Why go en Alentejo?
The good reasons to go en Alentejo
A land of adventure
Rivers, mountains and seaside: the Alentejo can be visited on foot, on horseback or by bike!
Wines of excellence..
Great wines or small productions, the region is known worldwide for its wines.
The authentic Portugal!
Fairs, pagan and religious festivals: living traditions, far from clichés!
Secret beaches..
Coves at the foot of cliffs, long white beaches, the coast hides its treasures..
A warm welcome
Here, no fuss: we take you as you are and we fill you with good things.
A local gastronomy
Game, fish, vegetables, fruit: the Alentejo, a land of gourmets and fresh products.
A rich heritage
Celtic megaliths, Roman ruins, castles, monasteries: all the history of Portugal.
Nature at your feet
Natural parks, reserves, secret serras, hiking trails: the natural Portugal.
A unique craft
Painted furniture, pottery, bells, rugs, figurines from Estremoz: artisans and artists!
The song of the earth
Polyphonic a cappella singing, the Cante alentejano is the voice of the Alentejano.
Good to know when visiting l'Alentejo
Timetable
Museum hours vary. In general, they close on Mondays and open on other days between 10am and 6pm with a break for lunch. Most of the time, access is free for students.
Budget & Tips
The Alentejo tourist office maintains a rich online portal (www.visitalentejo.pt), from which it is possible to download a lot of documents, including excellent brochures, sometimes in French, on all the areas that interest you: culture, gastronomy, hiking, restaurants, handicrafts, as well as very complete maps. If this is not enough, there is still the site of the Portuguese tourist office, a mine: www.visitportugal.com The agencies of the tourist office of the region are present in most of the tourist sites of Alentejo and their staff is multilingual. You will also find maps, city plans and well-designed guidebooks on topics such as rural tourism and birdwatching. The documents are free or for sale, for less than 10 €.
Guided tours
Apart from bus or train tours, there is another way to visit a city: free tours (www.freetour.com). These are tours (often free) offered by locals who want to share the treasures of their country. The tours are given in French, English or Spanish. It can be a thematic, historical, night tour... An original way to explore the country. And nothing prevents you from leaving a tip at the end of the visit..
What's very local
In the fishing villages and ports, try to attend the auction ("na lota") of the day's catch. It is aimed at restaurant owners and fishmongers, but the spectacle is highly picturesque.
Find unique holiday offers with our partners
Discover l'Alentejo
The Alentejo ("beyond the Tagus") represents almost a third of Portugal. Protected to the east by its many fortress towns, the region is dominated on its plain by the two sentinel cities of Beja and Évora. This rural province offers a complete change of scenery and the promise of a return to the land. Sparsely inhabited (6%), the region seems like an ocean of hills, with here and there a village or chapel punctuating the immense azure sky with the white of their walls. Here, you'll discover people, skills and a terroir that's still going strong. Alentejo is particularly renowned for its vineyards. It's also one of the regions where, on every street corner, you'll come across men and women sitting in the shade of a tree, almost part of the landscape. A word of advice: go outside the summer months. For example, in autumn, when the red-orange color of the vines blended with the brown-green of the trees and plains is marvelous.
