Alastair Leithead

Alastair is the co-founder of Vale das Estrelas and an award-winning former foreign correspondent for the BBC, where he spent decades reporting from across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the United States.His work took him into some of the most complex and fascinating places in the world, driven by a lifelong curiosity about how people live, what shapes cultures, and how stories connect us.He now works as a freelance journalist and consultant, and continues to write, produce, and host podcasts, bringing a storyteller’s eye to place, history, and human experience.At Vale das Estrelas, Alastair brings that same sensibility into the retreat setting.He hosts story-driven wine tastings and conversations that weave together Alentejo’s history, landscapes, and culture through wine, creating experiences that are immersive, thoughtful, and often quietly moving.Alongside Ana, he co-created Vale das Estrelas as the kind of place they always loved to arrive at themselves: calm, generous, grounded in nature, and open to the world.During retreats, Alastair is part host, part storyteller, part guide, helping shape the atmosphere and deepen guests’ connection to both the land and one another.