, she ended up driving down a very tight, cobbled alleyway (which was questionable whether or not she was even allowed to be driving on) and parking several minutes away.

Then, already frustrated and in a bad mood, she had a poor interaction with the check-in clerk. I wasn’t there to witness it, but the guy was pretty rude and short with her when she asked a basic question about laundry, refusing to answer because he was “busy” writing an email. Unfortunately, and understandably, this encounter left a poor taste in her mouth about Noble House Evora.

A Good but Not Great Location in the Historic Centre of Evora

Noble House Evora is located just on the outskirts of Evora’s historic center. There are pros and cons to this location.

To start, probably the best part of this location is its sleepy old-world atmosphere. You’re far enough away from the main sights of Evora that it feels residential (though I’m sure it isn’t). It’s quiet and you won’t find too many people walking around the hotel. Add to that the old, cobbled alleyway and the buildings with the paint wearing away from their medieval doors, and it feels like you’ve stepped back in time.

Another highlight is Evora Cathedral looming large right next to Noble House Evora. It was possible to see its steeples rising over the hotel’s walls from every vantage point I saw during my stay, creating lovely views from the comfort of Noble House’s various rooms and courtyards.

However, Evora Cathedral’s location next to Noble House Evora is a little deceiving. I thought I’d be able to walk out the door of the hotel, turn a corner and be at the cathedral. That’s not quite how it works because of Evora’s windy roads. It took me about 10 minutes to figure out how to get to the front of the cathedral, and even if you know where you’re going, it’s still a bit more of a walk than you’d expect.

Similarly, the rest of Evora’s main sights all take at least about the same amount of time to walk to from Noble House Evora. Walking through Evora’s old town is one of the nicest things about visiting here, but if you have mobility issues or want to be right in the thick of things, this location may be a bit of a downer.

Another potential issue is the cobbled road where the hotel is located. It’s very atmospheric, but it’s also pretty difficult to walk on, even for people without mobility issues. This is even more of a problem if you’re pushing a stroller or wheelchair. It’s definitely something you need to think about when booking.

Breakfast at Noble House Evora

Breakfast here was one of the hotel’s highlights. It occurs in a charming dining room that still has its 17th-century brick vaulted ceiling hanging over the heads of guests. In the other room is the kitchen where you can admire the building’s original chimney and 16th-century tilework, in addition to the food you’re about to enjoy.

It’s a lovely spot for a meal. If you don’t want to sit inside, you can also enjoy your breakfast from the attached terrace.

But none of that matters much if the food is terrible. Fortunately, that’s not the case at Noble House Evora. For the most part, it’s your standard European breakfast fare: cold meats and cheeses, pastries, bread, yogurt, fruit, eggs and some hot protein (it was sausage during our stay). Everything was quite tasty, especially the traditional Portuguese rolls, a favorite of mine throughout Portugal.

Common Areas of Noble House Evora

One of the most appealing parts of Noble House Evora is how many spaces it has to sit and relax. At times, it felt like there were more common areas than there were rooms. But, again, like much of Noble House, these areas come with one drawback.

Various terraces, courtyards and lounges dot the property throughout Noble House Evora. I didn’t see all of them, but the ones I did encounter were all quite nice. The courtyards I saw had good views of Evora Cathedral, and the lounges looked like fine spots to relax.

Noble House Evora also has a small bar in the lobby. Even though we didn’t get any drinks here, I think this is a nice feature for guests to be able to grab a drink to wind down with while taking advantage of one of the spaces mentioned above.

While it’s nice to have access to all these spaces, they can create an issue depending on the location of your room. Our room seemed to be on the far side of the hotel. Because of that, we had to walk through two lounges, a courtyard and navigate a couple flights of stairs. It wasn’t particularly easy with a baby.

Our Room

Unfortunately, our room at Noble House Evora was a lowlight during our stay here. It wasn’t that it was bad, though. In fact, it was a pretty good room. It was just very basic except for one feature.

That one feature was the small balcony attached to the bedroom. It had a great view of Evora Cathedral rising above one of Noble House Evora’s courtyards. While we didn’t spend enough time in the room to go out on the balcony for any length of time, it was still nice to be able to look out from our beds to see the church.

Apart from that, there isn’t much else to say about our room except that it was quiet and comfortable. It also came with an attached bathroom with a walk-in shower. The bathroom was nice in that it was separated from the bedroom by a small hallway, allowing us to use it without being right next to each. This arrangement was nice for privacy and to keep our 1-year-old daughter out of the bathroom.

However, it’s worth adding that Noble House Evora’s rooms come in a variety, and we selected one of the cheaper ones (the family suite) because we didn’t need any frills. A quick glance at pictures from the hotel of their other rooms shows more interesting decor and styles than what we had – but also at a higher price.

Would I Stay at Noble House Evora Again?

Yes, but I would also explore other options. The dustup between Michelle and the clerk at check-in aside, Noble House Evora didn’t feel particularly special beyond the impressive veneer. As I’ve had time to collect my thoughts from our time in Portugal, this hotel wasn’t as memorable like our other stays in Tomar and the Douro Valley.

It’s not even that it wasn’t nice, because it was very nice. With all its old design elements still in place, the tasty breakfast, views of the cathedral and location on a sleepy cobbled alleyway, it has a great wow factor. Just something about it didn’t stick with us.

It could be that we didn’t spend enough time in Noble House Evora to enjoy all it had to offer, or it could be that being there with our daughter kept us distracted from its charms. Maybe had we booked a fancier room, we would have more fond memories of this hotel.

All that said, I think Noble House Evora is definitely not only worth considering but also staying at. But it’s not a must if you find other accommodations that seem to better suit your style.

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