By SADIE WHITELOCKS FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
A tranquil coastline in Portugal known for its rice fields has quickly become popular among wealthy American investors and celebrities, earning it the nickname “Hamptons of Western Europe.”
Just over an hour’s drive west of Lisbon, Comporta is home to white sands, turquoise waters and a small town complete with quaint whitewashed buildings and traditional cobbled streets.
Thanks to its paradisiacal setting, the coastal spot has been invaded by luxury developers and the projects popping up have lured everyone from Madonna to Princess Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank.
However, it is reported that locals are not happy with the multi-million dollar resorts and residential projects planned for Comporta – with the community having already managed to quash a $121 million proposal from luxury hotel group Aman.
Comporta, just over an hour’s drive west of Lisbon, is home to white sandy beaches and turquoise waters
A website for JNCQUOI’s gated beach villa development says this estate will become ‘one of the most exclusive destinations in Europe’
George Clooney and his wife Amal are said to be in the running for a spot at the exclusive CostaTerra Golf and Ocean Club
Thanks to its paradisiacal setting, this coastal spot has been invaded by luxury developers
Munich native Beata Baumgartner, who is renovating a three-bedroom property in the neighboring village of Carvalhal, told the FT.com that new jet-set crowd made locals more expensive, and now real estate and restaurants were virtually unaffordable.
She explained: ‘Charging €18 ($19) for a bowl of fried calamari or €8 ($8) for a portion of rice is too much. The beach clubs have changed.
‘There are now €5 million ($5.4 million) villas in areas next to people living in poverty – my neighbors live in a one-room house and cook on the barbecue every night.’
Continuing the food theme, Praia na Comporta is one of the newest restaurants to open in Comporta.
Built among the sand dunes, the rustic-looking ski-themed beach house was designed by Philippe Starck, one of Comporta’s glitterati residents, but the bohemian vibe doesn’t come with bohemian prices.
Instead of a website, the location lists its menu via Instagram.
Some of the expensive dishes include king crab in butter sauce for $86 (€80), a rice dish with squid ink and scarlet shrimp for $41 (€38), and a premium 300 gram Japanese Wagyu steak for $205 (€190).
To top it all off, there’s a dessert with chocolate chip cookie, caramel tart, pudding and macerated strawberries for $37 (€35).
Prices at Comporta’s new beach club JNCQUOI aren’t cheap, with a lobster and truffle mayo hot dog going for $42 (€39) and a crab cocktail starter for $48 (€45).
The JNCQUOI Beach Club is part of a wider residential development yet to be completed
Another new addition this summer to Comporta’s scenic waterfront is the JNCQUOI beach club, part of a wider residential development yet to be completed.
Described as the ‘perfect place to enjoy the finest fresh fish and seafood, prepared with authenticity and flavour’, the restaurant has an airy feel with simple, modern furnishings and high ceilings.
Complementing the restaurant is a cabana beach bar and sunbeds, which exude an Ibiza or St. Tropez atmosphere.
Like Praia na Comporta, prices at JNCQUOI are not cheap, with a lobster hot dog and truffle mayo priced at $42 (€39), a crab cocktail starter for $48 (€45), and a scorpion fish with tartar sauce and fries main course for $ 81 (€75).
New York Times bestseller and travel site Air Mail deputy editor Michael Hainey visited Comporta this summer, visiting Praia na Comporta on the second night of the opening.
In a piece about the exclusive Portuguese enclave, his closing remarks were about the restaurant’s sky-high prices, and the shock he got when the check arrived and the two bottles of “a nice local wine” suggested by the server came to $378 (€350 ) per year. pop.
He mused, “Now I’m not a loser. I live in New York. I know how the game is played. And I say from above: shame on us for not asking in advance how much the wine costs. Above all, we should be ashamed of ourselves for trusting him.”
When he consulted the server, Hainey was told, “You asked me to recommend something. That’s what I gave you.’
The writer concluded: ‘I immediately felt how the locals must feel. In the midst of breathtaking beauty, you are dealing with someone better suited for Nikki Beach.”
Complementing JNCQUOI’s restaurant is a cabana beach bar and sunbeds, exuding an atmosphere of Ibiza or St. Tropez
One of the newest restaurants to open in Comporta is Praia na Comporta. The rustic-looking ski-themed beach house amid the sand dunes was designed by Philippe Starck
Comporta’s development is set to continue, with many travel experts advising people to go now before it sells out completely.
Much of the area was bought in the 1950s by the Espírito Santo family, founders of what was once Portugal’s leading banking group, but in recent decades they have sold off plots of land to developers.
A website for JNCQUOI’s gated beach villa development says this estate will become ‘one of the most exclusive destinations in Europe’ once completed, where ‘like-minded people can connect’.
To ensure that the elite will feel at home, ‘space healer and energy balance consultant’ Alberto Amura has been hired to help with the project.
According to a description outlining his role, he will help “facilitate and balance the flow of beneficial, subtle living energies in an environment, towards creating a harmonious and auspicious atmosphere.”
The Atlantic Club is another swanky estate in the works with 21 lots.
George Clooney and his wife Amal are said to be in the running for a spot at the exclusive CostaTerra Golf and Ocean Club.
Clooney is said to have been informed of the investment opportunity by his fellow tequila magnate Mike Meldman.
The pair teamed up in 2013 to launch tequila company Casamigos and sold it four years later for a reported $1 billion.
Meldman, the CEO of the Discovery Land Company, acquired the 722-hectare parcel in Comporta in 2019, with an initial investment of $551 million.
The bohemian atmosphere at Praia na Comporta is not accompanied by bohemian prices. Instead of a website, the location lists its menu via Instagram
Away from the crowds, the rice fields of Comporta can be seen in the distance
Having already overseen the construction of 24 luxury residential golf communities around the world, he has now created the luxury resort community of CostaTerra Golf and Ocean Club.
Part of the offer includes a wellness center, an equestrian center, a community village, an 18-star golf course, 146 single-family homes and 29 homes belonging to the club.
The estate also promotes its green reputation.
According to the CostaTerra website, it is a ‘thriving community and ecosystem, firmly anchored in the values of sustainable development.’
It describes itself to potential buyers as ‘your family’s private European escape’.
Buyers can choose from one of the turnkey luxury villas on the estate, or they can adopt the design of their own home.
Property prices in Comporta have skyrocketed in line with the rise of fame, and London-based banker Dan Dalton – who bought a vacant three-bedroom house in the slick Spatia Comporta resort complex with his husband in 2019 – told the FT.com: ‘The infrastructure still has a way to go.
“But new restaurants are opening and it’s gentrifying. Real estate prices have gone crazy. Villas like ours sell for three times what we paid for them.”
According to Vasco Cunha Mendes, of developer Eurosuez, existing properties in the Dalton development have sold for between $1.9 million and $2 million in recent times.
FT.com notes that data from the Residential Information System, which tracks property transactions across Portugal, shows that the number of homes in Comporta increased from 27 in 2020 to 104 in 2022.
It also shows that the statistics back up Dalton’s claims, with the average asking price for a new property in the area reaching $2,887 per square foot in 2020, up from $7,634 in 2022.