About us

Who are we?

We are Maarten and Celina Schiphorst-Ongenae from the Netherlands. In the summer of 2025, we opened a Boutique Hotel in eastern Algarve.

Celina is a true Brabander, and Maarten worked more than 40 years for the municipalities of Aalsmeer and Amstelveen. Our three sons, their girlfriends, and grandchildren live in Amsterdam.

Guests bring excitement to our retirement life. How wonderful is it to share the Mediterranean lifestyle here in Portugal with our friends, family, and guests from all over the world! Maarten often cooks for our guests (usually Indonesian food).

In addition to our hobbies such as reading, gardening, yoga, computing, cooking, Portuguese classes, and enjoying delicious food and drinks, we are each involved in volunteering work in our own way.

Maarten has been involved with the International Rotary through his membership in projects like Seahorse and other initiatives. The seahorse lives in the lagoons and used to have the largest population here in the Ria Formosa nature park. Unfortunately, the population has drastically decreased. It's beautiful to be able to contribute as a volunteer to this project. Read more about it on our blog seahorses. 

Celina volunteered in the center of Moncarapacho village, at Casa do Povo or "the house of the people." A lot of attention is given to elderly people who are often lonely. 

During the week, you can participate in various activities at Casa do Povo. These range from Portuguese conversation classes, Somatics, yoga, senior gym, tap dancing to lunchtime meals. 

On Sunday afternoons there is plenty of dancing and eating by both Portuguese people and outsiders. During the summer, various festivals are also organized. There's a summer carnival as well as a winter carnival!

We started construction in March 2024 and by May 2025, the building was completed! Do you want to experience what eastern Algarve has to offer? You can book a vacation accommodation with us from now on.

For rates and availability, you can check through this link or book directly via our booking system on this website. 

Welcome! You can follow us on Facebook and Instagram!

Every future guest receives a link with all activities and attractions after booking their stay with us. This way, you can look at home and see what interests you. Let us know when you decide on your plans, and we'll take care of the rest!