Corga da Fonte
The working house, in the quiet hills of Serpa.
The house at rest, under the Serpa sky.
Express interestHerdade · Serpa · Alentejo
Corga da Fonte is the house. The main house, the caretaker's house with its bread oven, the henhouse and dovecote, the cattle yard with its hay barn and the other outbuildings form a small, complete system, in the manner of the Alentejo farmsteads of old.
To the right of the track, a pond reflects the farmstead at dusk. It is a place to live for a few days at the pace of the land, in a silence few people still know.
- Municipality
- Serpa, district of Beja
- Unit
- the estate's farmstead, on the right of the track
- Main house
- 135 m² of registered covered area, living room with fireplace and porch facing the valley
- Accessibility
- single-storey house at ground level with direct vehicle access; easily accessible for people with reduced mobility, including wheelchair users
- Outbuildings
- caretaker's house with bread oven, henhouse and dovecote, pigsty and kennel, cattle yard and cowshed with hay barn
- Land
- permanent meadows and pasture around the farmstead
- Water
- pond in view of the houses and an old borehole
- Energy
- existing grid connection point; solar self-sufficiency in preparation; Starlink or mobile connection
Two things that only happen here
What sets Corga da Fonte apart is not what it has, but what it leaves outside the gate.
Off-grid, off the circumstance
In preparationThe house is designed to live on its own energy and water: sun, borehole, firewood and silence. The grid connection exists and is kept in reserve, for safety, but it does not run the house. Off-grid also means off the circumstance: hurry, noise and notifications stay at the door. Those who come to work get a measured connection, via Starlink or mobile network, in a dedicated space and at the hours they choose; the house stays disconnected. The autonomy system is in preparation and figures will only be published once measured.
Digital detox, with method
In preparationScreen-free days, designed with approaches from psychology and psychotherapy, to regain command of one's own attention. At Corga da Fonte, over stays of several days, the whole house is the programme. The work covers five areas:
- Digital detox: devices handed in voluntarily and a gradual return, with personal rules of use;
- Attention focus: sustained attention and deep work exercises;
- Behavioural regulation: recognising triggers and automatic habits and replacing them with choices;
- Analytical intelligence: thinking slowly, writing and deciding without noise;
- Attention framing: deciding where attention goes, instead of letting it be decided.
This is not a treatment and does not replace clinical care. Psychological or psychotherapeutic sessions are led by qualified professionals with valid registration in the relevant professional body.
The estate, hands on
Here the countryside is not something seen through a window. You walk, grow, care for the animals and plant trees, at your own pace.
Walks
In preparationAlong the estate's tracks, through the woodland, past the ponds and up the slopes, to the Mata Frades lookout and the Limas stream, and through the surrounding land. At dawn or late afternoon, alone or in company.
Vegetable garden and farm work
In preparationSowing, watering, harvesting and bringing to the table what the garden gives. Those who wish can join the day's tasks, alongside the people who work here.
The farm animals
In preparationThe hens in the henhouse, the dogs of the house and, when the Monte Ardila herd grazes on the estate, the cattle. Getting close is always voluntary and accompanied, as far as each person feels comfortable, and respects the animals' welfare.
Nursery and trees
In preparationCaring for the plants and trees in the nursery, planting new holm oaks and cork oaks in the woodland and looking after those already there. Trees that will keep growing long after you leave.
The same house, twice
Day
By day, Corga da Fonte works: the oven warms up, the swallows, in their season, fly in and out of the eaves, the cattle yard wakes and the pond gives back the blue of the sky.
Day →Night
By night, the house rests: the windows light up one by one, the woodland falls silent and the Serpa sky comes down to the roof.
Night →Experiences
Formats with minimal numbers and exclusive use, in preparation.
Deep work
In preparationFor digital nomads who need silence, privacy and independence: one to three months, with a Starlink or mobile connection in a dedicated workspace, at the chosen hours, and a screen-free house for the rest of the day.
Try living in the Alentejo
In preparationTwo weeks to two months for those considering a move: the vegetable garden, the animals, the walks and the rhythm of the farmstead, before deciding, in a single-storey house at ground level with direct vehicle access. No care services. With the Reforma Ativa project.
Silence and writing residency
In preparationOne to four weeks, for one resident or a couple, with a silence protocol. Morning writing sessions can move up to the Mata Frades lookout.
Self-sufficiency immersion
In preparationTwo to three practical days on energy, water, sanitation, vegetable garden and woodland, in a farmstead learning to be self-sufficient.
Decision retreat
In preparationOne to three days, up to eight people, exclusive use, staying at Corga da Fonte with working sessions at Mata Frades.
Across the track
Mata Frades
The wild part of the estate, with the lookout, the oak woodland and the Limas stream. A unit with a character of its own, for days of horizon and nights of dark sky.
How we welcome guests
- Exclusive use
- The farmstead, with both houses, welcomes one group at a time.
- Minimum stay
- Three nights.
- Limited calendar
- We open few dates a year, published in advance.
- Circle of friends
- Those who express interest join the list and have priority on dates.
- No promotions
- When demand slows, we reduce the calendar, not the price.
Corga da Fonte welcomes few people, a few times a year. Tell us what you are looking for and we will reply in order of arrival.
Express interest