H10 Duque de Loulé Hotel, Lisbon, Portugal

I always feel slightly guilty sitting in a hotel room and reviewing the place while I'm still a guest, but here I am sitting in Room 905 of the H10 Duque de Loulé Hotel in Lisbon on the ninth floor and I'm feeling very happy purely because, so far, the hotel has proved itself to be, well, nothing short of fantastic.

Room 905...

It's now nearly 7pm here and, on returning to my room, I found one of those Portugese custard tarts and two jellies on a white plate waiting on the desk. Wonderful! But let's go back a bit. The check-in was fast and efficient and it wasn't long before I was safely ensconced in my room. It's one of those hotels where the key card activates the power. I pressed it into the little plastic socket on the wall near the door and there was light. Not that it was dark. While it is winter, Lisbon is fairly bright and sunny; there are blue skies with cotton wool clouds and the last thing I need to do is turn on a light.

After an early start in London – I flew TAP from Gatwick (very pleasant) – I was in need of a shower and I want you all to know that the bathroom here is wonderful as it includes a rain shower extraordinaire, which is really refreshing. So refreshing, in fact, that I could have stayed under it for hours, but didn't because I had a meeting to attend.

There's a fully stocked minibar – they trust their guests! – and there's a safe in which to store valuable stuff (in my case a passport and mobile phone). From the minibar I had a bar of chocolate (Dairy Milk) and a couple of Oreos. I'm not pleased with myself for this as I've also enjoyed the aforementioned custard tart and jellies, which went down a treat, but they're not good for me so I'm feeling a little guilty.

Like all hotels, the view out of the hotel window is not brilliant, but who cares? The room is fantastic. There are wooden floors, a large double bed (two singles pushed together and covered with a double sheet); the wardrobe doors sport elegant mirrored panels, the walls are white, there's a flatscreen television on the wall opposite the bed, a seat in the window with blue cushions, wispy net curtains and thicker, creamy-coloured drapes. On the wall opposite the bathroom are six period prints, all featuring horses, the wall behind the bed has two blue-tiled panels, which contrast nicely with the cream walls and there are two bottles of mineral water on one of the bedside tables (whether they're free or not, I don't know).

The view from room 905...

The general vibe is very pleasant, the staff on the front desk are friendly and because I'm only here for the one night I've really only got breakfast in the morning to make this review truly comprehensive, but I'll tell you first that, along with the custard tart and the jellies, I received a letter welcoming me to the hotel and informing me that the hotel is part of H10 Hotels, which has 59 properties in 29 destinations.

Unlike a lot of the hotels I stay in, this one has a restaurant, the Azul & Branco Restaurant, run by head chef Bruno Fradeira who offers 'a great selection of Portuguese flavours'. There is also the Equestre Lobby Bar, which is run by Hugo Simao and his food and beverage team. I'm guessing that there is some kind of horsey theme going on as that word 'Equestre' gives it away.

There's also a roof top bar offering splendid views of Lisbon's rooftops, perfect, I would imagine, on a hot summer's day, but it's January and while it's not that cold it's worth wearing a light jumper to stave off the cool breeze.

I slept well and soon it was time for another excellent rain shower in the bathroom followed by breakfast. There was plenty of choice: fresh fruit (I enjoyed sliced oranges, which were juicy and flavoursome; sliced peach too). There was home-made cake, those ubiquitous custard tarts, boxed cereals, pastries, breads, everything you can imagine, plus a cooked breakfast option (I chose omelette with potatoes and a mushrooms side order – absolutely perfect).

I'm about to check out, which is a big shame, and it's an even bigger shame that I didn't try the restaurant (we ate out on the river bank, not literally on the bank, but in a restaurant, with glass walls).

This hotel comes highly recommended from me to you. Book a flight to Lisbon, jump in a cab and you'll be there.