Casa Matea, our retreat on the coast of the Algarve

For a long time we, a Hamburg family with two children, wanted to create a place for ourselves where the sun (almost) always shines and which bears our signature. A place where you can retreat when the urban jungle gets too much or you long for a blue sky, a place that gives you energy for the next stage, the next project or the German winter, a place where you can find peace and quiet if you want, but also a place that can offer you plenty of sporting activities - in the water while surfing or on land while hiking through the untouched landscape. In the middle of nature, yet not remote, giving you warmth.

We have found it!

Our Casa Matea is our favorite place to recharge our batteries and we are happy to share it with our guests. Whether big or small, old or young - or with everyone together.

Welcome to the Quinta da Aldeia 

As soon as you enter the small complex, you feel like you're on vacation. A pretty cobbled path leads between bougainvillea bushes, magnificent strelitzias and rustling palm trees to our house. The water of the pool shimmers through the dense greenery and makes you want to cool off after your journey.

Perhaps you will come across someone who is on their way to the sun lounger with a novel or loading their surfboard into their van, a butterfly or a black and white cat, or perhaps: nobody.

This little oasis is just over an hour's drive from Faro airport. Casa Matea is located in the charming Quinta da Aldeia estate, consisting of 27 houses. It is personal, quiet and relaxed, a nice mix of vacationers and people who live here permanently or spend part of the year there.

The whitewashed houses, which all look slightly different, are located on the edge of a nature reserve. And that is exactly what makes our quinta special and sets it apart from large vacation resorts: that it is so wonderfully different.

Authentic village life & untouched nature

It's nice to be able to leave the car behind on vacation. Even nicer when you have many a vacation highlight right on your doorstep. Our quinta is located on the edge of a typical Portuguese village, where there may not be much to do, but everything you find there is highly recommended: the pizzeria in the village center not only has the tastiest pasta beyond Italy, but is also a meeting place for locals and vacation guests alike and the best place to get a taste of the village atmosphere. The organic café serves sensational sandwiches and home-grown fruit and vegetables. A real insider tip is the Praia da Figueira beach within walking distance (a 25-minute walk from the Quinta), unspoiled, beautiful and well suited for swimming due to its sheltered location. As the last 800 meters are not passable, the path leads over hill and dale through the beautiful nature of the Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina with its unique animal and plant species and rugged cliffs until you reach the beach with its fine sand. It is never overcrowded here, and with a bit of luck you may even have this wonderful spot all to yourself.

For those who like it livelier, the pleasant fishing village of Salema is just a 7-minute drive or 30-minute walk away. There is a colorful selection of good restaurants and a beautiful family beach where the fishing boats dock in the morning.