Salema Eco Camp - Sustainable Camping & Glamping

I reserved the Salema Eco Camp for our one-night stay at Salema after walking from Sagres on the Rota Vicentina. Our experience here was wonderful once we changed our accommodation from one of the Woody tents to a studio. The staff were amazing at making this possible! The hike had been more technical and we needed a bit more comfort! The studio was excellent, king-sized bed and firm as we prefer. The private bathroom was super, excellent water pressure! One thing to keep in mind is that the Eco Camp is about 2 km outside of Salema, extra walk on a busy road after a hard day at the trail. Other than that, highly recommend it, as well as its restaurant.

Don’t bother…..We brought a tent after years of campervanning. After a five hour drive from a lovely spot near Nazare we arrived at Salema. First impressions are positive until you get the wristbands, tent label and vehicle label. Losing these incurs a 20 euro fee…each. You are also required to leave a form of ID at reception. No idea why? You are then told to go and pitch wherever you like. The site map is hopeless and no paper copy is available. The site is all over the place with lots of dead ends and very tight turns. I tore a huge hole in the front of my truck trying to get out of one of these on a tree stump that had been cut off at 18 inches and wasn’t visible from the cab. The laziness of leaving that in such a location said it all and our trip has now cost a fortune in body repairs. The site is on rock hard ground so you will need rock pegs or screw pegs. We eventually found a a tiny pitch squashed up against a kids playground. We couldn’t peg out properly but it was all we could find. As there are no marked pitches there are the usual suspects who take enough room for three and mark out their territory with washing lines and anything else they can use. The staff whizz around in golf carts, at speed and aren’t in the least bit bothered about it. On a positive note the on-site restaurant was very good and the staff there were really friendly and helpful. Frankly it has spoilt a long holiday as the damage caused by the tree stump will cost so much that the long journey back to Scotland won’t be much fun. Another point. The beach is accessible by walking along a busy road or there is a courtesy bus a few times a day from the site. Don’t be fooled by thinking you will have a romantic stroll through orange groves, you will have to dodge the cars and buses. The showers near our ‘pitch’ aren’t hot at night and we are struggling to find any bins. It’s touted as an eco site but it’s all smoke and mirrors as recycling around site should be paramount. This could be a great place if there was some good organisation. It seems a bit daft as marking out pitches would mean less people driving out again after an hour of searching for somewhere to stop.

Freezing cold woody tent in march. Very poor value for money this place thinks if it calls itself eco it can charge what it likes with poor facilities and lighting. for 40 Euro I had a freezing tent with damp bedding one electrical socket. Would advise not to stay here until the weather is warmer. Shower block Baltic

We booked the studio, which was amazing. Clean, nice shower and very cosy. I would easily recommend staying here, perfect for a couple. Staf was helpful and friendly. At the check in we where asked to leave some sort of ID or public transport card. No problem, but a bit strange. Also you get a wristband. Again no problem, but a bit annoying to have to wear a wristband for 5 days.

Amazing experience, very polite and well trained team both in the restaurant and reception. Everyone was at their best, knowledgeable of what they are doing and always with a smile in their faces and even when dealing with the demanding August guests! Well done, congratulations keep going and don’t change anything!

Last august I booked a tipi for two nights on this campsite because I thought I'd be an awesome way to celebrate our wedding day in October. Payment went fine but never got any confirmation. I tried to email and call the campsite several times asking for any confirmation and never got any response at all. At check in thankfully my reservation was there and so was the tipi. One thing that is totally ridiculous is that they ask you to leave any form of ID with them at the reception when you check in. It could be something stupid like a H&M member card, as long as it has your name on it. I only had my driver's license and didn't want to leave that there so we suggested just to make a copy. They didn't agree saying this was 'policy', either we leave something there or pay 10 euro's for basically nothing. Said policy is not mentioned on the website nor on the gigantic rules&regulation manual on the wall at the reception. It's not mentioned anywhere untill your there and they ask. Besides in 2022 it's the most unnecessary thing ever especially when you've already paid. Purely out of principal we said we'd pay only they didn't have change so we ended up going back and forward untill they relented and let us unto the campsite. Not a nice way to receive any paying customer, especially not on a bloody campsite. Mentioned campsite is nice, the tipi is nice, sanitary seems OK too. The obligated wrist bands with a fine of 20 euro's each if you lose them is another ridiculous thing. Again its a campsite not a jail. We'll try the restaurant later (website mentioned reservation through whatsapp, that doesn't exist either so don't bother trying). There's a free transport to the beach available on 3 moments during the day, booking at reception. As long as you enjoy the campsite with the ones your with and ignore the gazillion rules its fine, but I'm still glad we're here for only 2 nights.

Myself and family stayed at this place in October 2021 and we had a wonderful experience all around. We had 4 different accommodations booked - The Villa Surf Apt, a Lodge, a Studio and a Woody - all were beautifully decorated and very comfortable with all the necessary facilities for the large group. There is plenty of fresh air, trees, walks around, a play park for the kids and the beach is just around the corner. They also take their "Eco" name very seriously with different policies of waste & water management, solar panels, etc and a great Eco Store that sells mainly Bio products. The Restaurant on site - Nazari - has delicious vegan meals and a great selection all over. From accommodation to staff everything was lovely and we will return again hopefully next year. Thank you guys for such a good time! We will be back!

I stayed in the apartments while a friend of mine placed his Van in the forest (the place is actually huge). What I can say is that the people working there were simply fantastic, y apartment was far better than what I'm used to in other camps and the location is pretty good for surfers as you have both sides of the Cape at short distance.

Very nice campground, with plenty of other options to stay (glamping, tipi tents...) friendly staff, clean facilities. The restaurant on site is great, love the food and the eco - local food concept. Booked a kayak Tour through the camp, great trip along the coast.