Family home and garden
Viana do Castelo
Note: We currently have availability for the following dates: 1-8 July, 20 July to 7 August and 22 August to 5 September.
1. Describe your project, your place, and its inhabitants (including animals):
We (Amanda and Paul) are British nationals, resident in Portugal since November 2019. Our goal has been to turn a previously uncultivated piece of land into a productive organic garden producing a wide range of fruit, vegetables, flowers and herbs.
We live in the beautiful countryside of the Minho region in northern Portugal, about 15km from the northern border with Spain and 8km from the nearest town, Paredes de Coura. The nearest airports are Porto (Portugal) and Vigo (Spain) and there are connecting bus links to the towns of Ponte de Lima, Viana de Castelo and Valença.
The garden covers an area of approx. 3000 m2 and includes an orchard of fruit trees, 36 vegetable beds of varying sizes, a greenhouse, pergola, pond, and wild uncultivated area. We also keep chickens and own a lively but friendly dog.
2. List the activities that WWOOFers will participate in and what you want to teach them:
We are looking for help in managing our extensive garden and orchard. WWOOFers will learn how to apply organic and permaculture methods to raise vegetables, herbs and manage fruit trees.
3. What could a WWOOFer's day look like at your site (time slot for participation in activities, expectations...)?
Depending on the time of year a typical day might include any of the following: weeding, raking, pruning, sowing seeds, harvesting, planting, maintenance of fencing, cleaning tools, collecting leaves or bracken for mulching, tidying shed/store-rooms and log storing. Help will also be expected in the kitchen. Minimum working hours – 5 hours per day excluding breaks.
4. Play the guide! Talk about your own hobbies (music, cooking, etc.) and those possible around (hiking, swimming, etc.):
In your free time you can relax in our garden and use the swimming pool. There are plenty of pleasant walking opportunities in the surrounding countryside.
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Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Fruit or nut farming
Poultry farming
Wild foraging
Seed saving or production
Vegetable or fruit preservation
Methods or systems
No-till farming
Permaculture
Host type
Self-sufficiency property
Former WWOOFer
0.3
Hectares
|
0.7
Acres
Amanda
Member since 2023
Languages spoken:
English, Portuguese
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Response rate: 100%
Response time: typically within 1 day
Viana do Castelo
Paredes de Coura (bus station) Vila Nova de Cerveira (train or bus) or Viana do Costelo (bus or train)
Reviews
Petra
Portugal
•
May 2026
I spent two weeks at Amanda and Paul’s place and truly enjoyed my stay. They are warm and generous people with decades of experience in permaculture. As I hope to create my own kitchen garden one day, I arrived with many questions, all of which they answered patiently and generously.
Their large garden is managed according to permaculture principles, and I learned a lot about composting, mulching, water management, and healthy soil. The garden is very diverse, with many vegetables, fruit trees, berry bushes, and edible and ornamental flowers. Amanda also taught me how to prune fruit trees, which I really appreciated.
They have an impressive collection of permaculture books that I enjoyed exploring in my spare time. My room was very comfortable with its own bathroom, and the spacious house offers quiet corners to read, work, or recharge.
Meals were shared together. Paul is an excellent and creative cook, and the vegetarian food was always delicious.
The location is peaceful and quite remote from the next larger village. Once a week they go to a large local market, and I enjoyed tagging along.
And finally, Ricco, their lovely dog, is very much part of the family.
I leave with new knowledge, inspiration, and many wonderful memories.
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Laura
United Kingdom
•
May 2026
My experience with Paul and Amanda has truly enriched my life.
I learnt so much in such a short amount of time thanks to their attention to detail and willingness to welcome me into their home. Their kindness and generosity allowed me to completely immerse myself into the Portuguese way of life which was just what I was looking for 😊
I loved our meals and snack breaks together, everything was so thoughtfully prepared.
It was fun to work alongside some of the local people on a project to build a new shed. The land they have cultivated is beautiful and full of wildlife, I loved being lulled off to sleep by the croaks of the frogs!
It was my first Wwoof and won't be my last, I've been very inspired.
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Colleen
France
•
September 2025
Unfortunately, our stay with Paul and Amanda did not go quite as we had hoped. We decided to leave a week earlier than planned, as we did not feel entirely at ease. They seemed to be going through some challenges with their young dog, who could at times be difficult to manage, which occasionally created a tense atmosphere.
We truly hope this is just a temporary situation and that, once things settle down, they will be able to offer future WWOOFers a positive experience.
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Antonia
Austria
•
July 2025
Casa Eduardo was the perfect place for my first Woofing experience! Amanda and Paul were great hosts! It was lovely to spend time with them and their dog Eduardo. I learned many new and interesting things about permaculture and different techniques. Every meal was delicious! Dear Amanda and dear Paul, thank you again for two great weeks at Casa Eduardo!
Paulina
United States
•
June 2025
I had the most amazing time at Casa Eduardo! Amanda and Paul were such great hosts; extremely welcoming and lovely to spend time with. I was exposed to a variety of work, and learned so much. All the food and baking was delicious, and I will miss the daily tea and coffee times. Eduardo was the loveliest dog, as well!
Sophie
Belgium
•
May 2025
I would like to say a big thank you to Amanda and Paul for my stay in Casa Eduardo. They are very kind and I appreciated the variety of task. The food is delicious, the garden is peaceful place and of course I miss this lit’boy Eduardo. 🫶
