Romantic, historic quinta with big traditional olival, many fruit trees, and varied gardens
Portalegre
NOTE: Please read our entire profile before you write. Short, straightforward and practical is fine, though it helps to mention any special skills or interests—we like people who are interested in things! We don't do video/phone interviews.
ABOUT THE QUINTA
Quinta do Veloso's main focus is olive oil, and there's always something to do in our olive grove, which feels like a world in itself. We're serious about making olive oil, but we also care about the olival as a natural habitat, where islands of scrub, holm-oak copses, old rock walls, brush piles, and thickets allow native plants and wildlife to thrive. It's a great place to walk, run, or just wander in your spare time.
Closer to the house, in various garden and orchard spaces, we garden for atmosphere and beauty as well as for food (we're very food-oriented). We grow avocados, citrus, and a variety of fruit trees in sheltered spots, aromatic herbs and shrubs like capers in our rocky dry garden, and all kinds of plants we love for their colors, scents, textures, history, and culinary or ecological value.
The quinta was probably used first as a monastic farm; it belonged to the Dominican nuns of the Convento de Sao Domingo in Elvas until 1834, when the convent was abolished, and was home in the 1800s to Elvas's postmaster general and to a doctor who wrote a treatise on cholera, and later to a large extended family who lived in various sections of the quinta complex (a string of apartments/other spaces in varying states of renovation, our "house" being the biggest of these). It's much too big for us, and very much a work in progress, with a lot of construction and restoration work to do, using traditional materials like lime mortar whenever possible..
We're 4 km from Elvas, a sleepy but pretty town and a UNESCO World Heritage site known for its impressive fortifications. This is a beautiful area, with a lot of good day trips, though the quinta itself is a great place to spend your spare time.
ABOUT US
We’re Miranda, Krister, and Tor, who is now 20 and studying marine biology at the university of Galway but spends most of his vacations here. I (Miranda), the principal caretaker of the quinta day to day, am also a freelance book editor, a job I love and a good balance with farm life. Krister is a partner in the quinta but currently divides his time between Portugal, Sweden, and Ireland; he is fluent in Swedish and competent in Portuguese. Tor grew up with wwoof and has long been a de facto WWOOFer on the quinta; he still helps out during school holidays, and is fluent in Portuguese and understands Swedish. All three of us have WWOOFed ourselves.
PRACTICALITIES
We like long stays and usually require a minimum of two full weeks—that is, at least 10 working days, those usually being Monday through Friday—but can make an exception for the right people, especially during olive harvest or other times when we are looking for a team.
The quinta is a shared community, in which we live together day to day, so being pleasant, considerate, and nonjudgmental to everyone in the household is important, as is help with food and keeping things orderly and clean. I prefer a diverse group, and an adult attitude—which has nothing to do with age but means, among other things, an ability to get along with and take an interest in people of different ages and backgrounds, to pay attention and retain information, and to be truly engaged in work.
Other than during olive harvest, I ask for 25 hours of work a week. Typically wwoofers work five hours, five days a week. If it's raining enough to make work difficult, we'll either find indoor work to do or take the day off for games, cooking, and free time, and make up the hours when the weather is better. We try to suit work to volunteers' individual preferences and skills when possible—which is most of the time, though sometimes we need teamwork. Enthusiastic, self-motivated workers tend to end up with more interesting, varied work.
In addition, I ask for community/household help such as making meals and keeping shared spaces neat and clean. Without this community help, hosting won't work, so you need to take it seriously.
Housing and shared spaces:
There are a few rooms for wwoofers in the main house, as well as a separate two-room building (with electricity but no plumbing, but just across the courtyard from the main house) that can accommodate three. The quinta is a work in progress; these rooms are not luxurious. Rooms are often shared. Couples are welcome, and we try to accommodate them with a separate room and double bed. All wwoofers share a bathroom with shower in the house (we hope soon to complete a second bathroom with outside access) and are mutually responsible for keeping it clean and agreeing on a shower rota. Not all sleeping spaces are heated, but the thick stone walls keep temperatures relative even, we provide warm bedding, and there are wood stoves to enjoy on chilly evenings. Campers (van or tent) are welcome.
The kitchen is a social space (and at times a place to read, write, draw, play games, or build a house of cards) for everyone, and thus a phone-free, scroll-free zone: no smartphones or tablets. Ordinary e-readers are fine, and books, notebooks, and drawing pads are great. Please be prepared to respect this rule; those who don’t may be asked to leave.
Smoking:
No smoking in *any* indoor space, in social gatherings anywhere on the quinta, and absolutely no smoking in the olival, because of the risk of fire.
Internet:
Internet is satellite, which is fine for email and other light use, but bandwidth is limited. Please don’t watch videos or play games requiring high bandwidth. We welcome wwoofers who work remotely, as we do, as long as your bandwidth need is reasonable and can be arranged to fit with ours.
Food:
I love good food and cooking, but cooking for a number of people, who often have different requirements, day in and day out is a lot of work without consideration and help. Breakfast is self-serve, since everyone has different habits; wwoofers take turns making the other weekday meals, though some may be informal, depending on the situation. (You can take time off work to make lunch.) Weekends are free—sandwiches, leftovers, a pot of soup, or you may wish to go out. We expect everyone to help with meals, even if you can only make something very simple. It often works well to pair up with one of us or another wwoofer—maybe you'll learn to love cooking, or at least acquire some basic skills! The cook (or the cook's partner) is responsible for cleanup of cooking utensils/pots etc.; everyone else helps clean up after the meal.
I accommodate food restrictions (vegetarian, vegan, gluten-intolerant, don't like fish...) on a case-by-case basis, but you will have to put some effort into making this work for others, whether that means making your own food sometimes, giving us extra help in the kitchen, or buying your own special ingredients. NOTE: If you don't tell us about a food restriction or dislike in your initial messages, we won't accommodate it. Please keep in mind that in a shared household, we all have to follow everyone else’s restrictions; be thoughtful and considerate.
Finally, in your initial query if possible, let me know:
1. If you have any food restrictions or strong dislikes. I will not cater to restrictions I haven't been told about.
2. Whether you're OK with sharing a room. (During harvest, you will probably need to; the rest of the year, you may not, depending on how many wwoofers we have. Also let us know if you're OK with sharing with the opposite sex, though whenever possible we keep rooms single-gender, other than for couples of course.) If there are two of you, let us know if you want one or two beds; I don't want to presume.
2. Whether you drive stick shift (especially if you can drive a cranky old truck—it's not necessary, but can be useful).
3. Whether you smoke. (See "Smoking" above.)
4. Whether you're vaccinated (in general, I'm not a fan of conspiracy theories, vaccine related or otherwise).
5. How important it is to you that there be other wwoofers around, and who they are (ie, people your own age, etc.). I will do my best to let you know who will be here if it's important to you, but I can't always know in advance, especially in the slow parts of the year. I generally try to organize so that there are two or more wwoofers in a period, and then take a break on my own, though there have been plenty of great solo wwoof visits.
6. Whether you have strong allergies or other health issues I should know about.
Thanks for reading, and feel free to ask any questions that I haven't covered here!
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Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Fruit or nut farming
Poultry farming
Horse or donkey farming
Wild foraging
Flower farming
Aromatic or medicinal plants, teas
Vegetable or fruit preservation
Green Building
Mechanics / tools / technology
Methods or systems
Holistic management
No-till farming
Permaculture
Regenerative agriculture
Host type
Production farm
Certified organic
Former WWOOFer
18
Hectares
|
44.5
Acres
Accommodation
Miranda
Member since 2016
Languages spoken:
English
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Response rate: 98%
Response time: typically within 3 days
Portalegre
Buses (rede-expressos.pt, or RNE app) run 6 or 7 times a day from the Sete Rios station in Lisboa. The train (cp.pt) runs from the Oriente Station, from Porto, and from Badajoz, right across the border in Spain..
Reviews
Willem
Netherlands
•
January 2026
I stayed 2 weeks (end of november) at Mirandas place and had a wonderful time. 2 other wwoofers showed up and we mainly worked in the olivegrove, pruning trees, nice work!
Go there and experience this beautiful part of Portugal!
Christian
Germany
•
November 2025
I stayed here for around 4 weeks for my first WWOOF and had a great time! The work was varied and fun. We mainly worked in the olive grove. This included clearing away sticks and piles of branches, pruning the trees and harvesting the olives. I also learned about laying roof tiles and cement work. Driving the old truck was a highlight! There were always other volunteers during my stay, which I liked a lot. I also liked the meal rotation system, where everyone cooked. I can recommend this WWOOF experience. Thanks Miranda and Krister for the good time!
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Sven
Germany
•
August 2025
I had a really good time at Kristers & Mirandas Farm in Elvas :)
Sadly I only could spend 10 days there but it was well worth it. Since August isn't yet harvest season, the work was more diverse and included some general garden and house maintenance. We also did some roofing, which was quite the experience.
The quinta is comprised of a really vast olival, where I liked to wander about
I even could take their car to go to town and buy sweets :)
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Laura
Australia
•
July 2025
It was such a wonderful experience staying at the Quinta with Miranda and her family. The work was rewarding, the landscape was spectacular, food was delicious and the company, cards and conversations at dinner were always fun!! Would recommend to others in a heartbeat.
Reply from Miranda
So sorry the time got away from me, Laura—it's been a little hectic. You and Rapha were absolutely the perfect volunteers, you made the whole time you were here pleasant and productive. I think fondly of our trip to Ajuda and Olivenza often. You're always welcome back!
Raphael
Brazil
•
July 2025
My visit to Quinta do Veloso was a unique experience. Kristen, Miranda, and Tor are great people — fun, talkative, interesting, and concerned about wwoofers. I loved every moment we spent together, especially the sunset dinners. It was my first WWOOF experience, and it couldn't have been better. I only stayed for two weeks, which, in my experience, is a good amount of time for a first-timer. It was just Laura (other wwoofer) and I volunteering, which only added to the experience, as she's a wonderful person! We worked hard in the olive grove, pruning the trees to facilitate the upcoming harvest. I was also able to plant new seedlings in the vegetable garden and learn a bit about gardening. The work is hard, especially in the summer—but we only work in the mornings, which are cooler. In my free time, I was able to relax in various interesting spots around the Quinta, read good books, swim and even explore the surrounding area (Miranda and Kristen were super friendly, driving us to the bus stop and to other places to visit). We ended our trip with a flourish on the last day, when we had a picnic on the bridge that borders Portugal and Spain, complete with a beautiful sunset. It was an enriching experience that I will definitely cherish.
Thank you so much for this opportunity, I hope I can visit again soon :)
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Reply from Miranda
I'm so sorry the time got away from me, Rapha! You were a fantastic wwoofer, and you and Laura together made the quinta a more fun, sane, pleasant place. I think of our trip to Ajuda and Olivenza often. You're welcome back any time for sure!
Maya
Germany
•
July 2025
It was my first time wwoofing and my experience was amazing.
Most of the time I was the only wwoofer on the farm, because my friend couldn’t join me and another wwoofer left a week after I arrived . But I never felt lonely or left out. I spent much time playing card games with Tor, he taught me many games I still play. They included me so easily and everything felt so easy. Their animals are so lovely and their farm has lots of charm. We did a lot of tiling, it was so interesting to do that and our results looked great! It was so nice to meet you and I’m so happy to hear from you from time to time.
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