Inside ‘Hamptons of Portugal’ the place Harry and Meghan have purchased dwelling

There may be over 3,000 miles separating the Hamptons from Melides in Portugal – but these two holiday destinations have more than just glorious sandy beaches in common. 

Namely, they both count Meghan Markle among their A-List fans.

Earlier this month, the Daily Mail exclusively revealed that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have purchased a property in Melides – where they enjoyed a romantic, five-night getaway last year.

The exclusive area, which was once a small fishing town, has been dubbed the ‘Hamptons of Portugal’ thanks to its A-List residents, including George Clooney, Gisele Bunchen and Prince Harry‘s cousin Princess Eugenie.

Unsurprisingly, the European holiday hotspot is brimming with the kind of amenities these residents could easily find in the Hamptons – including a world-class spa, art galleries and restaurants run by big-name chefs.

Before she married into the Royal Family, Meghan Markle holidayed in East Hampton with her ex-husband Trevor Engelson in 2006 – and returned this summer to attend the G9 Ventures Summer Summit ahead of the launch of her brand American Riviera Orchard.

Having quit royal duties in 2020, the couple’s new home in Portugal may have allowed the Sussexes to acquire a so-called Golden Visa, under which they would have visa-free access to the European Union’s Schengen area. 

Here FEMAIL delves into the ‘Hamptons of Portugal’ – as Harry and Meghan become the latest famous faces to snap up a property in Melides.

‘Blissful’ and ‘unforgettable’ beaches

Over the years, the area has been compared to St Tropez in the 1960s thanks to its secluded beaches – which are said to be ideal for Prince Harry’s new hobby of surfing.

Like the Hamptons, the beaches in Melides – which is only an hour’s drive from Lisbon – are sandy and can go on for 40 miles.

In May 2023, British socialite Lady Violet Manners gushed about her ‘unforgettable’ holiday in the area as she raved about Melides on Instagram.

Sharing a photo of a sunset, the Duke of Rutland’s daughter wrote: ‘I might be relocating. Portugal is the gift that keeps on giving.’

In 2022, Conde Nast Traveller dubbed Melides ‘Portugal’s next big beach town’ amid a flurry of new club openings.

Along with an increase in holiday properties being built, Praia do Pinheirinho also got its first beach club while the Umay Melides resort also opened around this time too.

The publication wrote at the time: ‘These developments will surely change the kind of place Melides is, but for now, change is happening just slowly enough for it to feel authentically Alentejo.’

Meanwhile, luxury hotel website Mr & Mrs Smith has also raved about the ‘blissful’ location.

They wrote: ‘You have miles of desert beaches to play on, pristine pockets of nature to bike or ride through, and small villages for fresh-as-can-be seafood stops.’

According to local newspaper Olive Press, house prices in Melides shot up by 150 per cent in the first quarter of 2023 as celebrities flocked to the area.

Louboutin’s stamp of approval 

In 2023, Christian Louboutin opened his five-star hotel Vermelho in the up-and-coming area of Portugal – cementing its position as a celebrity-approved destination. 

The designer first passed through Melides a dozen years ago, and was quickly ‘mesmerised’ by the ‘dreamy atmosphere’ of the village’s pine forest and ‘the unique beauty of the sunlight on [its] lagoon’.

Smitten, he restored a small fisherman’s shack in the village and has returned there every June since to design his winter shoe collection. 

In high season, a double room at the hotel, which is named after the iconic shade of red that coats the sole of the designer’s shoes, costs £919-a-night.

Set to bring fashion lovers around the globe to Melides, Louboutin’s new hotel – which welcomed its first guests in April – is said to offer a ‘home-like experience’ amidst décor that offers an ‘eclectic, maximalist aesthetic’.

During a stay, guests can indulge in spa treatments and massages, or sip on cocktails at the Vermelho bar, home to a decadent silver-leaf-covered bar counter.

The hotel’s restaurant, Xtian, is said to plate up the ‘culinary treasures of Portugal’. It’s run by Chef David Abreu, whose signature dishes include wild boar stew followed by ‘drunk pears’ – pears cooked in a wine-based syrup – for dessert.

Summing up the ethos of the retreat, a statement says: ‘Embodying the quintessence of the audacious spirit that so defines Christian Louboutin, Vermelho Melides is an exclusive, yet friendly hotel, open to the world while celebrating Iberian Peninsula savoir-faire and traditions.’

Susanne Kauffmann spa 

What’s more, the Duchess of Sussex will no doubt be pleased to know that there’s a Susanne Kaufmann spa in the vicinity of her new holiday home.

In 2019, the former Suits actress threw a baby shower in the $75,000-per-night penthouse suite of The Mark Hotel in New York – and guests were sent home with goody bags featuring some of Meghan’s favourite products.

According to People, Serena Williams, Amal Clooney, and Canadian stylist Jessica Mulroney were among the attendees who were gifted Cuyana leather totes that were filled to the brim with products, much like Oscars swag bags. 

The totes, which retail for $175-$195 depending on style, included $67 Jo Malone Green Tomato Leaf scented candles, $65 Tatcha Rice Enzyme Powder, and $81 Susanne Kaufmann Body Butter. 

The brand was founded in 2003 in Austria and now has spas in Berlin, Vienna, Rome Miami and Portugal.

The spa’s treatments promises to ‘harness the power of locally grown ingredients’ to ‘perfectly tailor to the needs of the face and body’. 

 The spa is situated in the five-star Sao Lourenco do Barrocal hotel in Alentejo and charges €229 for an anti-ageing facial.

Celeb-approved luxury complex 

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle live next to some of the most famous people world in the world in their Montecito – so in that sense, Melides will probably feel like a home away from home.  

Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank have owned a property in CostaTerra Golf and Ocean Club in Melides since 2022.

Jack Brooksbank, 38, works in marketing and sales for CostaTerra. He, Eugenie, 34, and their two sons, August, three, and Ernest, 16 months, split their time between Portugal and London.

It has been reported that George Clooney and his wife Amal were also introduced to the area by American property developer Mike Meldman. 

George and Mike teamed up in 2013 to launch tequila firm Casamigos and sold it four years later for a reported £1bn. Princess Eugenie’s Jack also worked for Casamigos for years. 

Mike, the CEO of the Discovery Land Company, acquired the 722-acre plot which runs along the Atlantic coast in 2019, with an initial £435million investment.

Having already overseen the building of 24 luxury residential golf communities around the world, he has now established the CostaTerra Golf & Ocean Club luxury resort community.

On top of this, the complex also boasts a Wellness hub, equestrian centre, community village, 18-star golf course, 146 single-family homes and 29 residences. 

The Clooneys will no doubt have been reassured by the green credentials claimed by the estate they plan on moving to. 

According to the CostaTerra website it is a, ‘flourishing community and thriving ecosystem grounded firmly in the values of sustainable development’. It describes itself to potential buyers as ‘your family’s private European escape.’

Before their divorce in 2023, Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen also owned a property on the Alentejo coast. 

Last year, Harry and Meghan’s visit was a ‘mega-secret operation’ which saw them departing Portugal on September 20 2023 on a British Airways flight to London Heathrow, accompanied by two bodyguards. 

After reports emerged that the Sussexes had visited Melides, Jose Santosy, head of the Alentejo Tourism Board, confirmed Harry and Meghan were indeed in Alentejo. 

Their decision to purchase a home near Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson‘s daughter highlights the two cousins’ close bond and ‘means we may see a good deal of Harry, Meghan and their family’, according to commentator Richard Fitzwilliams. 

Speaking to FEMAIL, Mr Fitzwilliams said ‘it emphasises that they still have goodwill’ in The Firm and ‘makes clear that they are connected closely to part of the Royal Family and it will be interesting to see how they intend to develop this.’ 

Commenting on the couple’s reported Portuguese purchase, Mr Fitzwilliams said: ‘This is a surprise and is extremely significant. We have known that Harry and Meghan and Eugenie and her husband Jack have been close for years. 

‘They moved into Frogmore Cottage when the Sussexes vacated it and have reportedly seen each other in California and in Portugal, where Jack works. 

‘This proves they are close and it also gives the Sussexes a base in the EU with the possibility of acquiring the Golden Visa which would give them free access to the EU’s Schengen area. This also gives them a base near Britain. 

‘It makes clear that they are connected closely to part of the royal family and it will be interesting to see how they intend to develop this.’ 

The expert continued: ‘Will it, for example, lead to more solo or perhaps even joint visits to Britain, but without participating in royal life or royal rituals at Sandringham and Balmoral? 

‘It might lead to a “faux royal” tour of an EU country following their trips to Nigeria and Colombia. 

‘It will certainly involve their children and we may see photos of Archie and Lili, in the future, possibly the distant future, we may well see them with Eugenie and Jack and their family. This move obviously advertises that the couples are close. 

‘Now we know that Harry and Meghan have a base in Europe, their exile in California is far less distant. 

The Sussexes are known to be close to Eugenie and Mr Brooksbank, and the princess was the only member of the royal family to feature in the couple’s Netflix documentary.

In one sweet snap shared in the second episode, Harry and Eugenie enjoy a bike ride along a palm tree-lined stretch of pavement in California – after she became the first member of The Firm to publicly visit the Duke in the States.

The programme also featured previously unseen photographs of Harry and his wife Meghan partying with Eugenie and Jack on Halloween. 

Meghan previously revealed on the Ellen DeGeneres show how she and the Duke hit the town incognito in Halloween costumes with his cousin and her partner for a final night out before their relationship was revealed. 

‘He came to see me in Toronto and our friends and his cousin Eugenie and now her husband Jack, they came as well, and the four of us snuck out in Halloween costumes to just have one fun night on the town before it was out in the world that we were a couple,’ she recalled. 

‘It was a post-apocalypse theme, so we had all this very bizarre costuming on, and we were able to just have one fun final night out.’

In 2021, Eugenie shared a 40th birthday message to ‘dear Meghan’ and revealed she was supporting the Duchess’ new 40×40 campaign by offering her services as a mentor to help women get back into work.