10 excellent reasons to visit Grândola

It is the brown village of song and one of the most fascinating towns in Alentejo, with hills and sea. Discover 10 reasons to visit Grândola. Visit Grândola It is much more than enjoying the charm of one of the most sought-after tourist destinations in the Alentejo. It is being able to take advantage of high-quality beaches, discovering places that reveal a little more about our history and what we are and have achieved today.

With an area of over 825 square kilometres, and bordering the municipalities of Alcácer do Sal, Ferreira do Alentejo, Santiago do Cacém and Setúbal, Grândola is a town characterised by three large areas that reveal a mix of spirits and sensations, namely the mountains, the extensive plain and the coastal zone. Therefore, a place that has something for everyone.

However, with the arrival of the 25th of April holiday, which will mark 45 years since the Carnation Revolution, Grândola is also known for having inspired one of the songs that gave the signal for the revolution to begin.

The time was 00:20 on the morning of April 25, 1974, when the independent radio programme “Limite”, broadcast on Rádio Renascença, was heard: “Grândola, dusky town/Land of fraternity/The people who order most/Within you, O city.” And everything changed. This was the definitive password for the start of operations across the country and the advance of the forces organised by the MFA. About an hour and a half earlier, the first signs of the revolution had already made themselves felt, through Emissores Associados de Lisboa, audible only in the capital, with the song “E depois dos adeus” by Paulo de Carvalho.

Zeca Afonso was the author of the song and, as such, became forever linked to the history of the revolutionary movement in Portugal. The artist composed the song as a tribute to the Musical Society Fraternidade Operária Grandolense, from the Portuguese town of Grândola, having been so impressed with the members' awareness, political maturity, and their resourceful use of limited resources.

Visiting Grândola: 10 Must-See Places

Comporta Beach

It is mainly on hot summer days that this area is most inviting for a visit. With its extensive white, fine sand and greenish water, it creates a dreamlike setting that resembles any paradisiacal island, but it isn't. It is a very Portuguese place, where you can enjoy fine restaurants and hotels that give a homely feel, due to their comfort and quality; go for a horse ride; and watch the sunset, which is unique in these parts and deserves to be celebrated every day. On the beach, it is also possible to practice surfing, bodyboarding, kitesurfing, and sport fishing.

2. Grândola Mountains

The mountain range has a maximum height of 326 metres and also extends into the municipality of Santiago do Cacém.

This is an important landmark in the region, as it is a mountain range very different from other Portuguese ranges, being parallel to the coast and not oblique, which hinders the penetration of sea air, although it contributes to cloud condensation.

The mountain range is made up of schists of varying consistency depending on the location, and has a main watercourse marked by wooded banks, giving it a delicate appearance.

3. Melides Lagoon

The lagoon occupies a space equivalent to about 26 hectares and has small islands covered in hydrophilic vegetation, which is important not only for its beauty but also for the ecological function it provides.

In the past, the lagoon served as a fishing port until the 18th century, but this is no longer the case today, now only serving as a habitat for various animal species, notably eels, grey mullets, flathead grey mullets, little egrets, great egrets, red herons, black kites, and golden plovers.

4. Aberta Nova Beach

It is one of the best beaches on the Alentejo coast and a Blue Flag and Golden Quality area.

To get there, you’ll need to follow the EN 261-2 along a road that’s partly a dirt track, flanked by pine forests and vegetation. You’ll find two car parks where you can leave your car, and it’s on this stretch of beach that there’s also a viewpoint and a picnic area offering views of the unique landscape stretching from Sines to the Serra da Arrábida.

5. Rice Museum

Rice cultivation is a very typical activity in the Alentejo region and Grândola is no exception. As such, the creation of this museum aims to provide more insight into this tradition, while also allowing a step back in time to understand how the cultivation of this cereal influenced the history of Herdade da Comporta, where it is located.

For this purpose, the museum was created in an old rice-husking factory, dating from 1952, where several workshops still existed, with instruments related to rice cultivation.

6. Monument to Freedom

In Largo de São Sebastião, and since April 25th, 1999, a monument evoking April 25th and Freedom was created.

The work was the final piece by one of the most distinguished contemporary Portuguese sculptors, Jorge Vieira, and is revealed as “a highly anthropomorphic sculpture, with an anatomy that, while departing from the canons, proves to be perfect, exact. It is a form born from the earth with an evident legibility in its luminous form, which deconstructs into differentiated interpretations from three main viewing angles…”

7. Pego da Moura Dam

This Roman-style dam was declared an Asset of Public Interest by Decree 67/97 DR 301 of 31 December 1997.

It is located in the place called Represas, in the vicinity of National Road 120 which links Grândola to Santiago do Cacém and has a rectilinear structure, about 40 metres long, 3 metres high, 2.90 metres thick and six buttresses.

8. Carvalhal Beach

This beach has been awarded the Blue Flag since 2002 and was also a finalist in the ‘7 Wonders – Beaches of Portugal’ competition in the Dune Beaches category. It is therefore a place whose beauty and quality have been amply proven.

The proximity of former lagoons, which have been transformed into farmland and rice paddies, is one of the factors that gives this beach a unique variety of landscapes and exceptional biodiversity.

9. Grândola Museum of Sacred Art

The museum is housed in the Church of São Sebastião and its permanent collection includes paintings, sculptures and decorative arts.

The management of the space is the responsibility of the Department of Historical and Artistic Heritage of the Diocese of Beja, the Municipal Council, and the Parish of Grândola, and it is an important place to learn more about the religious art of the region.

10. Memorial to 25th April

The Carnation Revolution is intrinsically linked to the village of Grândola, and the creation of this memorial is yet another fine example of this.
It is located on D. Nuno Álvares Pereira Avenue and is integrated into a platform accessed via a staircase with low, wide steps.

It contains the names of many of the “Captains of April” who took part in the Revolution, as well as the musical score and lyrics of the song “Grândola, Vila Morena”, and the “Universal Declaration of Human Rights”.