CategoryGood Life

Living the good life entries.

DIY Natural Swimming Pool in Portugal

We bring you this article from the wonderful Quinta Kania – please do head to their website to see the fabulous workshops and events they are holding!! There is no need to explain why the idea of a natural swimming pool makes everyone so excited. Summer in Portugal, with temperatures often above 30°C, makes you want to spend all day in the water. Plus being able to replace all the chemical pool treatments with beautiful plants, sounds brilliant! A Natural ...Read more

Folha Verde

Folha Verde is a project initiated and carried out by the local community of around 150 like-minded adults and 50 children, most of whom have moved to the Central Region of Portugal to be closer to nature and to live a more sustainable life. The project is situated in a central valley next to the river in Benfeita, which makes it easily accessible for all of those living in the surrounding villages of Luadas, Esculca, Pai das Dona, Pardieiros, Sardal, ...Read more

Life Reimagined

Here we meet Jack and Hannah who, after travelling and testing out life in Canada bought a beautiful property that they found here on the Pure Portugal website to create a sustainable eco resort in the Algarve. How did you find out about Pure Portugal? / Did you know of us before moving to Portugal? When we first started looking for a property we were living in Canada and so we began scouring the internet. Initially we wanted to move ...Read more

June’s Story

We thought it would be helpful to have some Q&A’s from real people who have made the move already. Some are newly arrived, others have been here for much longer, meaning you can get a broad range of experiences from people to get a real feel for what it is like to move to Portugal and start living your dream! Today we meet June Da Silva who moved from South Africa to Portugal in 2006 Have you lived in any ...Read more

Ahimsa Food Forest

Today we meet Em McGowan & Simon Hickman who found their property through Pure Portugal & started the Ahimsa Food Forest & Permaculture Project at Quinta Ahinsa. They believe that we all have a responsibility to take care of our planet & chose to take on a Permaculture project & live by the three Permaculture ethics, Earth Care, People Care & Fair share, which integrates well with their Reiki principles of being kind to every living thing & living honestly ...Read more

Faith’s Story

Today we meet Faith Canter who moved to Portugal from the UK in 2018. How did you find out about Pure Portugal? Did you know of us before moving to Portugal? I came across Pure Portugal because a friend of mine who had travelled around it a little bit recommend your Facebook page. What made you decide to move to Portugal from the your home country? After my marriage broke down I kind of decided I wanted to do all ...Read more

Alison’s Story

Today we meet Alison Kearin who moved to Portugal from the UK 8 years ago.  How did you find out about Pure Portugal? Did you know of us before moving to Portugal? A friend recommended you to get advice and find out information before our move. What made you decide to move to Portugal from the your home country? A variety of reasons: We had looked at a number of countries as possibilities for when we retired and had fallen ...Read more

Renovation Special

Today we meet Paul and Ali in a renovation special!  Paul and Ali are an English couple who recently moved to central Portugal.  Paul is a composer and musician and Ali is a cook (Michelin star chef – tour & safari guide – research scientist and a few more) both have a wide range of interests, skills and life experiences. What made you decide to move to Portugal ? We are both interested in growing food and living on and ...Read more

Bruce’s Story

Today we meet Bruce and Russ who moved to Portugal from America in May 2018! How did you find Pure Portugal? Did you know of us before moving? Initially, we found Pure Portugal through Internet and Facebook searches. We contacted a number of people who had posted homes for sale on the Pure Portugal pages. We visited a few homes and attended a Pure Portugal seminar-forum in Coimbra for new and prospective property owners in Portugal. What made you decide ...Read more

Tipping Point

Today we meet Pam and Mark Tipping who found themselves in Portugal in 2012 after they had left UK in 2011 with a Land Rover Defender, a roof tent and no real plans! How did you find Pure Portugal? Did you know of us before moving? We heard about Pure Portugal after we had bought the farm. We had not heard of them before, as we had not come to Portugal to specifically search for a property. What made you ...Read more

Ricky’s Story

Today we meet South African Ricky De Agrila who moved to Portugal in 2017! How did you find Pure Portugal? Did you know of us before moving? I found you first through Facebook. What made you decide to move to Portugal from South Africa? I descend from Portuguese family and thought getting in touch with my roots would be great. Have you lived in any other countries before moving to Portugal? Yes I have lived in Australia before. How does ...Read more

Randall’s Story

Today we meet Randall and Michael who moved from the USA to Portugal in December 2017. How did you find Pure Portugal? Did you know of us before moving? I’m a Google freak and started pouring over anything English written about Portugal a couple years ago.  Always looking at properties in various parts of the country.  I found Pure Portugal about 9 months or so before we moved. I swear I looked at the property page daily. I’d pick my ...Read more

Cabril Mechanics

We bought our casa via Pure Portugal in late 2009. We looked at about 50 properties in the area but kept coming back to the one we finally bought. It did not look the best on paper / website but you have to see a place to get the right vibe and we fell in love with it. Once we got our heads around all the paperwork, something the Portuguese must love as there always seems a lot, we started ...Read more

Quinta da Lontra

My husband and I moved to Portugal in September 2007, I was 6 months pregnant with our first child and we moved to a remote but stunningly beautiful piece of land in the Algarve not far from Tavira. The land had a small south-facing ruin nestled into the hillside with panoramic views of the mountains and a far-reaching view of the sea. We settled into our two yurts which would be our accommodation until we renovated the ruin. After nearly ...Read more

Quinta da Mimosa

My husband and I worked at the Sunseed project in Almeria in Spain and loved the relaxed off-grid lifestyle. We decided to save some money and try and buy some land where we could grow veggies and live in a more sustainable way. We grudgingly returned to the UK to work and lived with parents so we could save every penny possible of our wages. After a very long feeling 20 months (and with a chunk of money in the ...Read more

Casa Azul

We found Casa Azul one wet Monday morning in May 2009. It was just what we were after – a decrepit farmhouse in the depths of Central Portugal. Now restored, this is the story of its, and our, continuing renaissance. ...Read more

Quinta das Moitas

An abandoned rural farm turned Permaculture Regeneration Project, located in the Serra da Estrela region of Central Portugal. One of the visions that guides me here is one of getting other people involved and integrating adjoining lands together with the same intention of regeneration.     ...Read more

Olives and Acorns

We moved to Portugal in the end of September 2013 with a goal to create a self-sufficient, off-grid farm based on principles of permaculture and whatever else we’d learn in the process. ...Read more