This house in Abragao, in the district of Penafiel, in Northern Portugal. It consists of two parts - the upper part, which consists of a large living area (including kitchen and sleeping area) plus a bedroom and a large bathroom, and the lower part, which consists of a smaller kitchen/living room, a bedroom and a bathroom. We had the run of both, either or both can be rented. Both were furnished to a very good standard. The upper kitchen, which we used, had a full set of utensils, crockery, pans etc. Next each of the two front doors is a sizable patio. The whole is set in a varied, Mediterranean style garden (enclosed, alongside a village street), with a raised cold plunge pool (2m x 3m, 1.5 m deep, which is hard - not impossible- for very small children to get into), paths, a variety of fruits and plants and a very nice hammock. Abragao itself is a pleasant village with a couple of small supermarkets and restaurants, the nearest a third of a mile away (although a quarter mile of that is on a road with no pavement). The wider area is pleasant and pretty, with the river beach in Luzim (Rua de Travassos, 10 mins drive) being a favourite. It's worth noting that despite its beauty the local area is not a tourism hotspot (except Porto) which means that prices are fair and English is not widely spoken (French a little more so). It also means that old traditions of hospitality can apply - we received not one but two buckets of fruit from local people as a welcome gift! The hospitality and service of the owner, Jose Luis, was excellent. He was there to welcome us and guide us in, gave us a useful note (he does speak very good English) on local options for ourselves and our two children (3 and 1 years old), and checked in by mail regularly to check that all was OK. He also saw us off in style, together with his wife Margarida.

Casa de Pereira Acevedo is a carefully restored traditional Portuguese farmhouse in the village of Abragao, about 40 km west of Porto, with two separate apartments, one upstairs, one down. (We were travelling with older teenagers, so letting them have their own space was good all round). It has reasonable sized grounds of its own, with a terrace and fine views of the surrounding hills (see photo); you don't feel cramped. It has also been well-equipped with cutlery, kitchen equipemt and so on. Abragao itself - a short walk, mostly down the car-free old road, to the middle of the village - is a good size for a holiday village, big enough to have at least two of everything (cafes, bars, supermarkets), small enough to feel quiet. The house is well placed for trips to Porto and to Rio Douro locations such as Peso de Regua and Amarante, on the "port trail", and is also on the "Romanesque Road" of local Romanesque architecture. But the thing that was most fun for us was swimming at the "river beach" in the nearby River Tamega

We loved this house, (I visited with my husband and two 18 year olds) The views were spectacular (the photos on the website at the moment do not do proper justice to these views). I have attached one photo which is just one vista and another with the hammock of another but there are more. The owners Jose Luis and Margarid, who were so attentive always asking what we liked, plan to change the photos on the site on our advice. The place was newly converted and the design of the buildings excellent. Also it was more than well equipped (no need to buy tin openers or cork screws), the owners provided good cooking equipment, including special touches such as fresh oranges from their other garden and an orange juicer...We could take fruit and veg from the garden which made it feel like our own place. There are good restaurants and shops (green grocer, bakery, super market within in walking distance ( 5 mins). A fish van called by every couple of days with all sorts of fish, stopping outside a neighbouring house. We bought sardines and cooked them on the barbeque. Other neighbours gave us the largest and tastiest fresh figs I have ever seen or eaten from their garden. We liked the place so much instead of eating out on the last night as we had originally planned, we used the barbeque again (this came with briquettes) and we also cooked the local sausage in the local way with a flame bowl which came with the necessary cooking alcohol! We felt welcomed like old family friends and the owners took care of every small thing (responding within minutes when I was too dumb to turn the key in the lock on the laundry room door)... The traditional portugese banao was another treat and so cooling...see photo Our visits to Porto and the Duoro made the location and surrounding area a great place for discovery and cycling on the green eco route in Amarante was so magic that even when I fell off my bike, it was all such a treat I barely noticed. Thanks to the owners for their care and trouble and for making it a brilliant time and one of the best holidays I have had in years.