Benfazer
Benfazer is a non-profit association in Portugal promoting sustainable, ethical living through social justice, environmental and animal welf…
Sustainable Tourism
Stays that give back: eco-resorts near Tavira, off-grid retreats in the Monchique hills, and revived schist villages like Cerdeira. Travel that leaves the place better.
Projects in this focus
Companhia das Culturas – Ecodesign & Spa Hotel
Companhia das Culturas is a small ecodesign and spa hotel on a 40-hectare farm next to the Castro Marim Nature Reserve, Algarve. It pairs or…
AlgarvianRoots
AlgarvianRoots is an ecotourism company based in Silves, Algarve, offering guided hikes, e-bike tours, birdwatching and cultural workshops t…
Sustainable Cork Oak Restoration
Located in São Brás de Alportel in the Algarve, the Eco-Cork Factory is a certified, family-run cork processing facility offering guided fac…
Salema Eco Camp
Salema Eco Camp is the first hotel unit in southern Portugal committed to a regenerative tourism model, with glamping, eco lodges, camping, …
Portugal's Infinity Eco Resort
Portugal's Infinity Eco Resort is a sustainable agritourism retreat near Tavira, Algarve, set on 15 hectares of ancient carob and olive plan…
Rural Escapes Portugal
An off-grid retreat in the Serra de Monchique, Algarve, with hosted retreats, wellness workshops and self-catering holidays for individuals,…
Sustainable tourism in Portugal
Tourism is a large part of the Portuguese economy and a large part of the pressure on its coast and water. The places listed here are trying to be the other kind: small, off-season as well as on, staffed locally, and built or restored rather than newly cleared.
They range from eco-resorts near Tavira to off-grid retreats in the Monchique hills to Cerdeira, a schist village in the Serra da Lousã brought back from abandonment as a place for craft and residency.
Staying somewhere that also farms, teaches or restores land is the simplest version of travelling well here. See also the eco-tourism and experiential learning, retreat centres and low-impact travel focuses. Dated activities from these projects are listed in our events calendar.