Vila Galé is opening a hotel in Tomar

The hotel is located in the city centre, next to the Nabão River

The Vila Galé group opened the Vila Galé Collection Tomar, this weekend, a hotel that results from the refurbishment of two emblematic buildings in the city: the former Santa Iria Convent and the former Colégio Feminino.

Located in the historic centre, next to the Nabão River, the Vila Galé Collection Tomar features 100 rooms, outdoor swimming pools for adults and with slides for children, a children’s playground, Satsanga Spa & Wellness with a heated indoor pool, a restaurant, and two bars, as well as a games room, library, chapel, gardens, event spaces, and a car park with a charging station for electric vehicles.

Worth an investment of more than 15 million euros and generating more than 50 direct jobs, this is a themed unit dedicated to the Order of the Knights Templar. It evokes its main figures and the region’s tradition, as well as the Way of St James and the history of both buildings.

Built in the 16th century, the Santa Iria Convent of Poor Clares is closely linked to the legend of Saint Irene (Santa Iria in Portuguese), the city’s patron saint. Born in 635, the beautiful Irene dedicated herself to religious life, but was the object of the desire of two suitors: Britaldo and Remígio. The latter gave her a drink that made her belly grow, suggesting that she was pregnant, so she was expelled from the convent for presumably breaking her vows of chastity. Feeling betrayed, Britaldo orchestrated her death and threw her body into the Nabão River, on the site where the convent was later built. Carried by the waters of that river and then by the Zêzere and Tagus, Irene’s body was found intact near Scallabis (Santarém), which was considered a miracle.

In turn, the Colégio Feminino, or Palácio de Frei António, also a 17th century building, stands out for having been home, from 1932, to one of the most prestigious private schools in Portugal, made up of the girls’ and boys’ schools, which welcomed thousands of students over five decades.

The connection between the two buildings is the so-called Arco das Freiras (Nuns’ Arch) over Rua de Santa Iria street, an air passage dating back to the 16th century and classified as a building of public interest.

“It is extremely important for us to create differentiation in Portugal in order to attract different types of tourists, who come looking for a product that is distinctive and that not only allows them to sleep, but to have an experience, which is what this hotel is all about”, said the Vila Galé group’s CEO, Jorge Rebelo de Almeida, referring to the Vila Galé Collection Tomar’s

MAIN FEATURES OF VILA GALÉ COLLECTION TOMAR:

• 100 rooms;
• One restaurant: Versátil;
• Two bars: Soul & Blues and Splash;
• Outdoor swimming pools for adults and for children and a sun deck;
• Satsanga Spa & Wellness with massage rooms, heated indoor pool with waterfalls, sauna, and Turkish bath;
• Meeting rooms with capacity for up to 320 people in a theatre-style arrangement;
• Playground;
• Chapel;
• Library;
• Game room;
• Outdoor gardens;
• Free Wi-Fi internet access;
• Access for people with reduced mobility;
• Parking.