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Host rating
100 %
Last replied
13 Nov 2025
Reply rate
100.0 %
Usually responds within 1 day
Feedback
12
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Badges (3)
Details
Description
CURRENLY LOOKING FOR HELP FOR OLIVEPICKING AND WORK AROUND THE HARVEST END OCT/ NOV
I am living in an old 'farm' in an abandoned hamlet located in the Serra do Acor in Central Portugal. I am Jean (37) from Belgium. There is some close neighbours and regularly friends staying.
In the beginning of 2015 we moved in to the farm and immediately started to work the land and improving infrastructure.
There are two cats and 2 donkeys living here with me who require their portion of the attention :).
There is several old natural buildings in several stages of renovation and a lot of land with olivetrees, grapevines, fruittrees, over grown areas, watersprings, brooks, vegetable and herb gardens and lots of young woodland. The land is divided in terraces and quite mountainous. Getting your way around the larger valley can be adventurous!
My aim is to build an organic smallholding embedded in nature, using permaculture principles and aiming towards selfsufficiency where possible.
The farm is fully offgrid, but solar powerd and using water from our springs.
The village of Luadas is just 5 to 10 minutes away and has a nice bar/ with a view overlooking the mountains and valleys. Here you can get basic supplies and local products.
It's a cozy village with friendly people whom are very welcoming.
ot very far away there is the beautiful waterfall of Fraga da Pena, a national park, and above us is a very nice mountain area (a wildfire this august unfortunately burnt really big areas in the surrounding, luckily not in our valley and village.
To make sure we all get along and have a pleasant time, we have 1 week trial period. Then we can see whether all of us like it :-)
We prefer a minimumstay of three weeks cause it takes some time to get into the farmlife.
If you deceide to write us, please use the codeword avocado, then I know you ve read the full description, not too fond of random requests :D. Thanks!
Types of help and learning opportunities
Help with Eco Projects
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Farmstay help
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Interests
Politics / Social justice
Sustainability
Pets
Farming
Plant care
DIY & crafts
Gardening
Cooking & food
Carpentry
Outdoor activities
Mountain
Nature
Hiking
Cycling
Adventure sports
UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
Projects involving children
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Help
- Planting, watering, mulching of fruit trees.
- Sowing and planting annual vegetables
- Weeding the vegetable garden
- Establishing the forestgardens
- Harvest ( olives, grapes, fruit, chestnuts)
- Firewood
- Land clearance
- Woodland management (cutting, restoring tracks, promoting the native forest)
- Some cobprojects: Cobbing walls, building oven,
- all kind of carpentry, prepping wood
- Baking bread, preserving harvest: juices, jams, wine, oil etc.
- We do not provide any insurance.
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
French: Fluent
Dutch: Fluent
Portuguese: Fluent
Spanish: Intermediate
Accommodation
From springtime to the autumn camping is a great option (if necessary provided).
For the wintertime: there is a mezzanine above the communal living room with beds and blankets.
There's a good spot to park up if you're travelling with a van.
What else ...
there is some nice touristic sites and the riverbeach in the summer is a couple kilometers walk.
Please bring :
- Torch, since it can be really dark and tracks and stairs outside can be dangerous
- ! proper shoes with grip (its steep here ) !
- raincoats, except from july to september
- biodegredable soap and toothpaste
- in summer sunprotection if you need it.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Space for parking camper vans
This host can provide space for campervans.
Can possibly accept pets
This host has said they are willing to accept those travelling with a pet.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
My animals / pets
Two donkeys named Charisma and Turbo
Chat with Workawayers who've visited this host
Feedback (6)
Hope you are going well! Staying there was a great experience : we felt straight at home in a couple of days, they are nice, energetic, full of project, open-minded and smiling people! The place is a wonderful piece of nature surrounded by beautiful shcist houses and villages. The work they are doing is quite impressive and full… read more
They were very friendly, enthusiastic and eager to learn, always up for any task. Was a pleasure hosting you both and hope to see you again next year
They are super helpfull, hardworking, friendly, easygoing, handy people!
Having an extra hand and motivated spirit helped both us and our neighbours to carry on.
In a charcoaled landscape they kept going with motivation :-) . We would love to have them back!! ;-) XXX
For the other people who are wondering if to go or not to go to your place :
Go !
It's a great experience , we were there… read more
I've learnt a lot, a lot, a lot, about gardening as well as about life projects. I felt totally in love with this area, so green and full of streams and wonderful abandoned sheper schist houses.
Days flied by: it was intense work, but… read more
We ve laughed a lot and i look forward to see you again! Big hug!
Photos
Chat with Workawayers who've visited this host
Feedback
Hope you are going well! Staying there was a great experience : we felt straight at home in a couple of days, they are nice, energetic, full of project, open-minded and smiling people! The place is a wonderful piece of nature surrounded by beautiful shcist houses and villages. The work they are doing is quite impressive and full… read more
They were very friendly, enthusiastic and eager to learn, always up for any task. Was a pleasure hosting you both and hope to see you again next year
They are super helpfull, hardworking, friendly, easygoing, handy people!
Having an extra hand and motivated spirit helped both us and our neighbours to carry on.
In a charcoaled landscape they kept going with motivation :-) . We would love to have them back!! ;-) XXX
For the other people who are wondering if to go or not to go to your place :
Go !
It's a great experience , we were there… read more
I've learnt a lot, a lot, a lot, about gardening as well as about life projects. I felt totally in love with this area, so green and full of streams and wonderful abandoned sheper schist houses.
Days flied by: it was intense work, but… read more
We ve laughed a lot and i look forward to see you again! Big hug!
The best oranges in the world, a cosy caravan, a "self-sufficient" dog, fresh food from the… read more
Thanks for coming here :)
Was great to have you here and look forward to see you again.
They were a great help in a period we really needed some!
Do not hesitate to give a hand helping Mara and Jan making this beautiful place even… read more
At the time we were there, their set up was… read more
They adapted really good to our primitive circumstances and are cool and easygoing.
We enjoyed sharing the evenings with you and we look forward if you want to come by again.
