A temporary coliving project in the Algarve
A temporary coliving project in the Algarve
Not a commercial retreat, no profit motive – just a group of people working remotely, who love to surf and spend the winter together in Portugal.
In 2022, the idea for the "Luz Living" project was born. We looked for people to trade the winter dreariness for the light of the south.
The thought was simple: Out of the cold, into a warm community life. We didn't want to sit alone at a desk in a foreign country. This idea grew into a solid community that comes together every year to combine living and working in a relaxed way.
We rent a spacious villa together with plenty of room for everyone. There is enough space for community, but also for undisturbed working and relaxing.
The kitchens are often the heart of our daily life. There is a super sociable indoor kitchen, where we chop, cook, and chat. When the sun shines, life moves outside to the large barbecue area with an outdoor kitchen – perfect for mild evenings and shared dinners.
There are 10 rooms in total, varying slightly in size. The great thing: Every room has its own bathroom and AC. There is Wi-Fi in all rooms (good enough for video calls), and we organize tabletops so everyone can set up a comfortable little home office.
The large living room invites you to linger. Outside awaits the large pool, which will be heated the entire time in 2027 (powered by solar panels). And the absolute favorite spot: The Jacuzzi, where we relax under the starry sky in the evening after surfing or working.
The house is getting a bit on in years here and there. It is a villa from the 80s with a lot of history, whose style is partly a bit questionable – with cheesy nude paintings and lots of marble.
There are also occasional technical issues, like power outages or collapsing dishwashers. That's part of Luz-Living too! But we always have nice support and solve most problems collectively.
We usually had a lot of luck with the weather, but there have been very rainy weeks and even floods last year.
Our coliving everyday life is wonderfully relaxed. With around ten people, the group is just the right size: everyone has space for themselves, but it's also easy to connect at any time.
When the laptops are closed in the afternoon, there's almost always spontaneous company to catch the last rays of sunshine at Sunset Point. It's incredibly easy not to be alone: good ideas for activities are often already floating around the house, and you can join in at any time – completely without the pressure of having to be part of everything.
Creativity runs like a common thread through our WG everyday life. We have spent half afternoons painting the cliffs together, crafting, or creatively redecorating our large living room for theme nights.
A space emerges completely automatically where everyone can share their ideas and talents – completely without pressure, but always with a lot of passion, inspiration, and laughter.
An absolute highlight of our theme nights: The Blacklight Parties. With fluorescent colors, crazy craft ideas, and body painting, we transform the villa into a glowing other world for one night.
Luz (Portuguese for "light") is a wonderfully relaxed little town. Not all restaurants are open in winter, but there are enough shopping options and cafes. The vibe is just great because it's not too crowded and not too touristy.
At this time of year, the nature in the Algarve is wonderfully green, and in early February even the almond trees begin to blossom.
There is a nice beach promenade and a beautiful beach between cliffs. From here, you can go on wonderful hikes or surf the winter waves right in Luz.
Especially in January and February, the south coast around Luz is a fantastic base for surfers. While the waves on the west coast are often huge and unsurfable in the middle of winter, the spots right by us in Luz work surprisingly well at this time of year.
However, if you want to get on the water every day, you need a car and a bit of flexibility. We often drive 20 to 25 minutes to the surf spots located further west.
There are always a few people at different surfing levels staying in the villa. So it's super easy and a lot of fun to team up for carpools, check the waves together, and form small surf groups.
We are a colorful bunch, mostly between 30 and 50 years old. Most of us speak German, but since we often have international flatmates, we like to converse in English in larger groups.
Very important:
We are looking for people who want a warm and creative togetherness. But that absolutely does not mean you have to be part of everything all the time! It is incredibly important to us that everyone can retreat at any time, so living together doesn't become exhausting for anyone.
We often do larger grocery runs in small teams. We split the costs for shared meals simply, fairly, and transparently using the Splitwise app.
Once a week, we do a short check-in where everyone is heard. We discuss open items, exchange ideas for the week, and ensure the atmosphere remains harmonious.
A car is very useful in the Algarve for trips or surf missions to the west coast. Usually, a few people from the group rent a car, so we can perfectly coordinate and share rides.
We bear the project together. Nobody makes a profit on the rent.
Double bookings for both phases are of course possible.
JANUARY 03 – FEBRUARY 03, 2027
approx. 650 €
Contribution per room
(single occupacy)
FEBRUARY 03 – MARCH 04, 2027
approx. 650 €
Contribution per room
(single occupacy)
* There is only a small additional contribution for the shared cleaning fund.
Get to know us
On September 29th at 7:00 PM (CET) there will be a casual online meeting via Zoom — we will introduce the project, answer questions, and see if the vibe matches.
Those who have been there before are of course simply welcome to join again.