Best things to do in Aljezur

Backed by dramatic cliffs rising over the golden sands, Arrifana Beach makes an intimate-yet-breathtaking getaway. The cliffs provide some protection from the winds, so waves stay small and manageable. For this reason, the Blue Flag beach is particularly popular with surfers and body surfers. Look up and spot Castle Arrifana, the 12th-century ruins thought to be the one-time residence of a prince. Look for ruins from several mosques nearby, too. Steps provide access to the beach from the village, where you can go for food and accommodation. Note that the steps are somewhat steep. You'll find restrooms, showers, and lifeguards on site.

Behold the rugged coastal scenery from the most southwesterly point in Europe at Cape Saint Vincent. Visit the cape's 1846 lighthouse, which stands at 24 m (79 ft) and watches over one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. Listen to the waves crashing on the cliffs and keep your eyes open for the many birds that inhabit and nest in the area, such as gulls, eagles, storks, and falcons. The terrain is moderately rough, so keep this in mind if bringing children or those with limited mobility.

Praia da Amoreira is a beach within the Municipality of Aljezur, in the Algarve, Portugal. The beach is on the western Seaboard in the north west of the Algarve. The beach is 5.4 miles (8.7 km) north west of the village of Aljezur, and is 71.8 miles (115.6 km) north west, by road, from the regions capital of Faro.

A Rota Vicentina – Associação para a Promoção do Turismo de Natureza na Costa Alentejana e Vicentina é uma entidade associativa sem fins lucrativos, constituída a 05 de Junho de 2013, com o objectivo de assumir a gestão do projecto Rota Vicentina.

// The Rota Vicentina – Association for the Promotion of Nature Tourism in the Alentejo and Vicentina Coast, is a non-profit association, officially founded on 05th June 2013, with the goal of assuming the management and overall coordination of the project Rota Vicentina.

Take a walk around Castelo de Silves, one of the best-preserved Moorish fortifications in Portugal, with its 11 towers, red walls, and excavation sites. Although the structure that can be seen today was built between the 8th and 13th centuries, excavations have revealed origins dating back to around 201 BCE. Located on a hilltop overlooking the town, the castle serves as a recreation spot, nestled in a landscaped park surrounded by palm trees, benches, and fountains. See the remains of food stores, Arab silos, and a 10 m (30 ft) tall cistern here.

Along a coastline of natural beaches, discover Fortaleza de Sagres, a historical site featuring a great fortress, impressive plants, and wildlife. Henry the Navigator launched his expeditions from this site in the 1400s, beginning the Portuguese Age of Discoveries. Henry built a chapel next to his home in 1459 that was replaced with the Nossa Senhora da Graca church in 1579. The magnificent fortress was built to defend the region from North African raiders in the 16th century. Though the 1755 earthquake destroyed portions of the structures, they have undergone extensive renovations since.

The Castle of Aljezur is a medieval castle founded in the parish of Aljezur, in the municipality of the same name overlooking the Aljezur River. Excavations in the castle have discovered that the location was occupied during the Bronze and Iron Ages, while the parade grounds, habitational structures, and two silos date to the 12th and 13th centuries.
The site of the castle was occupied, successively and uninterrupted by Lusitanians, who constructed a castro to oversee their lands, before being pushed aside by the Romans, who constructed a lookout. By the 7th-8th century, the Visigoths also used the space as a sentry to safeguard their territory.
By the beginning of the 10th century, a small town was founded by Arabs, who reformulated their defences, constructing various dependencies within and outside the walls. Of these constructions, only the cistern in the castle survives their period of occupation. The castle was part of the Moorish defensive line of Silves, during the Almohad Caliphate and era of the Iberian taifas.
In 1242 (or 1246), Aljezur was conquered by knights loyal to Paio Peres Correia. As legend suggests, the conquest of the castle aided by a Moorish woman, who betrayed her fellow countrymen and delivered the citadel into the hands of the knights The ''Lenda of Maira Aires, also suggests that the castle was taken by Paio Correia on 24 June, on the feast day of the village's patron saint. Its occupation did not result in the partial or total destruction of the castle, although alterations to the fortress occurred in the first decades of its Christian occupation.