BICYCLE TOURS & MOUNTAIN BIKING

Contrasts of Portugal Cycling

This cycling holiday begins inland with three nights amid fragrant meadows of white rockrose. This is a rural region of tiny white villages and wheat fields, the bread basket of the nation, where ruined windmills crumble on sun-drenched hilltops, and sheepskin-jacketed shepherds with silver tipped canes stride over fields full of lavender. You then spin downhill towards the turquoise ocean into the Natural Park for the rest of the week. Two nights are spent discovering rugged castles, wild beaches and whitewashed fishing villages near Vilanova deMilfontes, before heading further south for your final two nights on a real smugglers’ coast of steep bays and bluffs, cycling river valleys to meet the ocean.

Tour Details

Day 1: Arrive Alentejo
You are met at Funcheira station and transferred to the Casas Novas hotel in time for a swim in the pool before dinner. (Private transfers from airport to hotel are available on request.)

Day 2: Artisans and Market Towns 21km/13mi or 31km/19mi
A circular southern route through lavender and eucalyptus provides an extraordinary insight into ways of life unchanged for centuries! Buy home produced cheese from Dona Mariana’s family shop, which has open since 1876, and look out for dapper shepherds – they wear beautiful sheepskin cloaks that could be tailored on Savile Row! Drop into Cercal, a bustling market town, to admire Senor Godinho’s intricate leatherwork, and then cycle back for a candlelit dinner on the garden terrace.

Day 3: Casas Novas Northern Circuit 18km/11mi or 46km/29mi
Amazing - paddy fields of rice in Portugal? Pedal through them to follow the verdant River Campilhas for a short ride, or carry on to complete a longer loop. You can stop at tiny cafés en route (even if locals stare like you’re an astronaut!) and it is gorgeously easy riding as you coast through white villages to Sao Domingos with its shady plazas and orange trees, and then meander back past black pigs snoozing under olive trees.

Day 4: Casas Novas to Tres Marias 37km/23mi
Leaving Casas Novas behind, the countryside gradually changes from cork oak meadows to poppy strewn wheat fields as you cycle west. Catch your first glimpse of blue ocean on a fantastic 3km freewheel downhill, breathing in great gusts of scented rockrose as you enter the protected Natural Park. You’ll receive a warm welcome from Balt and Claudia (and their pets – three donkeys and two ostrich!) at their sophisticated cutting edge hotel just 2km from the sea.

Day 5: Beaches, Castles and Harbors Circuit 29km/18mi or 33km/21mi
Pedal past lemon trees and vineyards to a 16th century coastal fortress – Forte da Ilha - where wild, deserted beaches go on for miles! Lunch in a restaurant with views of offshore islands, and then take the coastal track below high dunes to the bright boats and palm trees of Porto Covo harbor. Join local fishermen for a medronho in a seafront café, and then cycle back past ancient windmills and enjoy a stargazing chat with Balt tonight – he’s a keen astronomer.

Day 6: Tres Marias to Cerro da Fontinha 32km/20mi
Head south today deeper into the Natural Park – empty, scenic roads lead you to scarlet Cabo Sardao Lighthouse and the most incredible stretch of coastal cycling yet. This is the only place in the world where you can see storks nesting precariously on cliffs below your picnic spot! Beach-hop down the coast to Zambujeira village before arriving at Miguel and Rita’s pretty cottages in Brejao, just 3km from the beach. You’ll eat out in the village for the next two nights.

Day 7: Odeceixe Valley Route 28km/17mi
Watch fishermen landing their catch in Azenha do Mar harbor, then head south through strawberry fields to Odeceixe - a river valley full of snowy egrets, wheat fields, and vine terraces. You follow the river to a glorious sweeping yellow sand beach with views to the corner of Europe! It’s a spectacular place to end the week. Back at the hotel, cool off with a swim in the private lake, and enjoy dinner in the village again tonight.

Day 8: Leave Alentejo
This day marks the end of your tour.

• Lovely warm climate - around 300 days of sunshine a year.
• Gloriously easy cycling along coastal paths, country trails, orange groves, and poppy-strewn fields.
• Wild, deserted beaches untouched by tourism.
• Rugged coastal castles, colorful fishing harbors, and tiny white villages unchanged for centuries.
• Exquisite boutique-style hotels with wonderfully friendly hosts.

Independent Tours:
Independent tours allow you to follow any route you choose using maps and detailed notes. Breakaway Adventures suggests routes using quiet country lanes, and going by the places they think are most interesting. There are route options for avoiding hills, and suggestions for detours and off-road explorations.

"Independent" doesn't mean unsupported, though. Local staff will greet you at the train station and take you by mini-van to the first hotel. You'll attend a briefing session, where your Breakaway Adventures representative will fit you with your bike, tell you all about the things to see and do, and help you map out a route if you have a special side trip you'd like to make. During the briefing session, you'll also have a chance to meet any other travelers who are booked on the tour. Although the tours are not intended as a group experience, people often make friends on these independent tours and enjoy the opportunity to meet others - but if you’re not so inclined you're free to travel at your own pace. There are rarely more than six or eight people on any independent cycling tour, so you can be as sociable, or otherwise, as you choose.

On independent tours, you move on between hotels every two days: your luggage is transported for you, so you don't need to carry a lot in your panniers (provided). In-between days are an opportunity for exploring locally, with the help of detailed maps and notes. You can cycle on the off days, or just opt for relaxation!

On independent tours Breakaway Adventure’s staff clean and carefully check every bike before it goes out, so don't expect many problems. If anything does go wrong, your rep come out to your hotel and put it right. And your Breakaway Adventure reps are only a phone call away if you have any problems! They’ll also give you a puncture repair kit. Due to hygiene and safety concerns, cycling helmets are not provided. However, it is strongly recommended that you bring your own cycling helmet.