Somewhere between a five-week stay in the south of Portugal and the slow rhythm of the Ria Formosa, a Dutch illustrator made one of the most important decisions of her creative life not the one she’d planned, but the one she actually needed.
That’s the kind of shift Celyn Vries came home with after her stay at POMAR coliving – na Praia. She’d left her nursing job behind at the end of last year, fully committed to growing her brand Celyn Art, and arrived in Portugal with a clear goal: build an online drawing course, ship it, and prove to herself she could do this. What she got instead was something harder to package and infinitely more valuable — clarity.
POMAR na Praia, perched on a hill above Fuseta with sweeping views over the Ria Formosa, gave her exactly the kind of setting her creative work needed: big garden, golden light, a small community of like-minded people, and enough space to think. This is Celyn’s story: the career leap from healthcare to creative entrepreneurship, the unexpected lessons of her first coliving experience, and why slowing down turned out to be the most productive thing she did.
Meet Celyn: Illustrator, Educator, and Nurse-Turned-Creator
Celyn’s home is Groningen, a city in the north of the Netherlands where she’s lived for nearly ten years. She arrived there as a student nurse, and the city stole her heart.
“It’s the people, the cozy little cafés, and the feeling when spring arrives and everyone comes outside to enjoy the sun,” she says. “There’s such a warm and lively energy in the city during those moments. It’s my favourite place in the whole world.”
But Groningen, beloved as it is, wasn’t big enough to hold the creative direction she was moving toward. Through her brand Celyn Art, she teaches that drawing is a skill anyone can learn — not a talent reserved for a gifted few. “I want to show people that drawing can be both fun and mindful,” she says, “and that you don’t need ‘talent’ to get started.”
She’d been building the business seriously for about two years while still working part-time as a nurse. At the end of last year, she made the leap: full focus on the creative work, no more split attention. The plan was to escape the Dutch winter, experience life abroad for the first time, and finally build the course she’d been dreaming about.
Coliving, she discovered, was the answer she hadn’t known to look for.
Why Coliving, Why Now: “A Home Away from Home”
Celyn had never worked remotely before. She’d never tried coliving either. Her entire decision came from something she spotted on Instagram — POMAR’s feed, the aesthetic, the vibe — and an immediate gut feeling that this was the right place.
“I instantly loved the idea of staying in one place for a longer period, while having the space to work on my business and being surrounded by a community of like-minded people,” she says. She also, she adds with a wink, loved the idea of “escaping a bit of the Dutch winter.”
For Celyn, what stood out most about her first coliving experience wasn’t what she’d expected. It wasn’t the workspace or the wifi. It was the feeling of belonging she found almost immediately.
“What stood out to me most was the feeling of having a home away from home,” she says. “Living with people from all over the world, each with different passions and interests, was incredibly inspiring. We shared those passions through things like yoga classes, conversations, and skillshares. And one thing I especially loved is how quickly you become close friends.”
Coliving, she explains, offers something most coworking setups miss entirely: “the balance between community and personal space — having both the opportunity to connect with others and the freedom to focus on your own work.”
What Creative Work Actually Requires: Stillness, Space, and the Right People
Like any entrepreneur building a content-driven business, Celyn arrived with a plan. She’d set herself a specific goal for the stay: finish an online beginner drawing course, teaching people to work with brush pens and pencils in her signature Celyn Art style. She didn’t finish it. And that turned out to be exactly the right outcome. “With so much to explore and experience, things didn’t go exactly as planned,” she says. “And honestly, I’m okay with that. I discovered that building a creative business also requires moments of stillness. That’s where new insights and inspiration really come to you.”
The shift that happened wasn’t about output — it was about direction. “Instead of reaching that specific goal, I gained something just as important: lots of new inspiration and much more clarity about the direction I want to take with my business.”
That clarity reshaped her entire roadmap. She realised she wanted to build a stronger brand before launching the course — one with a clear focus on learning and education. The course is still coming. It’ll just be better for the wait.
The one practical challenge? Finding quiet in a lively house. “As the workspace was located in the hallway next to the kitchen, there was often quite a bit of noise,” she notes. “At times, not everyone in that space was working, and because it was a shared and relatively small area, it could be a bit harder to fully focus.” It’s honest feedback from someone who genuinely loved everything else — and the kind of detail that helps future colivers plan their days well.
The Project She’s Building: Celyn Art and a Future Creative Retreat
Celyn’s business is built on a simple but radical premise: anyone can draw. “I teach others that drawing is a skill anyone can learn,” she says. “I want to show people that drawing can be both fun and mindful, and that you don’t need ‘talent’ to get started.”
Her next concrete step is finishing the beginner course she started at POMAR coliving, one that teaches the Celyn Art style using brush pens and pencils in a way that’s accessible, fun, and forgiving of imperfection. All the inspiration she gathered in the Algarve, she says, will make it something better than she could have built at her desk in Groningen. But the project she speaks about with the most warmth is further down the road: a creative and mindful retreat of her own.
“One of my dreams is to host a creative and mindful retreat someday,” she says. “Through my own experience, I’ve discovered how creativity, being in nature, yoga, and meditation can be incredibly supportive when you’re struggling with your mental health.”
She describes it with real precision: a space for people to draw, move, and unwind together — “giving yourself space, showing yourself some love, and allowing your creativity to flow freely, ideally in a beautiful place in nature.” Spending five weeks at POMAR coliving – na Praia, surrounded by just that kind of landscape, wasn’t lost on her.
POMAR na Praia, in Celyn’s Words: “It Clicked”
Celyn stayed only at POMAR coliving na Praia, and she didn’t need to look further. “I booked a five-week stay at POMAR na Praia, and I loved it so much,” she says. “I was looking for a place where I would feel at home and comfortable right away. Somewhere that would give me the space to spark my creativity.”
What sealed it before she even arrived was the visual language of POMAR’s coliving Instagram and website. “When I first found POMAR and scrolled through their Instagram and website, I immediately felt that it was the right place for me,” she says. The big garden, the views from every room, the overall atmosphere — all of it matched something she was looking for but hadn’t been able to name.
She also appreciated something less tangible: the structure POMAR builds into the week. “I loved how each week is thoughtfully planned with a mix of activities and space for deep work,” she says. “It felt like the perfect balance, allowing me to explore the Algarve, gain new inspiration, and still stay focused on my business.” She was convinced enough that she extended her stay by a week — before she’d even arrived in the south of Portugal.
The POMAR Team: “A Welcoming and Supportive Environment”
“Claire the co founder of POMAR coliving was always open, friendly, and quick to respond to all my questions,” Celyn says, “which gave me a lot of confidence that my stay would be amazing.” That pre-arrival warmth set the tone for everything that followed. And the team’s role didn’t stop at logistics — it extended into the care that goes into building a real community. “The team really creates a welcoming and supportive environment,” she says.
She also adds something that speaks directly to the content POMAR puts out: “Everything I wanted to know about the coliving before booking and arriving, I could already find on the blog and Instagram. The content gives a really clear impression of what to expect.”
A Moment She’ll Remember: Dancing, Pizza, and a Rooftop at Faro Beach
“During one of my first weeks, Claire recommended a beach party at a surf club on Faro Beach,” Celyn says. “We went there with the whole community, and for me it turned out to be one of the best parties ever.”
She lists it like someone who wants to make sure nothing gets left out: dancing, pizza, climbing onto a rooftop to watch everything from above, searching for shells on the beach at night, watching the sunset together.
But her other favourite moment was quieter. “Another moment I really loved was getting ready for dinner with Selin. Our rooms were next to each other, and we had so much fun getting ready together. Choosing outfits, doing our makeup.”
“At that moment, I felt so grateful for how quickly you can build such close connections with people you’ve only just met. That’s something I didn’t expect, but really appreciated.”
It’s the detail that says everything about what POMAR coliving and coworking in the south of Portugal actually is: not just a place to work, but a place where you might make a real friend in the time it takes to get dressed.
Looking Ahead: Back to POMAR coliving coworking, and a Course That’s Almost Ready
Celyn left the south of Portugal with more than inspiration. She left with a plan. The beginner drawing course is in progress, reshaping, becoming something with a clearer identity and stronger foundation. She’ll finish it with all the ideas and energy she gathered on that hill above Fuseta.
And POMAR coliving ? “I would absolutely love to return for another stay in the future,” she says simply.
For a first-time coliver, first-time remote worker, and newly full-time creative, that might be the clearest review of all.
Connect with Celyn
Instagram: @celyn_art
Ready to Find Out More About the POMAR Experience?
If Celyn’s story sounds like the kind of reset you’ve been craving, equal parts focused and human, POMAR is built for exactly that: a hybrid coliving and coworking experience for nomadic workers in Portugal, designed to support both productivity and the sweet Portuguese life near the coast.
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Frequently Asked Questions: Coliving for entrepreneurs in Algarve
Coliving combines the comfort of a home with the ease of a built-in community. Instead of booking a place and figuring everything out alone, you’re joining a shared living setup where people are also working remotely, exploring the area, and open to connecting. For entrepreneurs, it can feel like the best of both worlds: your own rhythm, plus a social layer when you want it.
Yes, especially if you want a work-friendly setup without the corporate coworking vibe. Laura describes coliving as “the perfect balance between a shared apartment and a coworking space,” and highlights that reliable Wi-Fi and quiet spaces for calls were essential for her workation sprint.
POMAR has multiple locations in the Algarve, close to the coast and local villages, ideal if you want beach access, nature, and a slower pace, while still being able to stay focused on work. It’s designed to help you settle in quickly and make the most of the region.
Absolutely, if the space is designed for it. Laura notes that her work involves “heavy platforms” and crawling websites, so bandwidth matters, and she often needs a “private, quiet space” for video calls. The right coliving setup makes it easier to concentrate during the day, then switch into a more social mode after work.
The community is one of the biggest differentiators. Laura points out that the group size stays intentionally small, making it natural to “hang out together afterwork.” Guests also use a WhatsApp group to share essential info and organize activities like hikes, yoga sessions, or movie nights.
Your days can be as structured or as spontaneous as you want. Depending on the group, you might join a hike, a yoga session, or a casual dinner—or explore the Algarve at your own pace. Laura’s favorite memory was going to Tavira’s Inverno festival with a small group, with music, food stalls, and local businesses.
Not at all. POMAR is a great fit for entrepreneurs, freelancers, creatives, and anyone who works remotely and wants a change of pace. You don’t have to live “nomad life” full-time to benefit from a workation sprint in a new environment.
It depends on the vibe you’re after. Laura describes POMAR Na Praia as a “typical Portuguese country house” with views of the Ria Formosa, while POMAR One stands out for its “thoughtfully curated interior design” with Portuguese details like blue tiles and clay pots—plus “room to breathe.”
Beyond the basics, bring what supports your work rhythm: noise-canceling headphones for calls, a portable laptop stand, and anything you rely on for deep-focus sessions. If your work is bandwidth-heavy (like Laura’s), it’s also worth planning key tasks around your most reliable working hours.
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