Top things to do in Mértola

The most atmospheric place for a meal in the old town, Terra Utópica has two small antique-filled dining rooms (one with a roaring fire on cold nights) and a terrace with magnificent views.

Parque Natural do Vale do Guadiana

Created in 1995, this zone of hills, plains and deep valleys around Serpa and Mértola shelters the Rio Guadiana, one of Portugal’s largest and most important rivers. Among its rich flora and fauna are several...

This attractive place in Moreanes, 10km from Mértola on the way to São Domingos, is almost a museum thanks to its antique exhibits (including the local clients themselves!). It serves great-value, hearty helpings...

Mértola comes to life every two years in May (dates change but it’s in odd-numbered years) during the town’s Islamic Festival, when it is decorated to resemble a souk. Music, handicrafts and festivities continue...

Mértola’s striking parish church – square, flat-faced and topped with whimsical little conical decorations – is known because in a former incarnation it was a mosque, one of the few in the country to have...

Above the parish church looms Mértola’s fortified castle, most of which dates from the 13th century. It was built upon Moorish foundations next to an Islamic residence, the alcáçova (citadel), which itself...

This site contains the ruins of what was once a thriving Islamic neighbourhood. Some 20 dwellings were here, each with a classic Mediterranean layout – a main entry patio, kitchen, storage area, sleeping quarters...

Next to the alcáçova (citadel), this interpretation centre is an accurately sized replica of an Islamic residence dating from the 12th century. Key features include an open central patio with a rainwater...

This museum, north of the old town, features a partly reconstructed line of 6th-century Roman columns and poignant funerary stones, some of which are beautifully carved with birds, hearts and wreaths. It was the...

This welcoming two-room restaurant serves up excellent traditional plates, all made with care. Grilled pork ribs, fried squid with garlic, fava beans with pork and game meat (wild boar, rabbit venison) are among...

The enchanting Casa Romana is located in the cellar of the câmara municipal (town hall). The clever display allows visitors to walk ‘through’ the foundations of the Roman house upon which the building rests, and...

Inside the castle walls, this prominent tower has exhibitions related to the history of Mértola, with several worthwhile (if dramatically scored) videos in both English and Portuguese on Mértola’s strategic...

In São Domingos, on the main road leading into town, this place provides a suitable introduction to life during the peak of the mining industry days. Although all signage (and film footage) is in Portuguese, the...

This is the administrative heart of the old town, a picturesque square lined with orange trees, with the câmara municipal (town hall) at its western end. To reach the largo (small square), enter the old town and...

This place makes a great spot for inventive Portuguese fare. Outdoor tables on the veranda have magnificent views of Mértola – all of it, since Casa Amarela is across the river in Além Rio. There’s generally live...

This little clock tower, topped with a stork’s nest and overlooking the Rio Guadiana, is northeast of Largo Luís de Camões. Alongside it is a municipal building with a rooftop worthy of Van Gogh.

Run by the same family for over 40 years, this place is well loved by locals and extremely consistent for its homestyle Alentejan dishes. There’s outdoor seating on the front patio.

At the southern end of the old town, the Islamic Museum is a small but dramatic display of inscribed funerary stones, jewellery, pots and jugs from the 11th to 13th centuries.

At the river’s edge, near its confluence with the Ribeira de Oeiras, is the ruined, Roman-era Torre do Rio, which once guarded the vital port.

Just outside the old walls, the Cafe Guadiana is a popular local gathering spot for coffee, desserts, tapas, decent pizzas (around €7) and good wines by the glass. The small elevated terrace in front is well...