Castro Marim
A hilltop castle town on the Guadiana, overlooking salt pans and a nature reserve where flamingos feed.
Castro Marim is a small town and municipality on the Guadiana estuary, looking across to Spain. Its medieval castle crowns a hill above the town, with a small museum and wide views, while the 17th-century Fort of São Sebastião stands on a neighbouring hill. Each summer the town hosts a medieval festival.
Around it lies the Castro Marim and Vila Real de Santo António marsh reserve, where traditional salt pans attract flamingos and many other birds; walking, cycling and birdwatching are the main activities. The municipality also reaches the coast at Altura and Praia Verde, and inland to hill villages such as Azinhal and Odeleite.
