About

About

What is a Campscape?

Our Campscape is an escape from (overly organised or busy) campsites and is all about camping in a peaceful and beautiful landscape. Whatever your purpose: nature, medieval villages, history, hiking and biking, seclusion or romance, on our estate you will find both the space and the facilities for pure relaxation and recreation.

Mission and Joy
We were looking for ways to escape the hustle and bustle of modern life, the inevitable necessity of economic growth and the suffocating moral superiority of all alternatives. And like if it was written in the stars, we stumbled online upon this rural, almost remote and atypical campsite in Parque Natural da Serra de Sao Mamede, Portugal.
We fell in love with the beautiful estate (not necessarily with the campsite) in its astonishing geological landscape. The rich flora and fauna and the untouched cultural historic wealth of the region. But most of all the Sun, Stars, Silence and life’s Slowmotion .
In September 2021 it became our home. We decampsitified the grounds into a beautiful landscape park where our guests can retreat (without the coaching and other woke unnecessities) and blend in with the ancient natural scenery.

Our Mission is simply to be happy in the present and to take care of and cherish our estate as a refuge for ourselves and our guests. 
Our Joy is to share our wonderful treasure. To welcome a diversity of guests and provide them a home away from home … in an astonishing fairytale-like landscape.

The Estate

The estate of 3 ha is a natural sloping terrain that is  divided into parts by rocky slopes, old original stonewalls and a Ribeiro (creek). The estate consists of the donkey grounds, the camp stretch and the accessible Stonehill Park. You’ll find camping spots on both sides of the path at  the Olive Tree Plateau (with sanitary building),  the Eucalyptus/Pool Area and the Green Field at the end of the path. On the grounds you’ll find several waterpoints and drying racks for your wash (please don’t hang anything in or on our trees, they are reserved for olive growth, the birds and the bees).

We have recognisable spots with electricity integrated into the natural landscape setting. You can set up on  available spots, with respect to others and the grounds.  We limit the number of occupied spots allowing everyone to pick a preferred spot and enjoy the peace and tranquility of this unique, still unspoiled region.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sorry NO, we don’t accommodate vehicles larger than 6.99 meters. Our natural park just isn’t suitable for bigger vehicles. Our guests love small-scale camping, blending in in the astonishing landscape. Bigger motorhomes just don’t fit the scenery we like to provide. No exceptions!

When you stay with us, you chose to stay parked at your beautiful spot with the campervan or vehicle you sleep in. Our Campscape is about camping in nature, not parking in nature.
We’re not going to debate the reasons — you either get it or you don’t, and you either agree or you don’t. If you don’t agree, please don’t book and don’t show up at our gate just for the sake of discussion!

No, we don´t. We are just not that type of campsite. From januari 2 you are welcome to spend some time here in winter, but we have a maximum stay of 4 weeks and we don’t offer low-cost overwintering rates.

Very simply put: it saves both you and us a lot of time — and sometimes frustration.
When people know where they’re going (including the concept and rules) and are already registered, the whole check-in and stay become smoother and friendlier. When consumers show up unannounced looking for a camping spot, all the explaining and paperwork take much more time — and can be aggravating, especially when people treat us like a standard anonymous business-campsite. That’s why booking is cheaper than just showing up.

We prefer to offer a setting that isn’t centered around traditional family life, and that naturally appeals to people with a different lifestyle. Families with young children have plenty of suitable campsites in the region — ours simply isn’t one of them.

No, the Campscape is not gay, but we are. We pride ourselves in providing a safe and friendly home away from home for all (not focused on children), welcoming non-heteronormative lifestyles. We celebrate diversity, life would be painfully boring without it. But we’re not into woke activism. We still speak our minds freely and try to learn from each other.

Well, if you had to come all the way to the FAQ to find out whether we’re a naturist campsite, you probably want us to be a naturist campsite. Or maybe you misunderstood the adults-only part… naughty, naughty thoughts.
There once was a couple who camped all the way in the back. And when they left, they still thought we were a naturist Campscape. But we’re not.
Here’s the rule, nice and simple: no nudity in public. (Not quite the same as no nudity in public space. Use imagination with care.)

Our aim is to offer a peaceful, friendly environment where guests can fully enjoy our estate and the surrounding region. We also like to keep things sociable, making it easy to interact with other guests and with us as hosts. To maintain peace and reduce traffic, we don’t accept guests who are just looking for a one-night shower, dump or parking stop.

No, because of the fire hazard in this part of Portugal and Spain, barbecues on coal and open fires are not allowed on the estate. Barbecues on gas are allowed.

The nearest local grocery store is in Santo António das Areias (5 km). There is a modern supermarket ‘Pingo Doce’ in Castelo de Vide (8,5 km). Ask for ways to get there.

N0. There is a maze of camping organizations in Europe that (often at a cost and administrative burden for us) offer minimal price benefits through discount cards. We do not participate in this and hope that guests visit us because of an intrinsic motivation to visit our little paradise in the unique region of Alto Alentejo.

No, sorry we don’t. We do however have a bar with nice cool drinks.

That’s totally okay and there are a couple of campsites in the vicinity that will probably fit you just fine. So please don’t come here. It would be awkward if we have to send you away. And please, there is no point in sending us emails or WhatsApp-messages or even worse, calling us asking for exceptions to our rules. In fact there is no reason at all to contact us as you can find anything you need to know on this website.

Our Team

Wow, congratulations, you have read all about us and our Camping Escape. Did you get triggered by the irony? Did it put you off or did it stir up your curiosity? What? Do you want more? Well okay, here we go, just for you, but you better sit down for this one: The Dance of Wandering Thoughts and Questions.

Want to know more about the amazing landscape, read Stones, Silence, and the Living Land