Castaway Guesthouse in Ferrel, Portugal: The hidden Community Surf Spot

A narrow house with blue windows and a dark-red front door in the Peniche Coast. The Castaway Guesthouse is the new 5 Star Hostel in Ferrel, located near Baleal Island, Portugal. Your wooden coast shelter. A visit with surf boards and a patio by Hostelgeeks.

The infobox on Castaway Guest House ⭐

You can book also with Hostelworld and directly on Airbnb.

Castaway Guesthouse in Ferrel, is only 80 km north of the main tourist magnet of beautiful Lisbon.

Away from pollution and mass-tourism, you find this little, welcoming guesthouse.

Come with us and have a look, during the visit you will find surf boards, a patio, and good vibes.

Traveling more around Portugal? Find the best hostels in Portugal here—a full backpackers guide.

Ferrel is a small town and a hotspot for surfers in search of the challenge of the Atlantic waves.

From here you can access excellent beaches and surf spots that are part of the WSL—World Surf League (Supertubos and Pico da Mota), the Berlengas nature reserve, beach bars, restaurants and local businesses to dive into Portuguese culture.

Heading to Lisbon? Read our ultimate guide to the 3 best hostels in Lisbon with stunning hostels.

Heading to Porto? Here’s our fresh guide to best hostels in Porto.

What about Lagos? Find the best hostels in Lagos here.

If you’re a keen surfer, all the coolest surf hostels in Portugal are right here.

Before we start, pack smart…

Remember to pack accordingly for staying in a hostel – yet, do not overpack.

Here’s our full packing list, including Noise-Cancelling ear plugs and your padlocks.

Castaway Guesthouse is great, because…

Without further ado, let us open this wooden door with the round window like a hobbit-hole.

I hear the patio is a lovely space…

1. Local wood and plants all around

The narrow building, built in the 1960, was refurbished in 2017. The bright colors immediately stand out.

The warm wood is mostly Portuguese pine from sustainable forests treated with water-based varnishes. This is an Eco-friendly way to treat wood without polluting the environment.

All the lighting used is LED-based. This is the best way to save energy without compromising on the quality of lighting.

Throughout the hostel there are plants such as colorful orchids, beautiful-smelling lavenders, and more.

All of them are natural and come from a local greenhouse.

Read: 13 creative hostel design ideas you can steal borrow from hostels

There are no plastic-plants around.

From an economic point of view, Castaway is part of a local association of hostels which promotes a healthy competition, supporting the local economy, thus offering advantageous conditions to the guests.

As a guest, you may not notice this detail at first glance, however, this is something important to consider for the long-term economic development of the area.

2. A wooden shelter

Due to the proximity to the sea, the design of the hostel was inspired by the following question:

If I were a castaway, what would my shelter be like?

Pedro, the owner of Castaway, kept asking himself this.

A castaway would no doubt have to take advantage of wooden wreckage and export crates, which inspired the creation of the lockers and the sofa in the living room. There is a brass boat porthole in the wooden front door.

The ceilings are made with varnished wooden slats with four different tones, randomly arranged to match the style, and the floor is solid wood in its natural color.

Wooden decking was laid in the exterior spaces, matching the style of the interior of the house.

What about the rooms? Let us have a look:

Read: Hostel room types, what are the differences?

3. Handcrafted woodwork — In and Out

All the design makes Castaway Guesthouse unique!

Because all the woodwork was handcrafted by the owner and family, they did not use mass-produced furniture. This goes down to the smallest detail like the frames.

Outdoors on the patio, guests can take a shower after a day at the beach, store their surfboards, have meals, socialize or even sunbath.

The rooms sleep four people each, which makes them quieter.

Every bed comes with a LED light support and a socket near the pillow. So, yes, you can use your precious iPhone late at night to listen to some podcasts.

The bathroom is connected to the rooms and has a large shower base for a comfortable and relaxing shower. Wanna have a look?

Last but not least, there is the kitchen for the foodies.

In the well-equipped kitchen, guests have enough space to cook their meals and store their groceries.

Basic ingredients such as olive oil, salt, and pepper are provided.

Former guests leave even more things you can use for free. But not to worry, the team always keeps the kitchen clean.

4. Community Guesthouse at its best

All the social spaces of the house were thought out so that all the guests can be comfortably together at the same time.

As Peniche, Baleal and the surrounding area are surfer destinations, the guesthouse has teamed up with local surf schools. You can learn to surf here as well as rent equipment.

Read: best surf hostels in Portugal

The accommodation also partnered up with a diving school and a handpicked tour agency for guided visits to the Island of Berlenga.

Berlenga is a beautiful, popular nature reserve next door.

At night, the guesthouse turns into a little community. The stories of the day are shared over dinner and the travelers mingle over a few cold drinks.

Overall, it is an easy-going atmosphere. Travelers come here to relax, go surfing, and enjoying a tranquil time away from the busy cities of Lisbon or Porto.

This makes it a perfect spot to get to know more travelers.

Read: 46 things that make a hostel awesome

5. Welcoming staff

Pedro welcomes you to his very own guesthouse.

He and his family love to welcome guests to their small hostel, making sure that you never want to leave this slice of paradise.

The hostel and Baleal included! The Castaway’ team knows the area out. So make sure you pick their brains.

Ask them for their favorite café, bar, and restaurant. Even surf spots. You will get better tips than you can find anywhere online.

It actually goes without saying, but the staff speaks English.

No language barrier here! They are happy to give directions, suggestions or even prepare some typical Portuguese food. Keep an eye on the event board, so you don’t miss anything.

Featured in a lifestyle magazine

As said, Castaway is a lifestyle hostel. Here is an excerpt of their interview. Below, you can also read the full interview in Portuguese.

E:

Have the Portuguese and foreigners already discovered the Castaway Guest House?

VS:

They are discovering, because this whole process is long and the competition is very strong. In addition to Portuguese, we have already received guests from various nationalities such as Canadians, Israelis and Germans, representing the vast majority. Recently we were recognized by the Hostelgeeks website, which highlights several hostels in the world that meet a set of criteria, with only three Portuguese hostels located in Lisbon, Leiria and Ferrel.

Promo Code for Castaway Guest House

Fancy a promo code for Castaway Guest House? Who doesn't?!

Now, there is no easy way to say this: Currently we do not have a valid discount for Castaway Guest House. We are working on getting more promotional codes for Castaway Guest House in Baleal, Peniche and all the other top hostels we reviewed for you.

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