Vila Nova de Milfontes

The town of the Mira estuary, on the Alentejo coast.

Vila Nova de Milfontes, on the estuary of the Mira in the Alentejo coast, is a town of white houses between the river and the sea. Its old fort once guarded the bar of the Mira, and today the town is one of the great stops of the Rota Vicentina, with beaches on both sides of the river mouth and the landscapes of the south-west coast all around.

The town

The town grew with the fishing and the river trade of the Mira, and its fort — built in the sixteenth century to defend the coast — still stands over the bar where the river meets the Atlantic. Around it, the old streets keep the atmosphere of the Alentejo coast, between the Praia da Franquia on the river side and the ocean beaches beyond the headland.

What to see

The fort and the bar of the Mira, at the mouth of the river.
Praia da Franquia and the beaches around the estuary.
The old streets of the town, by the riverside.
The coast and paths of the Rota Vicentina, north and south.

Visiting

Vila Nova de Milfontes belongs to the municipality of Odemira, on the road along the Alentejo coast between Sines and Odeceixe. The town is explored on foot, and the beaches and trails around the estuary demand care with the tides and the ocean; the stages of the Rota Vicentina and the conditions of the coast follow the official information of the route and of the municipality.