THINGS TO BE AWARE OF
As Casa Fuzetta is a private home, we’ve allowed ourselves to set things up the way we like … They may not always be conventional!
On the basis that this is a house in which groups of friends and family stay, there are no hotel style locks on bedroom doors – and no keys to lose or forget! (There is a small safe in every room to protect the essentials should you wish.)
Following the no key to lose idea, when the house is occupied, access through the front door is care of a digital key pad. (We will share the code when you arrive.) This has proved a wonderful way for guests to enjoy the freedom of exploring the town, with no need for military style coordination!
Being in the heart of Olhão’s old town, we are sensitive to the fact that noise travels and our neighbours are sensitive to noise (and to water from the pool – of which more below ...) With this in mind, we ask guests not to use the pool or pool terrace after 10pm, to ensure no loud music after 10pm and generally, to be sensitive of noise entering and leaving the house, particularly late at night. We need to carefully discuss what is possible for events, and their timing.
The rooftop pool is beautiful. Heated, when needed. Not huge; but it is a truly magical experience to swim overlooking the rooftops, to the sound of the church bells … To ensure our lovely neighbours are not drenched as they walk by on their way to work [and yes, this has happened!], please remember that the pool is more for refreshment than exercise – and most of all, please do not jump in!
The house has been wired to provide wifi throughout. You are welcome to use it liberally in your rooms but in keeping with the idea that this is a place to be inspired through conversation, creativity and new experiences, we would ask you not to use phones and laptops on the terraces or in the other common areas. And in the hope we can encourage you to a full digital detox, please note that there are no televisions. (On request, we can set up a home cinema in the library for special movie night! You bring the ipad and download your choice of movie…)
We would prefer no smoking anywhere in the house, including the terraces.
Parking in the old town is an experience. On the plus side, in most areas (but not all, so please take care) it is free. For the faint of heart, we recommend declining the car rental company’s offer to upgrade and opt for the smallest car you are comfortable with. The streets of the old town are narrow and in places tricky to navigate. But don’t worry, although you may not be able to park in the immediate vicinity, you will be able to drop off your bags and then park within a short walk nearby.
Please see the Booking Terms & Conditions for full details of the House Rules
We strive to do our bit for the environment and the community and will continue to try and do more. Steps so far that you may notice:
Our hot water is powered primarily by solar panels
Our lighting is all LED (with the exception of the chandeliers)
Our energy is supplied by GALP - selected because of their active and transparent reporting on their Sustainability targets - see their latest report
Linen changes are once per week for bed linen and twice per week for towels [unless otherwise agreed].
Food, we source locally and seasonally; generally from the Olhao markets, sometimes direct from the farmers. Where we need to resort to supermarkets and bigger suppliers, our first choice is always to buy Portuguese; and we offer a curated selection of Portuguese wines, many certified organic. Our house wine is from the only vineyard in the Algarve boasting heritage algarvian vines - our friends at Morgado do Quintao. Our organic coffee (and compostable pods) are supplied by SundayCollab
We try to keep food waste to a minimum. On the few occasions when we find we have over-catered or shopped, we support ReFood Faro and the local foodbanks who gather excess produce from local hotels and properties like ours, to create and distribute meals to those in need.
We have installed six BeeHotels on our rooftop and the gardens are low maintenance, using a drip system to keep water consumption to a minimum. Likewise, only one bathroom has a bath. Everywhere else there is only a shower [and very nice it is too!] Stylish Shhhowercaps are available to help those wanting to limit how often they wash their hair.
We use only eco-friendly cleaning products and offer gold standard organic and refillable units of well being from LA-EVA in our bathrooms and public areas for guests use during their stay.
We continue in our efforts to reduce/eliminate single-use plastics. We do not buy bottled waters. Filtered water is available in the kitchen; and we have a recently invested in a stylish Aarke carbonator to enable sparkling water to be made in-house. There is also an automatic hot water tap to avoid endless boiling of the kettle and Veggio nets for use on shopping trips
Guests are invited to use the baskets in their rooms for shopping at the market and going to the beach. For bigger shopping runs, there are always plenty of bags for life and shopping trolleys in the pantry.
We have Ocean Bottle reusable water bottles for guests to use during their stay
We use a salt filtration system for the pool, to keep chemicals to a minimum.
We recycle paper, cardboard, plastic, tins and glass. Something to help soothe the guilt when you see the number of empty wine bottles in the morning! If we (or our retreat chefs) over-shop, we liaise with ReFood Faro and local food banks to ensure the excess is put to good use.
Despite all of these efforts, some non-recyclable waste remains (approx average of 0.75kg per guest per night). As of January 2023, we are proud to have partnered with NuCycle to fully offset this waste footprint from now on. (2023 Certificate)
We encourage guests to search https://fly.green for cleaner flights and to compare fares and compensate for their footprint.
We are members of Tree Sisters and support them in various ways including donations to support the planting of 100 trees for every group that stays at Casa Fuzetta. (Donations for more than 10,000 trees have been made as of October 2023.)
In collaboration with SanneLovesYoga and others we regularly open our doors to half day retreats and special events for local Olhao residents.
We regularly support a variety of local community projects.
Casa Fuzetta is partnered with Nu Cycle, a company that brings data-driven waste offset strategies to the forefront of our sustainability initiatives (www.nu-cycle.com). With our commitment to eco-friendly luxury, we collaborate closely with Nu Cycle to implement a tailored waste offset solution that is having a direct impact in some of the world's most vulnerable environments.
Through this partnership, we ensure that our guests enjoy a superior experience while minimizing their environmental impact through quantifiable and targeted measures. Our local waste mitigation meaures are core to our daily functions, however, we know we all share this one beautiful blue planet and we feel better knowing that the equivalent of our guests' daily waste impact is being offset from the world's most at risk environments.
