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The Hotel is located near the Santa Maria da Vitoria Monastery and owes its name to the Portuguese architect Mestre Afonso Domingues, who became renowned for the its original design.
Better known as Batalha Abbey the Monastery is a masterpiece of Gothic architecture and has UNESCO World Heritage status. It was built by King Joao I to celebrate the Portuguese victory over the Spanish house of Castile.
Within the Abbey is the Founders Chapel containing the tomb of King Joao I and his English wife, Phillipa of Lancaster. This marriage sealed the "Treaty of Windsor" (1389) an alliance between Portugal and England, in fact the oldest alliance in Europe.
The chapel also houses the tomb of their second son, Henry the Navigator who was responsible for the great voyages of the Portuguese Navigators. He was responsible for organising the exploratory trips to Madeira, the Azores and Africa. In addition, his inspiration and the School of Navigation that he founded, resulted in the great voyages round Africa to India, East Indies, China and Japan.
Batalha is seventeen kilometres from Fatima - one of Europe's main centres of pilgrimage. In 1917 The Virgin Mary appeared to three peasant children and over a period of five months, revealed three secrets to one of them, Lucia, who died in 2005.
As news of the miracle spread, people from far a field travelled to this sacred place and still do to this day. Pope John Paul II visited this abbey on his pilgrimage to Portugal.
The huge Basilica contains the tombs of two of the children, and a small chapel has been built on the site of The Apparition. The story of Fatima is related in the local wax museum and has been adapted to cinema.
The Hotel has a total of 22 bedrooms, including 1 room with facilities for disabled guests and 2 suites with a pleasant balcony. Bedrooms are set on the upper floor and are all equipped with television, mini bar, air conditioning, internet conection, direct dial telephone, private bathroom andhair dryer. Decoration is simple but enriched with beautiful details.
The ground floor is the setting for communal areas including the games room, living and reception rooms, bar and restaurant.
Hotel Mestre Afonso Domingues has conference facilities for 80 persons and audiovisual equipment.
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