Pedro DominguesThere are four places that I consider a must-see in and around Mértola:
- The town of Mértola, of course, seat of the municipality on the banks of River Guadiana.
- The surreal Mina de São Domingos, with its fabulous Tapada Grande river beach.
- Pulo do Lobo, one of the most impressive spots along the Guadiana River in Portugal.
- And the surroundings of Chança Dam, near Pomarão.
Do you want to discover each of these places? In this article I’ll tell you all about what to do in Mértola and surroundings, so that you can make the most of the main landscapes that Guadiana Valley Natural Park has to offer.
This is still a largely unexplored region, a very different Portugal awaiting your visit!
Where is Mértola located, in Portugal?
Mértola is close to the border with Spain (Andalusia). To the south is the fabulous Algarve, where you’ll find some of the best beaches in Portugal. To the north are Serpa and Beja. And finally, it also borders two of the municipalities on the mythical National Road 2: Castro Verde and Almodôvar.
Guadiana Valley Natural Park has Mértola as its main entry point, so I can’t fail to mention it. It covers around 70000 hectares and stretches from Pulo do Lobo area (between Serpa and Mértola) to the mouth of Ribeira de Vascão on River Guadiana, bordering the Algarve.
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When to visit Mértola and Guadiana Valley Natural Park?
Summer may not be the right time to visit Mértola, unless it’s a stopover point before or after a tour of the Algarve. The heat in summer is intense, and if you come at that time you’ll only be fine at the Tapada Grande river beach in Mina de São Domingos.
1. Producers’ Market
Pay also attention to the region’s main festivities. The Producers’ Market always takes place on the penultimate Saturday of each month, in the morning, in Rossio do Carmo square. It can be an excellent opportunity to get to know local products when you visit Mértola.
2. Mértola’s Gastronomic Events
- Túbera Festival in March (a kind of fungus that is considered the “Truffle of the Alentejo”)
- River Fish Festival in April
- Hunting Fair in October, after all Mértola is the capital of hunting in Portugal.
- Honey, Cheese and Bread Fair in April.
3. Mértola Islamic Festival
Here’s a link to Mértola Islamic Festival website, where you can find all the information you need about it. I think the theme is obvious, and the festival takes place every two years in May. This is perhaps the best time to visit Mértola!
4. Mértola Town Festivities
They take place in June at Cais do Guadiana, and end with a traditional “sardinhada” (eating sardines).
5. Mértola Radical
A sports event that takes place in August with various activities in Serra de Alcaria, Mértola and Mina de São Domingos (river beach).
How to get to Mértola and Guadiana Valley Natural Park?
It is possible to reach Mértola by bus (Rede Expressos), from the main cities in the country, such as Lisbon.
However, Mértola is a very remote location in Alentejo, ideal for road trips, so my recommendation is that you rent a car, if you don’t have your own. Do it with Discover Cars, which allows you to compare several rental companies before finding the best deal! A car will give you a lot of flexibility when traveling in Alentejo.
Gastronomy and Restaurants in Mértola and Guadiana Valley Natural Park
As this is the national capital of hunting, meat from hunting is the best option.
I didn’t try the Túberas, but they are also a possibility, as people say they are the truffle of the Alentejo.
And then there’s the typical Gaspacho, lamb stew, and Alentejo Migas.
For restaurants, I obviously recommend Espaço Casa Amarela. As I’ll also mention throughout the text that follows, this place has a great view of Mértola, and the food is even better. That’s where I had the pork cheeks in the photo below. Delicious!
Accommodation tips to visit Mértola and Guadiana Valley Natural Park
| Accommodation | Score | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Quinta do Vau | 9.0 | Mértola |
| Beira Rio | 8.0 | Mértola |
| Hotel Museu | 8.1 | Mértola |
| Horta da Quinta | 9.2 | Mértola |
| Casa Amarela | 8.4 | Mértola |
| Alentejo Star Hotel | 8.1 | Mina de São Domingos |
Things to do in Mértola and Guadiana Valley Natural Park
To visit Mértola and its surroundings, you’ll need to pass through the historic center and then on to Pulo do Lobo, Pomarão and Mina de São Domingos. I’m going to assume that your base of accommodation is Mértola, so I’ll start by sharing what to visit in the town.
Map with things to do in Mértola
Visit the Historic Center of Mértola
The first tip is not to take the car into the historic center, as it’s not easy to drive in those narrow, sloping streets. My recommendation is that you visit the town of Mértola on foot, starting, for example, from places near Rossio do Carmo Square. That’s exactly what I did. From there I went up to the castle (the most touristy area), down to river Guadiana, and back up again at the end.
Mértola is in a place where remains of settlements dating back more than 5,000 years have been discovered. Various peoples settled there, long before the Arabs or even the Romans. In the Roman period it was Myrtilis and an important mercantile center, in the Arab period it was Martulah and the capital of an independent Arab emirate.
It was conquered from the Moors in the 13th century and from then on lost some of its importance in Portuguese territory. It gained new impetus, including population, with the start of mining in the 19th century, but half the population left the territory and never returned when the mines closed.
1. Mértola Municipal Market
The Tourist Office is right at the entrance to the walled town, shortly after you pass Mértola Municipal Market. Find out about the town’s museum and its opening hours there, as there are various sections around the town that you can visit.
2. Museum of Mértola
The House of Mértola and the Weaving Workshop are two parts of Mértola Museum, and are very close to the tourist office and the Mother Church. The first is a space that recreates a typical Mértola household in the mid-20th century, and the second shows you the artisanal process of weaving and decorating wool blankets in Mértola, with a clear Arab influence.
There are also other places to visit:
- The Islamic Art Museum, with an exhibition of various archaeological remains found near Mértola that belong to the period of Arab occupation between the 9th and 13th centuries.
- The Museum Center for Sacred Art, housed in the Church of Misericórdia. It exhibits sacred art objects (paintings and sculptures, for example), which have been removed from the region’s churches and stored in the museum for preservation.
- The Roman House Museum, which gives access to the remains of a Roman house discovered in Mértola Town Hall building after a fire at the end of the 20th century.
- The Museum Center of the Paleochristian Basilica. It is located in Rossio do Carmo and gives you access to the results of the archaeological excavation carried out there. They found traces of an ancient basilica that existed before the Moorish occupation, and several graves.
- And the Blacksmith’s Forge Museum, which arose from the rehabilitation of the space where Mértola’s last blacksmith worked: “Ti Brito’s Forge”. In this museum you can find all the tools he used in his daily life, arranged as they were in the past.
3. Mother Church of Mértola (Nossa Senhora da Assunção)
Next up are the must-sees when visiting Mértola. I’ll start with the Mother Church, which was an ancient mosque from the Islamic period, transformed into a church after the Christian reconquest. Visiting the museum section of the Mother Church of Nossa Senhora da Assunção gives you access to information about the various phases of occupation of this place.
4. Mértola Castle
Due to its presence next to Guadiana river, Mértola has always been a point of communication between Mérida and the Atlantic Ocean. Hence the need to defend and fortify it from an early age.
Mértola Castle arose during the Arab occupation, but its keep was already built after the Christian reconquest, by the Order of the Knights of Santiago.
5. Mértola’s Citadel
The remains of Mértola’s Citadel can be seen near the castle, and consist of the site where the Roman forum of Mértola was located and later an Islamic quarter. After the Christian reconquest, this site was converted into a cemetery, which helped preserve the archaeological remains, since nothing has appeared above the old buildings.
6. Calvary Chapel, Elias Garcia Street and Mértola Bridge
Next to the Calvary Chapel you have access to Rua Elias Garcia, which is perhaps the steepest street in Mértola! Believe me, you won’t want to do it the other way around! It’s an unmissable street, from where you have access to good viewpoints of Mértola Bridge.
In the middle of the street you’ll find one of the aforementioned sections of Mértola Museum: the Blacksmith’s Forge. At the end of the street, in the lower part of the historic center, there are two others: the Museums of Sacred Art and Islamic Art.
7. Walls of Mértola, Guadiana Quay and River Tower
At the bottom of Rua Elias Garcia you will also find a dirt track that will take you to the Guadiana Quay, passing the ruins of the River Tower, also known as Couraça Tower. This tower is thought to be part of the structure of an old bridge in Mértola, but it also had a defensive function and allowed safe access to the river for water supply.
8. Mértola Clock Tower
Once you reach the Guadiana pier, you’ll find a path and staircase back to the historic center. It ends next to the Clock Tower, one of the most symbolic and photographed monuments in the town of Mértola.
9. Hotel Museu
On the outskirts of the historic center of Mértola there are still a few places to discover. One of them is Hotel Museum, a real hotel built on the banks of River Guadiana, above the ruins of an old Arab quarter. It has a museum center to visit, with all the pieces found when the hotel was built.
10. Cineteatro Marques Duque
Cineteatro Marques Duque is another tourist attraction in Mértola built on archaeological remains. Graves have been found there that are thought to belong to an extension of the cemetery of the Paleochristian basilica already mentioned.
11. Espaço Casa Amarela and Mértola Viewpoint
Espaço Casa Amarela is an excellent place to have lunch when visiting Mértola. In fact, this was one of the best restaurants I found while touring the Alentejo. Firstly, it has a privileged view of the town of Mértola from the other side of the river; and secondly, it serves delicious food. The black pork cheeks were so good that I devoured them in no time!
12. Azenhas do Guadiana River Beach
The name of Azenhas do Guadiana river beach comes from the watermills built by the Order of Santiago along the Guadiana river, with the aim of harnessing the power of the river to turn grain into flour.
If you wish, you can opt for boat trips from Mértola, which go as far as Alcoutim, in the Algarve, or Pomarão. You can also choose to rent a canoe and do a stretch of the river with it.
13. Chapel of Nossa Senhora das Neves
Finally, in Mértola, you must go up to the Chapel of Nossa Senhora das Neves, for another must-see viewpoint of the town.
Visit Pulo do Lobo and its walkways
Pulo do Lobo is north of Mértola and should be your next stop. It’s a great place for hiking when visiting the Guadiana Valley Natural Park.
I accessed the place from the bank where the Herdade do Pulo do Lobo gate is (which you have to open and close as you pass through). From that side it was easy to get to the rock formations and the waterfall, despite the dirt road. On the other side, however, it seems to me that you’ll have access to the best views, which I also got with a drone. 😉
More than the waterfall or the waters of the Guadiana river, what impressed me most was how the river has sculpted that rock into the most varied shapes: a true marvel!
Pulo do Lobo is a secluded spot which, despite being the most famous in the Guadiana Valley Natural Park, retains its wild side. Here you can experience nature at its purest and most untamed.
EDIT: Wooden walkways have recently been added to Pulo do Lobo!
Visit Pomarão and Chança Dam
Next to the Chança dam, climb up to the Pomarão Chapel for the best views of both the dam and Guadiana River in the south of the natural park. Half the dam is Portuguese, half Spanish!
At the end, walk down to the picturesque Pomarão pier.
Visit Mina de São Domingos and Tapada Grande River Beach
To finish off your visit to Mértola and Guadiana Valley Natural Park, there’s nothing better than the mining complex at Mina de São Domingos. It’s like entering a parallel world!
With my car, I took to the dirt tracks and explored the ruins to the side of Achada do Gamo, for me the most spectacular area of the mines, with its intense colors and old, abandoned sulphur factories. Apocalyptic scenery!
But the best and safest way is to take a guided tour with the Serrão Martins Foundation. See their website for contact details.
There’s also the marked pedestrian route (PR10 – Rota do Minério), which takes you through the mining complex from Corta da Mina, through Moitinha Station, Achada do Gamo and finally the village of Santana de Cambas.
Don’t forget to visit what’s left of the ore wharf, the old railway workshops, the Miner’s House, the Church of São Domingos, the English Garden, and of course, finish your visit with a dip in Tapada Grande river beach.
Mina de São Domingos had its ore exploited in various historical periods, namely in the Roman period, the Islamic period and also during the 19th and 20th centuries. It was this last period of exploitation until 1966 that really transformed the landscape and left it looking so surreal. That, and of course, the vandalization and abandonment to which it was subjected from then on.
Millions of tons of ore were extracted from there! An entire village settled there because of the work in the mine. At its peak, more than 1,000 workers were employed there.
1. Corta da Mina de São Domingos
It is a space resulting from open-pit mining in the 20th century, and reaches a depth of 120 meters. The water that accumulates there is highly acidic.
2. Malacate
It is an old iron structure whose purpose was to drain the water from the mine so that it would be possible to work dry inside.
3. Ore Wharf
This was the place where the ore was separated to be sent either to Moitinha or to other factories in Mina de São Domingos, via one of the first railroad lines in the country. It could even be sent by wagon to the port of Pomorão, from where the ore was transported using River Guadiana.
4. Moitinha da Mina de São Domingos
Moitinha was the place where the ore extracted from the mine was crushed.
5. Achada do Gamo
Achada do Gamo was the major intervention center for the ore extracted from the mine. Perhaps that’s why it’s my favorite place, the one that most marks the landscape. It was, however, the most damaging to the environment, mainly because of the fumes released by the sulphur furnaces.
6. Power Station
It was the first in the whole of the Alentejo, initially running on coal.
7. Railway Workshops of Mina de São Domingos
It was where all the maintenance of the equipment needed to work in the mine was carried out. Today they are collapsing, and only part of their structure remains.
8. Miner’s House
The Miner’s House is part of Mértola Museum, but it is located in Mina de São Domingos. In short, it is a replica of the house where a mining family lived in the 20th century. The mining families lived in a working class neighborhood, in small spaces and without much in the way of comfort.
9. Cineteatro da Mina de São Domingos
Today it is an exhibition center on the history of the mining complex, but it was once a space dedicated to theater and cinema, available to the mining families who settled around the mine.
10. Church of São Domingos
The village’s name of Mina de São Domingos comes from the mine itself and also from the cult of Santo Domingo in the region. Although the church you see today is not the original one, nor the one that existed when the mine was being worked, it does represent this primitive hermitage.
11. English Garden
Today it is one of the village’s most beautiful green spaces, but it once represented the separation of social classes within the village. The English, who owned the mine (Mason & Barry), had their own neighborhood, with superior conditions and comfort compared to the mining families.
12. Tapada Grande River Beach
Finally, the river beach at Mina de São Domingos. The beach is located on the largest of the reservoirs created in the village during the 19th century (Tapada Grande) to supply water to the mine. Today it is one of the best and most well-prepared river beaches in Alentejo, with good support: bar, toilets, parasols, picnic tables, parking and surveillance. It has a blue flag and a sandy beach or lawn where you can spread out your towel. It is also possible to rent a canoe for trips around the reservoir.
The Best Trails in Guadiana Valley Natural Park
As far as Mértola’s trails are concerned, I’ve listed below what I consider to be the best routes in the municipality, with links to wikiloc.
PR1 – Guadiana, the Great River of the South
A trail that starts from Poço dos Dois Irmãos, near the town of Mértola, and follows one of the banks of Guadiana River to the mouth of Ribeira de Carreiras. Along the way, you’ll pass the Old Convent of São Francisco.
It’s about 10km round trip. I only recommend this trail as one of the best in Guadiana Valley Natural Park because of its proximity to the river. My real favorites are the next ones.
PR9 – Between Escalda and Pulo do Lobo
A trail near the fabulous Pulo do Lobo. If you prefer, just do the stage along River Guadiana, from Pulo do Lobo to Escalda Mill. It’s about 6 km long. If you do it in its entirety, you’ll be able to see Pias Dolmen, a megalithic monument in Guadiana Valley Natural Park.
PR10 – Ore Route at Mina de São Domingos
A 17km trail that runs through the mining heritage of Mina de São Domingos, already mentioned in this article. For me, it’s the most interesting trail on this list. There is also the possibility of a guided tour.
Other Itineraries and Travel Guides in Portugal
- N2 Portugal Road Trip Itinerary
- Madeira Itinerary and Travel Guide
- São Miguel Itinerary and Travel Guide (Azores)
- Terceira Itinerary and Travel Guide (Azores)
- Pico Itinerary in Azores
- Faial Itinerary in Azores
- Minho | Northern Portugal Itinerary
- Porto Itinerary and Travel Guide
- Things to do In Braga (Minho)
- Things to do in Guimarães (Minho)
- Things to do in Viana do Castelo (Minho)
- Peneda Gerês National Park Itinerary
- Douro Valley Itinerary
- Trás-os-Montes Itinerary
- Things to do in Bragança
- Montesinho Natural Park Itinerary
- Douro International Natural Park Itinerary
- Things to do in Aveiro
- Things to do in Coimbra
- Things to do in Leiria
- Things to do in Fatima
- Things to do in Nazaré
- Things to do in Peniche
- Things to do in Évora (Alentejo)
- Things to do in Beja (Alentejo)
- Algarve Road Trip Itinerary
- Things to do in Lagos (Algarve)
- Things to do in Portimão (Algarve)
- Things to do in Faro (Algarve)
- Things to do in Tavira (Algarve)
I hope you enjoyed this article with things to do in Mértola and Guadiana Valley Natural Park. Have a nice time in my country! 😉
