Setúbal
The industrial city and district capital of Setúbal, situated on the wide estuary of the Rio Sado, is Portugal's fourth largest city and third largest port, with important fish canneries, a car assembly plant, shipyards and saltpans. The Roman town which occupied this site was founded in the fifth century to replace the Celtic settlement of Cetobriga on the Tróia peninsula to the southeast, which was destroyed by a tidal wave. A royal residence for a time in the 15th C., Setúbal is also the birthplace of the poet and satirical writer Manuel Maria de Barbosa du Bocage (1765-1805; small museum in the house where he was born in the Rua do Sao Domingo). |
 |
 |
Serra da Arrábida
There are pleasant excursions into the solitude of the hills in the beautiful Serra da Arrábida, now a national park, where the luxuriant vegetation includes many rare species. These include the wild olive tree, the strawberry tree, the mastic tree, holm oak, heather, lemon trees, woodbine and myrtle. The highest point is the Alto do Formosinho (501m/1,643ft), and there are fantastic views from the N 379.1 which winds through the hills. |
Sesimbra
The pleasant little fishing town of Sesimbra, below rugged red cliffs on the southern slopes of the Serra da Arrábida, is also a popular seaside resort. Townscape: The promenade along the shore is lined with simple white houses and a few smaller hotels, with the larger hotel complexes outside the center Fishing still dominates the scene, however, together with tourism. Visitors can watch the fishermen mending their nets on the beach, or see them unloading their catch in the harbor at the western end of the town. The spectacle is particularly lively when the fish are auctioned, and the freshly landed fish and other seafood can be sampled in the relaxed atmosphere of one of the town's restaurants. |
 |
|
 |
Tour Visiting Program
|
- Ponte 25 de Abril
- Sesimbra
- Setúbal
- Parque natural da Serra da Arrábida
- Palmela
- Ponte Vasco da Gama
|
|
|
|
