Your tour book will tell you that Cascais gets more than 300 days of sun a year, butt day isn’t one of them. Instead, shark-grey cloudswatch over us as we hike the dusty paths of the Quinta do Pisão nature park, making its up-and-down hills look extra dramatic. We’re told by park manager João that these 380 hectares have seen a big change in a decade. What was previously an abandoned wasteland has been regenerated into a little paradise, with eco-friendly farming, hiking trails and a focus on agriculture and forestry. It’s majorly charming.

We pick up two Miranda donkeys – long brown fur with white patches aroundthe eyes – to join us on our walk. I’m handed the reins of one, who makes a gentle companion, at least when we’re pulling in the same direction. Later we mee tTelmo the resident beekeeper in his bright yellow suit, and spot silver wild horses stomping around. I tall ends with a Med-style picnic at a pop-up glamping site, soundtracked by the fizzing of grasshoppers. Feeling rejuvenated after our day trip, we headback to Cascais’ coastal town centre, 20 minutes down the road, where the tone is just as relaxed and pleasant. Sitting about 30km west of Lisbon, this former fishing village famously became a chic hot spot for the wealthy and royal in the late 19th century, once king Luis I picked it as his annual summer retreat, and today a feeling of laid back glamour still clings to it. Beautiful tiled streets weave around pastel-toned residences in the old town. Golden beaches glide all the way up to the unhurried high street. And elegant mansions and hotels dot the majestic coastline, inview of the boxy Santa Marta Lighthouse – which could be a Wes Anderson movie location.

ROYAL TREATMENT

One of these hotels is the Grande Real Villa Itália,where I’m staying. The royal theme continues – part of the hotel is where the last king of Italy lived in exile. When you arrive it feels palatial but modern,and the staff are very sweet. My room comes with big arm chairs, a balcony that gazes out towards the cold Atlantic, and would be big enough to rehearse a small play in. The amount of brown marble in the bathroom is overwhelming. Elsewhere, a Roman-themed spa houses thalassotherapy and hydrotherapy circuits, and there’s a gym, hot tub and sauna. There are handsome bar areas and the elegant Navegantes restaurant. I grow fond of the peacock that squawks outside at breakfast each morning.

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