Comporta – half nature refuge, half hip destination
The small towns of Comporta, Carvalhal and Melides are known for their 50 km long, beautiful and almost untouched beaches (Europe’s longest) spreading from the Troia peninsula all way down to Sines. Comporta is located on the southern shores of the Sado estuary with its green rice fields and endless pine forests, close to the natural park “Reserva Natural do Estuário do Sado“, where you can come to observe the wild dolphins. It is home to the famous “cabanas”, restored former fisherman’s cottages built with straw, luxury holiday-rentals and boutique hotels.
25 minutes south of Comporta we come across Melides in the Sierra de Grândola. A former pirate's refuge and later a fishing port. It is a quiet village with typical Alentejo white and blue houses. Here the landscape changes, leaving behind the sand dunes and pine trees to find hills covered with centenary cork oaks and meadows full of wild flowers. On the way to the beach we pass a beautiful lagoon, habitat of numerous bird species, and access can be made by cart or dirt road for those who want to be isolated. Melides gives us more tranquillity, more tradition and more smell of earth. Please check our blog post of Comporta
