The Portuguese Real Estate Oscars 2023 – a night of glamour, super heroes, dancing and trophy winners

Teatro Jordão e Garagem Avenida scoops grand prize at Portuguese Real Estate Oscars 2023

It was a night to remember. Probably the best gala party ever thrown for Portugal’s great and good from the world of architecture, construction, engineering and real estate development for a decade or more.
That was perhaps only natural. After all, Portugal’s oldest and most important awards ceremony — the Portuguese Real Estate Oscars – commemorated 25 years in the market this year, paying tribute to the best, boldest and most innovative projects in diverse areas from offices to hotels, housing and resorts, public and associative facilities and amenities, to logistics and urban rehabilitation projects.
And boy what a party it was! There was Batman, Robin, Batgirl and Catwoman superheroes posing with the guests for photos in the entrance hall of the Vila Galé Sintra Resort Hotel Conference & Spa where the event was held on Thursday evening.
Once seated, the 250 or so guests were treated to a camp 1980s dancing show to the backdrop of 80s hits which got the whole room clapping and on their feet, the dancers cleverly emerging in bright red, yellow and blue outfits from a series of doors, each one emblazoned with the logos of the many sponsors.
A short speech from the management team of Magazine Imobiliário which organises the annual event (Anabela Loureiro, proprietor, dressed in a stunning emerald green gown, and Carla Celestino, director, in a chic 1950s inspired black and grey floral-skirted two-piece) which highlighted some of the sponsors, such as Savills Portugal (which had been with the project from the beginning when it was founded by Joaquim Pereira de Almeida and Anabela Loureiro at the height of the financial crisis in 2015 which had so badly affected the real estate business).
Savills whose CEO Patrícia de Melo e Liz paid tribute to the magazine and the industry, despite a challenging economic and inflationary backdrop, and the recent disaster of the Portuguese Government’s controversial Housing Package which has spooked private and institutional investors, particularly funds.
But the 25th edition of the ‘Portuguese Real Estate Awards – Best Development of the Year 2023’ was not really about super heroes, dancers and gowns; it was about the industry and its players whose private companies and teams work tirelessly every day to raise the bar with outstanding Portuguese commercial, municipal and public real estate projects, and pay tribute to the best of them chosen by a selective jury.
25th edition of the Portuguese Real Estate Awards – Best Development of the Year 2023 which distinguishes the best developments in the construction and or rehabilitation sector in Portugal.
The jury was impressed this year with the high level of quality of the projects in the various segments in the construction and rehabilitation sectors in the competition in 2023, but had to make a choice, not made easy by the sheer quality of the candidates. The winners in each of the categories were:

Offices: Icon Douro

Housing: Villa Unika

Tourism: The Editory Riverside Santa Apolónia Hotel

Honorary Mentions: Offices – Allo – Alcântara Lisbon Offices and Housing – Sotto Mayor Premium Apartments

Interiors: The Editory Boulevard Aliados Hotel

Rehabilitation: Montebelo Mosteiro de Alcobaça Historic Hotel

AEES – Award of Excellence in Efficiency & Sustainability: Aqua Village Health Resort and Spa.

Portugal Sotheby’s International Realty sponsored award: LX Living

Finally, there was particular excitement on the table where I was sat as the team of lovely ladies representing Sonae Capital, which had two entries as candidates in the categories of hotels and Interiors for The Editory Boulevard Aliados Porto Hotel (Interiors) and The Editory Riverside Santa Apolónia Hotel (Tourism), scooped both awards!
Photo: Joaquim Morgado