{"id":106520,"date":"2026-03-14T09:24:22","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T13:24:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/?page_id=106520"},"modified":"2026-03-14T09:24:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T13:24:22","slug":"salvaterra-country-house-essay-winner","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/salvaterra-country-house-essay-winner\/","title":{"rendered":"Salvaterra Country House"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"row wpb_row row-fluid\"><div class=\"wpb_column columns medium-12 small-12\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner  \"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:20px;\"><\/aside><a class=\"image_link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/\" target=\"\" title=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"161\" src=\"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Tablet-logo.png\" class=\"thb_image  center  retina_size attachment-full\" alt=\"\" title=\"Tablet-logo\" \/><\/a><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:20px;\"><\/aside><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"row wpb_row row-fluid full-width-row\"><div class=\"wpb_column columns medium-12 small-12\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner  \"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"thb_image  center   \" src=\"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/salvaterra-country-house-1200x900.jpg\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" alt=\"salvaterra-country-house\" title=\"salvaterra-country-house\" loading=\"lazy\" \/><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:50px;\"><\/aside><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"row wpb_row row-fluid\"><div class=\"wpb_column columns medium-12 small-12\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner  \"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:0px;\"><\/aside>\n\t<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element\" >\n\t\t<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<h3 style=\"text-align: left; font-family: Figtree, AvenirNext-Regular, HelveticaNeue-Light, Helvetica-Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 32px; line-height: 40px;\"><strong>The second special winner (mom division) in our hotel essay contest is a story about Salvaterra Country House in Portugal. It was written by Beatriz Marques Gouveia.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:50px;\"><\/aside>\n\t<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element\" >\n\t\t<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<p style=\"font-family: Figtree, AvenirNext-Regular, HelveticaNeue-Light, Helvetica-Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; line-height: 32px;\"><em>Featured hotel: <strong><a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/en\/salvaterra-de-magos-hotels\/salvaterra-country-house-spa\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Salvaterra Country House<\/a><\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em>Written by: Beatriz Marques Gouveia<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family: Figtree, AvenirNext-Regular, HelveticaNeue-Light, Helvetica-Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; line-height: 32px;\"><strong><em><a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/2026\/03\/write-away\/?noapp=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">See all the winning essays<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:50px;\"><\/aside>\n\t<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element\" >\n\t\t<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<p>She arrived the way many first-time moms do when they finally allow themselves a break: tired, running on love and logistics, quietly afraid that a \u201cvacation\u201d with a one-year-old would just be parenting in a prettier location.<\/p>\n<p>Then Salvaterra Country did something simple. When we opened the door to our room, a plate of fruit was waiting on the table \u2013 bright slices arranged like a small celebration. Mango, melon, berries, vivid pitaya almost too pretty to eat. A small gesture, but it felt like a real welcome. My daughter\u2019s eyes widened; she ate with both hands, laughed, pointed, asked for more. Within minutes the trip shifted from managing every detail to noticing what was in front of us.<\/p>\n<p>Later, wandering through the grounds at toddler pace, we found a couple of turtles near the path, quietly going about their business. Slow, steady, unbothered \u2013 exactly the calm I\u2019d been craving. My daughter froze, then lit up and did that full-body bounce that means this is the best thing that has ever happened. Her first turtles. A grown-up might see them and think, nice. A child sees them and thinks, the world is magical. Watching her lean in, half whispering and half squealing, I realised that travel with a toddler isn\u2019t the end of relaxation; it\u2019s a different kind of richness. You don\u2019t just visit a place \u2013 you introduce it.<\/p>\n<p>Inside, Salvaterra Country quietly held that feeling together. She had her own crib waiting, properly made and ready, plus small amenities that said: we expected you. That kind of care lands differently when you\u2019re a new parent used to improvising. Later the rain arrived, suddenly heavy, turning the garden outside into a blur. Instead of feeling trapped, we felt sheltered in our cozy room. The fireplace became our anchor \u2013 a steady flame, a reason to sit still and be adults for a little while instead of parents on full alert.<\/p>\n<p>At bedtime we found a little bear tucked into her crib by the staff, a tiny welcome just for her. It shouldn\u2019t have made me emotional, but it did; small gestures are what exhausted parents feel most. The next morning, the reset continued with breakfast: freshly baked croissants, warm and flaky, delivered to our private terrace. We ate outside in the quiet after the rain, listening to the hotel wake up. Our daughter was busy with fruit again, as if she\u2019d decided holidays are colours, textures, sweet tastes, new discoveries. I sat there with a coffee that was actually hot, watching her take in the world like it had been made for her.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s when it clicked. Traveling with a toddler isn\u2019t wonderful because it\u2019s easy. It\u2019s wonderful because it\u2019s full of firsts \u2013 and because a place like Salvaterra Country makes space for them. Maybe that\u2019s how a little girl and a turtle can save the world: not with grand gestures, but by reminding a tired first-time mom that the world is still beautifully new, and that the right hotel can hold that feeling for a little while.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:70px;\"><\/aside>\n\t<div class=\"wpb_text_column wpb_content_element\" >\n\t\t<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<p style=\"font-family: Figtree, AvenirNext-Regular, HelveticaNeue-Light, Helvetica-Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; line-height: 32px;\"><em>\u2014 <a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/en\/about-tablet?noapp=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Learn more about Tablet Hotels<\/a>, the original boutique hotel curators and booking site.<br \/>\n\u2014 <a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tablethotels.com\/?noapp=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Search our entire hotel selection<\/a>, featuring only the world&#8217;s most exciting hotels.<br \/>\n\u2014 <a style=\"color: #000000; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/cb.tablethotels.com\/join\/magazine-signup?noapp=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Subscribe to our newsletter<\/a>, for bold opinions, big discounts, and unbelievable hotels.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:70px;\"><\/aside><div class=\"vc_separator wpb_content_element vc_separator_align_center vc_sep_width_100 vc_sep_pos_align_center vc_separator_no_text vc_sep_color_grey wpb_content_element  wpb_content_element\" ><span class=\"vc_sep_holder vc_sep_holder_l\"><span class=\"vc_sep_line\"><\/span><\/span><span class=\"vc_sep_holder vc_sep_holder_r\"><span class=\"vc_sep_line\"><\/span><\/span>\n<\/div><aside class=\"gap cf\" style=\"height:10px;\"><\/aside><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n"},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row full_width_row=&#8221;true&#8221;][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;] The second special winner (mom division) in our hotel essay contest is a story about Salvaterra Country House in Portugal. It was written by Beatriz Marques Gouveia. [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;] Featured hotel: Salvaterra Country House Written by: Beatriz Marques Gouveia See all the winning essays [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;] She arrived the way many first-time&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":106585,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-106520","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Salvaterra Country House \u2014 Tablet Hotels Essay Winner<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/magazine.tablethotels.com\/en\/salvaterra-country-house-essay-winner\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Salvaterra Country House \u2014 Tablet Hotels Essay Winner\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[vc_row][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row full_width_row=&#8221;true&#8221;][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;&#8221;] The second special winner (mom division) in our hotel essay contest is a story about Salvaterra Country House in Portugal. 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