We combined my birthday on 10/29 with the Portuguese holiday on 11/01/22 and went to visit a region of Alentejo which is between Évora and Spain, which has as its main characteristic the large production of Portuguese marble. We left on Saturday and returned on Tuesday at the end of the day, spending 4 days there, and we visited Estremoz, Vila Viçosa, Elvas, Campo Maior, Evoramonte and Arraiolos. We didn't go to Évora this time, as we already knew it, but if you want to know more about our trip there, read our post 2 days in Alentejo (Vicentine Coast, Évora, Monsaraz and Herdade do Esporão).

We stayed in just one hotel, the Mascarenhas Manor (note 8.6), in Vila Viçosa, and from there we set off to see the places of our wishlist, which were no more than 1 hour away by car. The family hotel was very well located, had a playroom that was a hit with the kids, a very complete breakfast, a bouncy castle, slide and pool (we didn't use it) in the outdoor area, and best of all, the owners provided outstanding service. I felt welcomed!

Now let's get to the script, very much based on the blog articles. Vagamundos, my favorite Portuguese. 🙂

Day 1 – Saturday (10/29/2022)

We left Cascais right after the kids had lunch, as we wanted them to take a nap while we drove for almost 2 hours to our destination. They ended up waking up after 1:30 and we decided to have lunch in Estremoz before heading to our hotel in Vila Viçosa.

Estremoz

We had chosen to have lunch at Blue Sale, the city's #1 restaurant, but when we got there there was a line out the door and we ended up giving up. We went to #2 on TripAdvisor, the Scythe Grocery Store, and we were able to get a table on the balcony right when we arrived. The restaurant is Michelin-starred and everything we ordered was delicious, and we also received excellent service. The only problem was that it took a while for the main dishes to arrive, but in the end, it was worth the wait to celebrate my birthday in style.

We left there and went to the playground in the square in front of the restaurant so the kids could burn off some energy and sing Happy Birthday! 🙂

Since the weather was cloudy, we took the car and drove to the castle at the top of the town, and luckily, we were able to park in the main square. We first entered the Chapel of Queen Saint Elizabeth, which had just been opened for visits, and then we walked around the square enjoying the view of the city, Keep Tower and the Statue of Queen Saint Elizabeth, both made with local marble. We thought about going to the Pousada de Estremoz, where the Royal Palace, but it started to rain and the kids were tired, so I didn't have the courage to go to reception and ask to see it. Now I regret it, of course... lol. Look how cute this area is:

We drove around protected from the rain by Pillory from Estremoz, for the Rossio of the Marquis of Pombal, the largest square in Portugal, and wanted to enter alone Church of St. Francis for a quick birthday prayer while the rest of the family went for a drive.

We left the city happy with what we saw, but wishing we had more time and more sun to enjoy the city on foot with the little ones.

Some important facts about Estremoz

• “White city”, where more than 80% of the entire world is produced marble white from Portugal.
• Several Portuguese monarchs lived there, notably King Dom Dinis and Queen Santa Isabel.
• Every week, on Saturday mornings, the Traditional Market of Estremoz, one of the largest in Alentejo, where they sell regional products, handcrafts and antiques. We didn't make it in time, but you might! 😉
• In 2017, the emblematic Estremoz Dolls, which are over 3 centuries old, made of clay and painted in bright colours, were declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

Arriving in Vila Viçosa

We drove from Estremoz to our hotel, the Mascarenhas Manor, in Vila Viçosa, and when we arrived, we rested a little in the room before going out for a early dinner. Nice, renovated hotel with lots of rest areas, and the playroom that I mentioned was a hit with my pups.

Unfortunately most of the restaurants were closed, as we wanted to eat around 6pm, so we ended up going to the only possible option, Cafe Restoration. We went on foot with the children's stroller, which was super practical and pleasant, and we arrived at the restaurant that I believe is the most popular in the city...lol.

We were well attended to, but we didn't really love the food we ordered. The kids ate soups and steak sandwiches, which were delicious, but my yakisoba was terrible. We walked back to the hotel calmly, admiring the identical little houses and quiet streets, and we all slept together after a busy day. A busy birthday! <3

Day 2 – Sunday (10/30/2022)

We had a nice breakfast at the hotel, with some cakes, fruit and cereals, and then we went to play on the bouncy castle, slide and playroom.

Vila Viçosa

We decided to walk around Vila Viçosa because we had already spent a few hours the previous day in the car, so we took it all in our stride. We left around 10am to explore the city and went straight to the main attraction of the place, the Ducal Palace.

The Dukes of Braganza owned many properties but this luxurious palace, begun by Dom Jaime in 1501, was their favorite residence. It has a façade with 110 meters long that is unique in Portuguese civil architecture, revealing classical inspiration, and amazingly: it is all made of local marble! I was impressed by its size and beauty!

Guided tour of the Ducal Palace

At 10 am sharp, the Knot Gate opened, and we paid 8 euros per person for the 1-hour guided tour. We went in with the kids without the stroller, and after 5 minutes of walking, we were already regretting it with the 2 restless kids in the first room. I tried to go back to get the stroller, but the door was locked, so we had to spend the whole time distracting them with cookies, games, and of course, cell phones. We took turns with the kids and the talking guide so we could enjoy the tour, but it was really complicated, especially because we were the only young people with kids. There were a lot of strange looks and time seemed to stand still, so if I could go back in time, I would take the stroller so that at least Paddy would be sitting down the whole time. There are no benches to sit on in the palace, so imagine the boy sitting on the floor the whole time… lol. Tough.

Of course, now after 1 month of traveling and many sleepless nights with Julinha, I don't remember much of the trip, but I can say that so far it was the best. best preserved palace I have ever visited in Portugal. We were impressed by the wealth of material on display, so in our opinion, the Palace is definitely a must see in the region.

Oh, you can't take pictures inside!

Church of the Augustinians

We went out through the garden, picked up the cart at the entrance to the Palace and went to see the Church of the Augustinians, founded in 1267 and rebuilt in the 17th century.

Lunch in Vila Viçosa

Then we sat in the cafeteria The Tiborna, to give Ju lunch and wait for the restaurant Craft BBS open. When it opened, we ordered burgers and enjoyed them!

Vila Viçosa Castle

We left there with the 2 little ones sleeping in the stroller and took the opportunity to stroll calmly around Vila Viçosa Castle, very close by. The castle was the residence of the Braganças from 1461 until the Palace was completed and has a beautiful view of the city, take a look:

Municipal Forest of Vila Viçosa

We left the castle with the two little ones still asleep and continued to stroll through the cute streets of the city, full of orange trees. We went into the Nossa Senhora da Lapa Church for a basic look (we love churches!) and then went to the tourist office to confirm where there was a cool playground for them. We then continued on to the Municipal Forest of the city and when the children woke up, it was pure joy!

We already understand that the secret to a good trip with children is to mix adult activities with children's activities, so we continue like this! 🙂

Dinner in Vila Viçosa

We played so much that I even fell asleep on the bench (lol). Afterwards, with everyone hungry and tired, we stopped at the same café as the day before for a early dinner, but this time we got it right with our pork sandwiches (bifanas). We enjoyed the sunset in the empty square and then walked back to the hotel with a good feeling of carpe diem, you know? It was a lovely slow Sunday with the family!

Day 3 – Monday (10/31/2022)

We woke up early with the kids and played in the playroom until breakfast time. We ate well, but since it was raining, we couldn't play on the bouncy castle or the slide. We got in the car and headed towards Elvas, praying all the time for the rain to stop… I can tell you right now that it did! 🙂

Elvas

Elvas was designed and built with a single purpose in mind: to guarantee national defense on the border between the two countries with the construction of the largest walled fortress in a strategic location. And in the 17th century, Elvas gained the title of most fortified city in Europe which gave him the nickname of Queen of the Frontier. Considered the second Alentejo city with the best quality of life, losing only to Evora, Elvas has more than 40 churches and convents and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2012.

We arrived at the historic center and because of the rain, it was pretty empty. We drove around, liked what we saw, and decided to park the car and risk it in the rain. We parked in a covered parking lot right under Praça da República and got out right in front of the Tourist Office. I went there to ask about what to visit with the kids, even though I already had a pre-defined list, but I was surprised by the attendant when she told me that ALL ATTRACTIONS WERE CLOSED BECAUSE IT WAS MONDAY. Where have you ever seen that, my friends? You mean you've never heard of alternating closing days? You mean no one goes sightseeing on Mondays? What a blunder, you know... and now I'll be alert for my next trips, of course. I left there feeling devastated, I'm not going to lie.

The good thing is that the rain gave me a break to cheer me up and we decided to walk around the attractions anyway. We walked through the cute streets with yellow houses until we reached the Elvas Castle, which has Roman and Moorish origins, and until the end of the 16th century, was the residence of the mayors of Elvas.

Amazing lunch in Elvas

After some photos, we found a very cozy restaurant in front of the Castle, the Castle Stones, which had a lovely Chinese owner who agreed to welcome us before opening so I could give Ju lunch. She made sure to prepare a Chinese soup for her, which was on the menu and I don't remember the name anymore lol, and Ju loved it! When the restaurant officially opened, we ordered Black Pig Feathers and we LOVED it! I think it was the tastiest meat dish I've tried in Portugal, seriously. I recommend it!

Strolling superficially through Elvas

We left there happy to stroll around the historic center of Elvas without rushing. We passed by the friendly Street of the Beatas, for the Santa Clara Arch, for the Elvas pillory, for the Municipal Market, and in front of some churches, but unfortunately they were all closed.

When we were going to buy the typical plum sweet in one of the few open bakeries, it started to rain again and Ju fell asleep in the stroller, so we thought it best to go straight to the car so she could take a nap there. Paddy ended up falling asleep too and we drove calmly to a village that was on our list, Major Field.

Major Field

Since the two of them were sleeping soundly, we explored the area from inside the car. Little white houses, churches, castle, narrow streets, few people on the street, everything closed, in other words, everything was the same…lol.

Maybe it on a sunny day that isn't Monday would be interesting! 🙂

Dining in Vila Viçosa

We arrived in Vila Viçosa with the little ones still sleeping, we went to play at the hotel, take a shower and went out for dinner around 7pm at a restaurant very close by that had a good rating, the Ducal Palace. We ordered appetizers, pizza, calzone and pasta bolognese for the kids. We thought the service was great and the atmosphere was very family-friendly. A great choice!

Day 4 – Tuesday (11/01/2022)

We had our last breakfast of the trip, played a little more in the playroom and made checkout from the hotel without rushing. We drove for about 30 minutes to our next destination, passing many active quarries characteristic of the region.

Evoramonte

This village with over 700 years of history on top of a hill has one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen in Alentejo. We parked the car right near the castle and went looking for the colorful little houses painted on the stones on the ground. What a great hunt with Patrick! We took lots of photos, played a lot and at the end I stopped at the only open shop to buy my magnet and discovered that the artisan/owner of the shop was the one responsible for the idea of the little houses on the streets. How sweet! This certainly made our trip with the pups more fun, since both the castle and the churches were closed.

Arraiolos

We drove for another half hour on the way back to our house and stopped in the town of Arraiolos, famous for its rugs made from cotton canvas and fabrics made from pure dyed wool. The specific technique gives the stitching a characteristic cross-stitch, called Arraiolo Stitches. The tradition is passed down from generation to generation and reflects the cultural characteristics of each era in the designs created on the tapestry. Handmade by embroiderers, these pieces are considered Portuguese Heritage.

We had already seen that there was a gastronomy event taking place at Multipurpose Pavilion of the city and we went straight there to ensure a quick and different lunch. We went straight to the Snack Republic (I'm almost sure it was this one) and we ordered some house dishes, all delicious and very well served. We also really liked the service.

After lunch, we went for a walk around the pavilion and found a playground with retro toys that was really cool! Then we went upstairs and saw the exhibition of the largest Arraiolos rug, which was really beautiful, check it out:

We walked around the shops and then went to get the car to see the rest of the city from inside the car.

We went to the city's castle, which has a beautiful view, and continued on our way to Cascais with the little ones already asleep and us feeling very fulfilled.

It's so nice to travel with them and get their feeding and nap times just right. Everything becomes easier and more enjoyable for all of us. Live and learn, right? <3