estremadura

Nestling on the banks of the River Sizandro on the edge of the verdant Serra de Montejunto, the charming country town of Torres Vedras is an ancient place set deep in the heart of Portugal’s enchanting Estremadura region.

As its name implies, the lovely town of Caldas da Rainha (Queen’s Spa) an hour’s drive north of Lisbon in central Portugal preserves the eternal and loving memory of one of the country’s most popular queens – Leonor – whose … Read more

Covering some 600 square-kilometres, Portugal’s very own cowboy country – the Ribatejo, meaning ‘bank of the Tagus’ – is a highly fertile province and the country’s geographical and agricultural heartland.

When the renowned English travel writer William Beckford visited Portugal (his favourite European country) in the late-18th century, he happened upon two of the shiniest jewels in the country’s tourism crown – the monasteries of Batalha and Alcobaça.

Surrounded by one of the oldest state forests in the world, the lovely old city of Leiria was once the southernmost outpost of the early Portuguese kingdom at a time when Lisbon was still under Moorish occupation.

Once an offshore island as recent as the mid-16th century, the old port town of Peniche is a place of history, ocean-fresh air and fun-filled seaside pursuits on some of the best beaches to be found in Portugal’s enchanting Estremadura … Read more

None of Portugal’s kings was as forward-thinking and gifted as Dinis (1261-1325), who wrote dozens of poems of a romantic nature, including many about his wife, Elizabeth of Aragon.

With all the wonder of a tale from the Arabian Nights, Portugal’s long and chequered history is today still greatly evident from the many humble objects associated with the simple daily existence of the past.

One of the most picturesque seaside towns in Portugal, Nazaré is a bustling resort with a large crescent-shaped stretch of golden, sandy beach on the west coast of central Portugal.

Perched on a high cliff facing the Atlantic, just 10 km west of Mafra, the pretty fishing town of Ericeira metamorphoses into a lively holiday resort during the summer months, with numerous cafés, restaurants and bars opening up alongside its … Read more

Laid out flat between the Atlantic and the Alentejo like a vast patched picnic blanket, the Estremadura region is one of the most varied in the whole of Portugal.