THE HARVEST
AT A GLANCE
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Where · Lisbon, then inland to the Alto Alentejo
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When · Early October 2027 · seven nights · dates to come
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Who · 8-10 queer women · solo travelers welcome
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Pace · Gentle — city walking, walking amongst the olive groves,
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Rooms · Private room is standard
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From · Pricing confirmed after October — after I've scouted the trip myself
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Included · Boutique stays, all in-country travel from Lisbon, every breakfast and most meals, every experience on the itinerary — and me, from the first evening to the last
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Not included · Flights, travel insurance (required), airport transfers, anything off the itinerary
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Status · Waitlist open
A NOTE FROM ME
You already know I won't list a place I haven't stood in.
This is the trip I haven't scouted yet. The shape of the week is set — Lisbon, then east into the Alentejo for the harvest, the hills running dry and gold toward Spain. What I'm still holding is the house itself. I'm going in October to stand in its rooms, walk the groves, and meet the people who'll feed us — and only then do I name and confirm it.
So this page tells you the truth as I know it now, and I'll fill in the rest the moment I can. Come along. We saved you a seat.
THE SHAPE OF THE WEEK
Some trips run toward the water. This one runs the other way — east, inland, the road climbing away from the coast until the land opens dry and gold and the hills lean toward Spain.
October in the Alentejo is the slow season made slower: the harvest in, the light long and low, the heat of summer gone soft. The whole country seems to exhale at once, and we exhale with it.
Here's the rhythm.
Come along. We saved you a seat.
DAY 1
Meals included: dinner
LISBON ARRIVAL
Nothing is asked of you, but a welcome dinner, where a table of strangers quietly starts turning into something else.
DAY 2
Meals included: breakfast, dinner
LISBON ON THE INSIDE
After breakfast, we walk the city with a local queer guide — the Lisbon that isn't in any guidebook. The history and corners that are ours. The afternoon is yours. Dinner somewhere intimate.
DAY 3
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
THE GROVES
We leave the city behind and drive east, the land opening into cork, oak, and gold. We join a small, family-run olive estate — handed down by generations — for an afternoon. The harvest runs on nature's clock, so we follow the season rather than a date: if the pressing is on, we're in it; if not, we walk the rows, taste at the source and enjoy a long, lingering lunch made using the olives from the land.
DAY 4
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
THE ESTATE
We arrived yesterday in the dark, so today is the first time you get to see our home for the next few days. A private estate in the Serra de São Mamede Natural Park, ours alone, where the hills roll toward Spain and the night sky does things city skies have forgotten how to do. A slow day to settle — walk the land, find your chair, let the week ahead arrive.
DAY 5
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
ACROSS THE BORDER
A leisurely morning over breakfast at the estate, and then in the afternoon we head over the border into Spain. Cáceres, to be exact — a medieval old town — to wander the stone lanes, eat in town, and be somewhere entirely different for an evening.
DAY 6
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
OPEN + UNHURRIED
A gentler day, entirely yours to shape. I'll lead those who are interested on a gentle hike through the Serra de São Mamede Natural Park where nature writes the rules — for those who would rather stay close to home, a walk through the olive grove or the outdoor sauna might be calling your name. Our farewell dinner to Alentejo will be at the estate.
DAY 7
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
RETURN TO LISBON
We return to Lisbon for one last night. The rest of the day is left to wander or rest, and then a final dinner — the table now full of people you'll keep.
DAY 8
Meals included: breakfast
UNTIL NEXT TIME
Slow morning, goodbyes, departures. You leave with a group thread that doesn't go quiet, and a promise to see each other soon.
WHAT IT COSTS + WHAT IT HOLDS
I won't publish a number for The Harvest until I've stood in the house, met the people who'll cook for us, and know exactly what the week holds. The shape of it is already set — seven nights, Lisbon and the Alto Alentejo, a private room as standard, all of it founder-led. The figure follows once I can stand behind every part of it.
As with The Awakening, a few rooms are made for two. If you're coming with someone — a partner, a friend — you'll share at a companion rate.
Join the waitlist and you'll be the first to know the number, well before anyone is asked for a cent.
What's included:
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Seven nights in boutique, independent stays — your own apartment in Lisbon, a private room in one of the houses on the estate.
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All in-country travel once we leave Lisbon.
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Every breakfast, and most lunches and dinners — including welcome and farewell dinners.
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Every experience on the itinerary: the local queer city guide, a visit to the olive groves
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A private room as standard — never shared unless you choose.
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Founder-led from the first morning to the last.
What's not included:
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Your flights to and from Portugal.
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Travel insurance — required, and easy to arrange.
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The few optional experiences I'll always name as optional.
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Meals not listed in the itinerary.
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Anything personal you pick up along the way
WHAT'S SET, WHAT'S COMING
The shape of the week is set — Lisbon, the Alentejo, the harvest, the rhythm of the days. What I'm still confirming is the home itself. I'm going back in October to confirm — to stand in the rooms, walk the groves, and meet the people — before anyone is asked for a deposit. You'll know exactly where you're staying, and you'll have said yes to the journey, long before any money changes hands.
As for why the names aren't here yet — our hosts and the places we stay are independent people who take real pride in their work, not stops on a tour. I share their names once you've secured your seat, because by then you're one of us: someone who'll hold them as carefully as I do.
Join the waitlist and I'll bring you along as it comes together — including the day I can finally name the house, the dates, and the price.
It starts as a request, not a payment. You join the waitlist; nothing is due until I've welcomed you in. A deposit then holds your seat, and the balance comes due closer to departure. I'll always tell you what's due and when, well ahead of time — you'll never be left guessing.
What your price holds. Once it's set, the figure will cover nearly everything from the moment you land: your stays, all in-country travel, every breakfast and most meals, and every experience on the itinerary. Your flights to and from Portugal are yours to book.
Travel insurance is required. I ask every guest to carry comprehensive cover — trip cancellation, medical, and evacuation — and to send proof before we travel. It's the one thing I won't make optional, because it's what protects you if life interrupts the trip.
If the trip can't run. If for some reason a confirmed trip is ever cancelled on my end, your money comes back in full.
Before you commit a cent. You'll have the full deposit, payment, and cancellation terms in writing before you're ever asked to book. By the time anything is due, you'll know exactly what you're saying yes to.
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BOOKING & TERMS
STAY A LITTLE LONGER
Some women aren't ready to leave when the week ends — and some don't want to arrive in a rush.
So I'll hold a little more for you, on either end.
Open in Lisbon.
Come a night or two early; stay a day or two after. Find your feet in the city before the group gathers, on your own slow terms — no jet lag at the welcome table. Stay later; real life can wait a day or two longer.
Stay in Alto Alentejo
A working estate in the Serra de São Mamede, where the hills roll toward Spain and the night sky does things city skies have forgotten how to do. Stay on after the group heads home and the land seems to exhale — slow mornings, long light, the harvest quiet.
Maybe somewhere else? Porto perhaps or one of the islands?
These are arranged one at a time, around availability and the season — tell me when you request your seat, and I'll take care of the rest.
MORE QUESTIONS?
7 nights · 8–10 women · Lisbon + Alto Alentejo · Gentle pace · Solo travelers welcome
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How fit do I need to be? Gentle. We walk hill towns and old streets, move through the olive groves, and on guided walks if you so desire — but nothing here is strenuous. If you're comfortable on your feet for a relaxed day and the odd uneven cobblestone, you're set. Tell me about any access needs when you inquire and I'll be honest about what this trip can accommodate.
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Will we witness the actual olive harvest? A harvest runs on the land's timing, not ours: the start shifts every year with the weather and the ripeness, and it's usually known only weeks ahead. We won't pin a trip booked a year out to a date nature hasn't set. What we can promise is the grove and its maker — walking the ancient trees, tasting oil pressed from this single hillside. If the mill is running while we're there, all the better. If not, you'll still leave understanding a harvest the way the families who farm it do.
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Why olives and not wine? Because it's more distinctive, more hands-on, and more welcoming to everyone at the table — no one has to drink to be part of the day. Wine has its moments on this trip; it just isn't the point.
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What's the weather like? Alentejo in October is warm days and cool evenings — sun by afternoon, a layer at dinner. Full packing note once you book.
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Tell me about the day in Spain. We cross into Extremadura for the day to see Cáceres, one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Europe. It's a real change of scene and a long, lovely day out with dinner included.
Prefer to talk it through first? Let's talk.