Portugal holiday tips – the leisurely & unspoiled Costa Vicentina
Sundowner on the patio at Quinta das Beldroegas, a simple rural self-catering retreat
I’m in Lisbon for two days of meetings. The last time I touched down here was, for once, on holidays.
We spent the first week of our June fortnight off in a part of the country I’ve never visited, but had heard so much about – the Alentejo coast. And in case you’re thinking but Sarah always goes to Alentejo, it’s true, but the wine region doesn’t extend as far west as the Costa Vicentina coastline (which, north to south, straddles Alentejo and the Algarve).
Praia da Zambujeira
Because the Costa Vicentina has been designated a national park, unlike the Algarve it’s unspoiled by development. As you can see, it’s beautiful – quite wild – just as I like it! Around where we stayed, near Sao Teotonio, the countryside is attractively hilly and rolling too. Check out our local beach – Praia da Zambujeira (above), which is overlooked by simple restaurants serving up catch of the day.
I have to admit that we wimped out of swimming in the Atlantic, though there were plenty of wet-suit clad surfers enjoying the waves. South of Sao Teotonio it was great to find a warmer lagoon at Carrapateira (near the stunning cliffs above) and to swim in the Seixe river where it empties into the sea at Odeceixe (lovely beach and a great beach cafe too).
To the north, Praia Almograve is quiet and offers a good chance to stretch the legs, both on the beach and the well marked fisherman’s coastal path which traverses the park. Next time we come it’ll be for the walking holiday we’d originally booked – a foot injury scuppered that one!
Praia Almograve
Vila Nova de Milfontes is a lively small town with good swimming beaches for those with children in tow. Here the river Mira empties into the Atlantic swell and, from the pretty town of Odemira to the east, we took advantage of the tide there and back on a bucolic kayaking trip (lots of kingfishers, turtles, water snakes).
Dear Sarah Ahmed,
Saying that the algarve is spoiled by development is like saying that the Algarve doesn’t have quality wines, and you nomenated 1 from the algarve as one of the 50best wines in Portugal on sale on the UK :)
In fact Costa Vicentina and Carrapateira are well in the Algarve. The Seixe River is the one who makes the division and you probably bathed on the Algarve side ;)
Don’t take me wrong but the Algarve is not only urban development we have a lot of unspoiled areas, in fact almost 50% of the Algarve are protected areas “Natura Network”.
Best Regards
Hi Hugo
Mea culpa – many thanks for that. It’s so dangerous to generalise and of course Carrapateira and part of Seixe are in the Algarve part of the Costa Vicentina. I reckon being in the Algarve (south) helped with the swimming too :)
Good to know that so much more of the Algarve is in the protected Natura Network. Sorry for perpetuating the stereo-type.
Best
Sarah
Sarah, I beg to differ! The Alentejo wine region DOES extend as far west as the Costa Vicentina coastline! Cortes de Cima has planted a vineyard 3 km from the Atlantic coast near Milfontes, which you would have sailed past on your kayak trip down the Rio Mira. The white Verdelho and Sauvignon Blanc grapes from these vineyards are already part of the Alentejan blend in our Chaminé Branco!
Hi Carrie. That’s pretty unusual for mainstream Alentejo producers to have vineyards so near the coast? No surprises it’s for white grapes! We hardly saw any vineyards on our visit and those we did see did not look like full-time professional operations? Your coastal vineyard would be VR Alentejano not DO Alentejo – the DOs are all well inland aren’t they?