Alvito

ALVITO is a small town of great charm with an abundance of Manueline features. It’s dominated by its castle – now a pousada – but in the few streets between here, the parish church and the town hall clock tower is plenty of interest. The castle itself (built in 1494) is a curious Manueline-Mudejar hybrid, a style seen also in the much smaller Ermida de São Sebastião, on the edge of town, from where there are fine views across the cultivated plains below. In addition, many of the houses have carved sixteenth-century windows and door frames, and if you seek out the town gardens, small market and typical pelourinho in the handsome main square, Praça da República, you’ve easily occupied an hour or two.