The Mongolian Yurt - sleeps 4

Staying in this traditional Mongolian yurt on our glamping in the region of SouthWest Alentejo is an experience in itself. A place perfect for couples and families with young kids with beautiful panoramic views. It is equipped to accommodate two adults, for young kids there is  a sofa bed to sleep on. The yurt offers a private bathroom with shower and toilet. The roof window ensures fresh air inside the yurt and makes it possible to look at the starry sky at night. There is a lot of privacy around the tent.

Inside the yurt you will find a double bed, a sofa(bed) and a dining table with 4 chairs. It is a very cosy place to stay inside, especially in the evening with the little lights on.

Next to the tent is  a wooden house with the private bathroom and a basic kitchen that has everything guests could need to serve simple holiday meals. It has a refrigerator and a gas stove, pans, plates and cutlery. All you need is to provide your own ingredients. 

The terrace is in the shade of the cork trees surrounding the tent, sit here with your morning coffee and look out over the valley or over the hills to the village on the other side.
After that you can relax further in the hammock or at the beautiful natural pool, go for a hike, or visit the spectacular coast with its fantastic beaches.

Our glamping is located in the Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina,  that stretches from Sines in the north to Sagres in the extreme southwestern tip of the Algarve. You can make beautiful walks and mountain bike tours in the park, both along the rugged coast of southwestern Alentejo and through the surrounding hills. Construction is subject to strict rules, which means that you will hardly encounter any high-rise buildings and large complexes here.

Towns like Odemira, Santiago de Cacem and Sines are nice to walk through, but offer (except if there is a festival) not much entertainment. For this you better visit the coastal towns of Vila Nova de Milfontes, Porto Covo and Zambujeira do Mar. 

If you also want to visit the Algarve, you can be in Lagos in one hour and 15 minutes, or in Albufeira in 1.5 hours.

A short walk from your tent through the hills with grain fields will take you to the typical Alentejan village of Troviscais, where you can drink a cup of delicious Portuguese coffee on the terrace of the local café, while the village men play a traditional game along the road, which looks a bit like boules.

A walk of a few kilometers in the other direction leads through eucalyptus forests to the Mira river, one of the cleanest rivers in Europe, in which many otters still live and which is full of fish.

Beaches

Of course you also come here for the beaches. The coast of the south Alentejo is rugged, high cliffs that hit the Atlantic Ocean. Hidden among the cliffs are small sheltered beaches, even in high season it is not difficult to find a quiet beach.

You have the choice of quiet beaches, without any buildings, so you have to take care of food and drink yourself. Or the busier beaches of the coastal towns, but even here busy is a relative concept.

For calmer bathing waters, the river beaches at the mouth of the Mira river at Vila Nova de Milfontes are ideal. Here you can play in the waves, or just lie on the beach and listen to the sounds of the sea.
In the spring, storks nest on the cliffs, from above you can see beautifully how they take care of their young.

The nearest beach is at Vila Nova de Milfontes, a 25-minute drive from here.

Culture

There is plenty to do in the cultural field, certainly in the summer season. Each village (also Troviscais) then has its 'festas', usually a procession followed by a dance evening. In Sines there is a world music festival every year, and Odemira regularly has open-air jazz nights.

You will find historical sites more inland. A nice day trip is the Roman excavation Mirobriga, near Santiago do Cacem.

Every year in July, in the town of Sao Teotonio (at 30 km), the Faceco takes place, the largest agriculture and livestock exhibition in Portugal. Definitely worth experiencing. With inspections, competitions, exhibitions of all kinds of old crafts and evening music.

If you want to shop, you better go to the Algarve. Coastal towns such as Zambujeira do Mar, Vila Nova de Milfontes and Porto Covo offer some cozy shops, but for real shopping you have to go to places like Lagos and Albufeira.

However, you don't have to go far for souvenirs. We are happy to help you with good addresses.