Despite the excesses of Christmas, and the many visitors we’ve been welcoming to the valley, I’ve managed to put together a video of our whole building project as it took shape from start to finish.

As well as writing updates and despatches, I’ve been photographing and videoing our land ever since we started cutting down our tatty eucalyptus plantation almost four years ago.

I’ve documented every stage of the building process from the moment the first building supplies arrived (and we realised this crazy idea was actually going to happen) to the very first wine tasting event we held a few weeks ago.

Edited together from thousands of photos and hundreds of videos I hope you enjoy our look back at what we’ve achieved so far as we prepare to start the next stage of our journey and start running the place in the New Year.

There’s so much more I could have included about our water treatment and electrical systems: the hundreds of metres of trenches dug and the miles of pipes buried, but this is a quick review of how we created our new eco-luxe lodge.

The loan is not going to pay itself back, the rooms need to be filled and we need to start employing local people to help us, so please get in touch and book a stay.

Ideally we’d like to start out with big bookings - groups of friends and family - or running retreats based around wine or walking or painting…so if you know anybody who runs retreats please put us in touch.

With group bookings in the diary we can bring in chefs, arrange trips and transport, set up yoga classes and massages and introduce visitors to the amazing hidden beaches of the last wild coast in Europe.

Yes, we were in the ocean yesterday, and yes it was a little on the chilly side.

And don’t forget…the clue is in the title…we’re off the power and water grids: fully sustained by the sun, and by the water from our land.

It’s eco, but it’s luxe…and it’s not just a great place to get away from it all, but also to learn about Portugal and about sustainable living, enjoy the peace and quiet of our countryside and our amazing coastline, try the local food and wine, and to do it all leaving just a tiny footprint.

We need your support as we soft open…it’s even more beautiful once you get here…so please help us make a success of the lodge now we’re finally ready to open. This is a big year for us.

The new website will be live soon, but for now here’s a summary of the rooms we have available and the prices we are offering in our first year of opening:

Thanks again for following our journey and for reading my despatches from Vale das Estrelas. Your support, comments and great advice along this journey means a lot to us - perhaps more than you think.

Please spread the word about this blog and what we’ve created, and I’m sure the stories of the next stage of our new life will be just as…interesting.

Thanks for reading Off-grid and Ignorant in Portugal! This post is public so feel free to share it.

And even more importantly, all the very best for the New Year.

Let’s hope 2025 holds great things in store for all of us.

See you next year!

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