Caldas de Monchique

Caldas de Monchique is a spa village in the Serra de Monchique, set in a green valley south of Monchique town. Its hot springs have been used since Roman times, and in the 19th century it was a retreat for royalty and well-off visitors.

The village is small, with restored 19th-century buildings around a shaded square and a wooded park of old trees, and the spa still operates. It is a calm place for a stroll, a coffee and a change of pace from the coast, and makes a gentle stop on the way up to the mountains.