Portugal 4 Life

Casa do Poco Velho (House of the Old Well)

Casa do Poco Velho, meaning House of the Old Well, is a large 4 bedroom family home set in about half an acre of fertile land. Situated in a beautiful area at the end of the village of Lagares, it is the last house on a track leading into the forest with only a small farm adjacent to it. The house and land are south facing with stunning views over pine and eucalyptus forest out towards the Serra da Lousa. Close to the house and part of the property is a 20m deep well which up until the arrival of mains water was the only water supply for the entire village.

The living accommodation is all on one level (apart from 3 steps down into the living room) and comprises of:-

A big kitchen with traditional cast iron wood burning range (suitable for cooking on), a gas range cooker, Belfast sink, and granite work surfaces, dishwasher, fridge etc. all of which can stay, glass doors lead out to the veranda;

Leading off from the kitchen is a larder/utility with plumbed in washing machine and lots of shelving;

Large dining room, exposed beams and wooden ceiling with two sets of doors opening out onto the veranda;

Living room with wood burning stove and double doors leading out to veranda;

The bedrooms are all generous doubles and have views out over the surrounding fields and forest. They are on the north side of the house and have high wooden ceilings and so remain blissfully cool in summer and all are ensuite;

There is also one main bathroom.

All exterior windows and doors are double glazed and hand made from hardwood, as are the external shutters.

Outside there is a rustic covered veranda which runs the length of the house on the south side which all the living areas open out onto, there is also a pergola outside the living room. There are steps which lead up to a sun terrace on the roof with fantastic views over the whole area. The well is an abundant supply of water so land irrigation and filling a swimming pool will never be a problem. The land is currently being cultivated into a wild flower meadow and gardens nearer the house.

Lagares is a typical Small Portuguese village full of friendly people, it has a bread van, meat van, fish van and grocery van which will deliver to the door. A ten minute walk takes you to Travanca do Mondego with a mini-supermarket, two cafe/bars and a couple of primary schools. It is 4km to the beautiful little town of Sao Pedro de Alva with schools, health centre, numerous cafes and a restaurant, grocery stores, two banks, hardware stores, post office etc. Nearby larger towns include Mortagua 10km, Penacova 15km and Santa Comba Dao 20km. It is a 25 minute drive to the centre of the historic city of Coimbra.Lagares is conveniently situated 2 hours from Lisbon and 1½ hours from Porto airports and the historical city of Coimbra is 25 mins drive.

Lagares is ideally located in rural surroundings yet close enough to the main routes of the IP3 and the IC6 to give you easy access to the whole of central Portugal. An hour’s drive to the east takes you to the beautiful National Park of the Serra da Estrella, whilst an hour west takes you to the coastal areas of Figueira da Foz and Praia da Tocha.

The house would make a fabulous family home or luxurious holiday home with massive potential for rental. It is currently being run as a B&B.