Journeys — Origem

Journey 01 — Partner Retreat, Lisbon & Sesimbra

Turning Point — 48h between Lisbon & Sesimbra

Heritage, sailing & private palace

48 participants2 daysPartner Retreat

The Brief

Parisian consulting firm, 48 partners and directors. Annual strategic seminar. Objective: alternate intensive work and memorable experiences without artificial team-building.

Our Approach

A place of character in the heart of Lisbon to host the working sessions. Bright salons, gardens that invite informal conversation, and an atmosphere that naturally encourages stepping back.

Around the city, the journey opens onto the landscapes of Arrábida and Sesimbra: a family estate, a sunset sail, a carefully chosen table, and a closing evening in an exceptional heritage venue.

The Program

Day 1 — Behind closed doors at the Palacio, strategic sessions & Lisbon art de vivre

14h00Staggered arrival at palace. Morning flights from Paris. Installation. Light lunch served in gardens.
15h00–19h00Strategic sessions. Three salons in parallel. Acoustics allow normal speaking volume without microphones.
20h30Dinner at an iconic Lisbon gastronomic table, privatised for the group.

Day 2 — Olive grove, sunset sail & baroque gardens

09h00Breakfast at palace. Session debriefs.
11h00Departure for an agricultural and wine estate in the Arrábida hills. Family-owned property. Traditional stone-mill pressing in the olive groves. Terraced vineyards. The owner has been making wine for forty years and refuses any supermarket distribution.
12h30Olive oil and wine tasting in underground cellar. The owner explains pressing method and winemaking choices.
13h30Lunch in the shade of the cypress trees. Menu composed of estate products. Tables set facing the vines.
16h00Drive to Sesimbra. Sailing at sunset. Cocktails on board. The sailboat follows the coast for two hours. Golden light on Arrábida cliffs.
19h30Return to palace. Free time.
21h00Closing evening in the gardens of a baroque palace. Cocktail dinner among 17th-century fountains and ancient azulejos. String quartet. Progressive lighting as night falls.

What Worked

A setting that naturally encouraged strategic conversations.The palace offered an elegant, light-filled working environment suited to focus.

Every experience had an intention.The sail, the estate and the dinner weren't interludes. They extended the conversations begun during the working sessions.

A long table by the Tagus at Ponto Final

Colourful laundry strung above a street lamp in the old quarter, Lisbon

The Alfama rooftops and the Pantheon dome at dusk, Lisbon

Taberna da Rua das Flores at lunchtime, Lisbon

The sun setting over the Tagus beside the 25 de Abril bridge, Lisbon

Journey 02 — Incentive, Comporta

Grounded — 3 Days in Comporta

Protected nature, silence & reconnection

32 participants3 daysIncentive

The Brief

Berlin-based tech scale-up, 32 leadership team members. Post-Series B fundraise. Constraints: avoid obvious destinations (Ibiza, Mykonos), sophisticated yet relaxed atmosphere, optional activities only. Objective: reconnection after eighteen months of relentless pace. No forced team-building. Time and space.

Our Approach

Comporta was obvious. A nature reserve of several hectares. Sixty kilometres of white sand, low architecture folded into the dunes. Suites with private terraces facing the ocean. A restaurant supplied by the fishermen and oyster farmers of the Sado, a few hundred metres away.

All activities optional. Horseback ride at sunrise. Yoga facing Atlantic. Oyster tasting feet in water with the oyster farmer. Surf session. Or doing nothing. The luxury was choice.

The Program

Day 1 — Arrival, dunes, dinner feet in sand

AfternoonStaggered arrivals from Berlin. Direct flights land between 14h30 and 16h00. One-hour transfer to Comporta. Check-in at recent accommodation nestled in dunes. Low architecture, raw materials, no wifi in certain suites — deliberate choice.
19h30Dinner feet in sand. Wood fire. Morning-caught fish grilled over coals. Tables set facing ocean. Local white wine served ice-cold. Conversation finds its natural rhythm.

Day 2 — Sunrise on horseback, oysters in the estuary

06h30Horseback ride on the beach at sunrise (optional — 14 participants). Just tracks in the wet sand.
10h00Yoga facing the ocean (optional — 18 participants). The sound of the waves, and not much else.
13h00Lunch at property. Local products. Menu composed by the chef based on the fishermen's catch.
AfternoonFree. Some stay on their terrace with a book. Others explore Comporta village by bike. Others don't leave the pool.
18h30Oyster tasting in Sado estuary. Feet in salt water. The oyster farmer explains cultivation cycles. Tasting accompanied by local white wine.
20h30Dinner at property restaurant. Tasting menu of sea and land products.

Day 3 — Surf, or simply stay

MorningFree. Surf session offered (optional). Or simply stay.
12h30Closing lunch on terrace facing dunes. Journey debrief conversation. Several participants share it's "the first incentive where I'm actually returning rested."
15h00Staggered departures to Lisbon.

What Worked

The program left room for everyone.Every experience was offered, never imposed. Some set off on horseback at sunrise, others simply took the time to slow down. Everyone lived the journey at their own pace.

The group came back together naturally.The best exchanges weren't born during an activity, but between moments: around a dinner, in the estuary, by the pool or on a terrace. Without ever needing to engineer them.

A long dinner table by the water at dusk, Comporta

A whitewashed house with horses, Comporta

Oysters from the estuary, freshly opened

Journey 03 — Executive Offsite, Alentejo

Essentials — 48 Hours in Alentejo

Isolation, craftsmanship & contemplation

40 participants2 daysExecutive Offsite

The Brief

London-based investment fund, 40 partners. Annual strategic offsite. Constraints: a calm environment, a room suited to working sessions, and catering worthy of the event. Objective: step back to define the directions for the next three years.

Our Approach

A property in the heart of the Alentejo plains. The eye carries far, nothing interrupts the horizon. Total isolation. A cuisine that draws exclusively on the estate's own produce — olive oil pressed on-site, vegetables from the kitchen garden, meat from estate livestock, wines vinified in the underground cellar.

For experiences: discovering a ceramic workshop in Monsaraz, a hot air balloon flight at sunrise over Lake Alqueva, a guided tasting of the estate's wines with its team, and stargazing led by an astronomer at the heart of the world's first starlight destination.

The Program

Day 1 — Through the gate, silence imposes itself

10h00Arrival at property. Morning London-Lisbon flights, then one and a half hours' drive. Once through the gate, silence imposes itself. The plains stretch as far as the eye can see, no sound except distant village bells.
11h00A tour of the property, the olive grove and the cellar, to understand the estate's history and how it works.
13h00Lunch at property restaurant. Menu composed solely of on-site products. The olive oil served at table comes from trees visible through the window. The chef explains his philosophy: zero kilometers, zero compromise.
15h00–19h00Strategic sessions. Vaulted cellar transformed into meeting room. Remarkable natural acoustics. Constant 18-degree temperature. Exposed stone. Filtered natural light. The space imposes concentration.
20h30Tasting dinner. Food-wine pairing exclusively from the estate. The owner personally presents three of his wines — explains why a given slope produces a specific aromatic profile, how schist retains heat at night.
22h30Stargazing with an astronomer. The Alqueva sky, among the purest in Europe, reveals itself to the naked eye above the plains. Telescopes set up on the estate's terrace.

Day 2 — Dawn balloon, clay & the hilltop village

06h00Hot air balloon flight over Lake Alqueva (optional). Sunrise over the vineyards and the plains of the Alentejo.
09h30Breakfast for the entire group. Previous day's session debriefs.
11h00Departure for Monsaraz, fortified village perched 350 meters above the lake. A visit to a family ceramic workshop. Pottery wheel initiation. Everyone leaves with their piece, fired and shipped three weeks later to London.
13h30Lunch in the fortified village. Traditional Alentejan cuisine revisited. Migas, açorda, locally-raised Iberian pork.
16h00Return to property. Final debrief session.
18h00Staggered departures to Lisbon.

What Worked

Choosing a less expected destination created the element of surprise.The Alentejo offered everything the group was looking for — gastronomy, sweeping landscapes, wine estates and the art of living — with the added pleasure of discovering a region few of them knew.

Excellence was everywhere, without ostentation.From the venue to the dining, every moment was designed to the same level of quality. The change of scenery added to the experience without ever compromising the group's comfort or expectations.

A hand reaching up to harvest olives against a blue sky, Alentejo

Terracotta and peaches on a table under olive trees, Alentejo

A whitewashed quinta with rattan chairs on a stone terrace at dusk, Alentejo

A lone holm oak on the horizon above curved crop rows, Alentejo

Journey 04 — Corporate Retreat, Algarve

Off-Grid — 3 Days in the Real Algarve

Red earth, lagoons & white villages

35 participants3 daysCorporate Retreat

The Brief

Dutch design agency, 35 creatives and consultants. Annual corporate retreat. Constraints: avoid touristic Algarve, favor non-staged local experiences, characterful accommodation. Objective: show an unexpected side of Portugal, favor authenticity over standardized comfort.

Our Approach

Two complementary geographies: Serra de Monchique hinterland and the eastern coast toward Tavira. Accommodation in a restored isolated quinta in the hinterland. Contemporary architecture integrated with 19th-century agricultural buildings.

For experiences: 4x4 exploration of red earth at sunset with farm-to-table picnic. Ria Formosa oyster park visits, tasting feet in water. Artisanal medronho distillery visit in the Serra — arbutus eau de vie produced using ancestral methods.

The Program

Day 1 — Into the hinterland, picnic under cork oaks

13h00Arrival in Faro. Direct morning Amsterdam-Faro flights. Forty-five minute transfer to hinterland. The road climbs gradually. Vegetation changes. Eucalyptus, cork oaks, red earth.
14h00Check-in at quinta. Light lunch of local products. Sober architecture, raw materials, panoramic hill views.
16h004x4 departure for Serra de Monchique exploration. Red ferruginous earth.
18h30Sunset picnic under cork oaks. Tables set in wild nature. Menu composed by a local chef working exclusively with Serra products. Wood-fired bread, artisanal charcuterie, farmhouse cheeses, small producer wines. Golden raking light on red earth.
21h00Return to quinta. Free evening.

Day 2 — Ria Formosa, oysters feet in water

09h00Departure for the eastern coast. One hour fifteen drive to Tavira and Ria Formosa.
10h30Oyster park visit. Boarding small traditional boats. Ria Formosa extends 60 kilometers — protected lagoon, shallow waters, barrier islands. The oyster farmer explains cultivation cycles. Tasting feet in salt water. Ideal temperature in September.
13h00Lunch in Tavira, facing the lagoon. A local table where the kitchen follows the day's catch and the seasons, in one of the most beautiful villages of the eastern Algarve.
15h30Free time. Deserted beach accessible only by boat. Or village exploration with white alleys.
19h00Return to quinta.
20h30Barbecue on terrace. Local livestock meats grilled over wood fire. Long conversation under stars.

Day 3 — The Serra's medronho & departure

10h30Artisanal medronho distillery visit in the Serra. The owner explains wild arbutus harvest, fermentation, wood-fired distillation. Three-vintage tasting. Some participants leave with bottles.
13h30Closing lunch at quinta. Menu composed of products discovered during the journey. Debrief conversation.
15h30Transfers to Faro.

What Worked

The Algarve surprised, without ever disappointing.The group came looking for a region it thought it knew. It left with an entirely different picture: preserved villages, passionate producers, wild landscapes and confidential addresses.

Every experience was deeply rooted in the territory.From the oysters of the Ria Formosa to the medronho of the Serra, each encounter told a side of the Algarve rarely discovered by staying on the busiest stretch of coast.

Surfers walking a wide bay at dusk beneath red cliffs, Algarve

A low arched quinta in the wild Algarve hinterland

Fresh figs and chilled wine in raking afternoon light

Weathered fishing boats on the tidal flats of the Ria Formosa

A 4x4 on the red-earth roads of the Serra de Monchique

Journey 05 — Corporate Retreat, Douro Valley

Gradient — 3 Days in the Douro Valley

Terroir, viticulture & UNESCO heritage

100 participants3 daysCorporate Retreat

The Brief

A French business law firm bringing together nearly 100 partners and senior associates for its annual seminar. Three days to share the firm's direction, welcome new partners and build stronger ties across its offices. Constraints: an easily accessible destination, infrastructure able to host a large group, and impeccable hospitality.

Our Approach

The Douro made it possible to meet these requirements without giving up a sense of escape. A hotel in the heart of the vineyards to host the working sessions. Wine estates opened to the group for lunches, tastings and the closing evening. A territory where the landscapes naturally become the thread running through the stay.

Rather than piling on activities, we favoured a few emblematic experiences: sailing the river, discovering the winemakers' work, and taking the time to share a meal facing the terraces listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The Program

Day 1 — First conversations in the heart of the vineyards

11h30Arrival in the Douro Valley after the morning flights to Porto. Check-in and a first look around the estate.
13h00Lunch on the property's terrace, facing the vineyards.
15h00–18h30Opening plenary followed by working sessions.
20h30Dinner at a neighbouring quinta, privatised for the group. Local cuisine, estate wines and an evening in the gardens.

Day 2 — The Douro as common ground

09h00Working sessions.
12h30Lunch at a wine estate overlooking the river.
15h30Private navigation on the Douro aboard traditional rabelos, followed by a guided tasting at a quinta.
20h30Closing evening at a historic property in the valley.

Day 3 — One last view over the Douro

09h00Debrief of the working sessions and close of the seminar.
11h30Free time to enjoy the estate.
13h00Farewell lunch.
15h00Transfer to Porto.

What Worked

The Douro gave the seminar a strong identity.The landscapes, the estates and the gastronomy created a memorable setting, while leaving room for the true purpose of the stay: bringing the teams together and moving strategic topics forward.

The programme stayed fluid despite the size of the group.By concentrating the highlights around a few carefully selected places, the group could make the most of the region without constant travel or the feeling of an overloaded agenda.