More than just a dog resort, Herdade Bonanza, in Odiáxere, is a place for learning, socialising, and leisure
Open to the public for three years, this complex offers an extensive range of services for a variety of purposes and occasions.
Although it is best known for its hotel facilities that accommodate around 50 dogs – each in a private box unless they belong to the same family – there are other handy services: the training programmes, the daycare service, and the spa.
According to owner Marc Kuenzel, the goal is to provide “a complete service and a true space for pets to go on holiday or learn how to behave and obey”.
He proudly adds that he believes it to be “the largest canine complex in Europe”, a place where education is combined with fun and relaxation in a vast area dedicated to socialisation, featuring four lawns and 12 individual fields, where dogs can enjoy an unmatched experience.
Besides the grooming service, dogs can swim in the indoor pool, which spans 200 square metres and includes ramps at different levels. They can also undergo ozone therapy, a treatment known for its anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving, immune-boosting, and antibacterial effects. Both in the daycare centre and in the hotel, pets interact, play, practise agility, swim, and go for walks, with optional transport from Lagos.
To ensure that everything runs smoothly, trainer Gonçalo Guerreiro carries out an evaluation upon arrival to understand each dog’s personality, as well as before every class, whether individual or group.
According to Gonçalo, any dog that doesn’t yet respond to basic obedience commands should take part in this service, where they “learn self-control and how to behave around others”.
The hotel also provides top-quality care, with music playing in the kennels and heating lamps during the colder months.
“Dogs often get more pampered here than at home because they can run, socialise, and have 24-hour supervision, since some of the staff live on the property,” reveals Gonçalo.
He also advises owners to bring their pet’s bed and food to make them feel more comfortable during their stay. The design of each kennel was carefully thought out by Susana, Marc’s wife, who developed the concept and selected different façades and tiles to create a warm, cosy atmosphere.
As part of the ongoing upgrades and improvements to the property, Herdade Bonanza will soon introduce new features in its canine spa, offering pets a daycare experience that includes moments of leisure, relaxation, and fun, for however long their owners wish.
Two years ago, Herdade Bonanza began hosting events – from sports and corporate gatherings to birthday parties, christenings, and weddings for up to 250 guests.
The venue includes a large children’s area, recently renovated, and can be adapted with inflatables, a disco, or even a cinema.
To offer an even more complete service, there is also a restaurant on the property, serving buffet-style meals, open to the public and available for private events.
There’s also plenty of outdoor entertainment options, including an interactive zone, swimming pool, and go-kart track, spread across seven hectares and seven different fields, which will soon be expanded.
In 2027, the concept will grow further, with the addition of 13 new buildings, marking the start of another project “more focused on sports and accommodation, perhaps for holiday camps”, reveals Marc Kuenzel.
Of German and Portuguese descent, Marc was born in Hamburg but admits he “always wanted to move to Portugal”. He graduated in Economics and Law in Germany, where he joined the team of a German bank, specialising in buying and selling companies worldwide. Later, he worked with investment funds in the healthcare sector, also in his home country, before deciding to move to Lagos, where he continued in the same field but shifted his focus to the hotel industry.
After a period in Luxembourg, during which he created nine healthcare funds, and many years travelling back and forth to Germany for work, Marc felt the need to have a dog to protect his family, who lived in an isolated area.
He travelled to the United States to bring home Faron, a German Shepherd. “He was amazing, my shadow. Wherever I went, he was there with me. It was one of the best experiences I ever had,” recalls Marc, explaining that he “wanted a dog suited to the family’s needs; one that could protect, provide security, be well-trained, and interact well with children”.
Faron was the true inspiration behind the creation of the Dog Resort. Marc struggled to find a place where he could leave his dog during holidays and feel confident about the care provided.
That concern, shared with his wife Susana and their other three dogs, led to the idea of building a space that met those standards.
Once the project began to take shape, Marc realised the importance of offering training as well, and he immediately contacted Gonçalo Guerreiro, a Lagos native he had known since he was a young boy, back when Gonçalo would accompany his father, who trained Marc’s German Shepherds.
Having grown up around dogs, Gonçalo began training them at an early age, turning his passion into a profession at 18, when he started teaching and competing with his own dogs. “I’ve always liked competitions because I think they’re the only way to prove my work,” he shares.
In 2021, Herdade Bonanza bred and trained German Shepherds from some of the best bloodlines in the world, selling them to families across Europe. Some were even specifically trained to detect explosives and joined the police forces in Portugal, England, and the US.
These days, however, the focus is on family protection and obedience training. “A protection dog also interacts and plays with children; those things don’t have to be mutually exclusive. They’re a huge asset and real personal guards,” Marc says. He is also a staunch believer that every dog should receive some form of training, since “even if they’re companion animals, they must know the basic commands”.
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