Sublime Comporta

To visit sublime for the first time requires some expectation management. From an interminable queue in Lisbon Airport passport control (45 mins) to another queue to collect a prepaid rental car to a near 90 minute drive towards Comporta - this is not an easy start to a weekend break. However, on arrival, the calmness of the forest accommodation does alleviate some of the stress. Good - but expensive - accommodation, friendly and efficient staff and excellent food in the nearby restaurants coupled with daily visits to the not quite so nearby (15 min drive) beaches made for a pleasant break.

Absolutely great hotel which we loved and would return to. There are some things worth knowing: - The hotel seems to attract an active clientele. The gym is great, but packed at 8/9am and very quiet for the rest of the day. It would be good if they could unlock all parts of the gym early so thet it can all be used at the busy hours. 75% of the space (everything except the weight/cardio room) is locked until the host arrives. - There are more possibilities for exercising outside the hotel (biking/running) but the hotel seems to actively discourage it (bad idea to run outside the hotel). Is this a liability issue? Admittedly the options probably require a short drive (running in the rice fields is stunning) but the hotel staff seem averse to it - The food is excellent at all the hotel’s restaurants. Much higher standard than I expected, and as good as any comparable hotel I can think of. It is worse making bookings ahead of time if you are coming in season. We arrived with nothing, and got what we wanted after a bit of work. Jacare, Mesa and Cavalarica in Comporta were also excellent. Everywhere was very fairly prices compared to a comparable level in the Med. - Beach club is gorgeous. Easy to get front row beds in July IF you are there by 11am. The restaurant is great. - Car charging is easy (by relatively pricey). We got given an EV as an upgrade at the airport, and once I had mastered the MIIO app, it worked ok. You really should have a car here. Distances aren’t far but parking is easy and flexibility was appreciated. 
Stand out things: - The staff. Just wonderful. Natural, friendly, professional…. Great - Food Circle. Not my sort of thing in principle (nearly 4 hours with 12 strangers with multiple small course). BUT the food was exquisite and worth every Euro. - Wine tasting. The Sommelier is a lovely guy and we sir enjoyed learning and tasting. A real pleasure and an excellent intro to a less-known market (and why it is less known is well explained… nothing to do with the quality!). - We had Padel lessons. What a blast, and such an engaging pro.
 If there were one recommendation for improvement it would be to build a lap pool. There is almost no opportunity to swim here, which is sad when you have the ocean (too rough) and many many individual pools plus a couple shared pools. None have the dimensions for laps.