Tours Moto 4 / Biking
Atelier Bread
Alvito History
Festivals and Pilgrimages
Vila Nova da Baronia
Vila Nova da Baronia is a parish that belongs to Alvito municipality. In old times its name was "Vila Nova de Alvito", "Vila Nova a par de Alvito" and "Vila Nova a par de Viana". Its present name dates from the XVIII century and is due to the fact that it belonged to the estate of the Barons of Alvito, although human presence is much older, dating back to Roman times as is proved by archaeological artifacts and the beautiful Roman bridge very close to the village.
In Vila Nova da Baronia there are 3 traditional festivals each year: – Festas de Sant'Águeda e São Neutel, from April 13th to 15th, the Annual Festival taking place on the 3rd Sunday of July and Festas de Santa Maria, from August 14th to 15th.
Tourist Atractions
Shrine of Stª Águeda/S. Neutel
Originally dedicated to St. Neutel, after the earthquake of 1755 it was dedicated to Saint Águeda. It has Gothic-Mudejar architectonic characteristics. The interior depicts several murals of Alentejo tradition from different periods in the XVII century and with deep religious symbolism. It was classified as a Public interest building.
Main Church of Nossa Senhora da Assunção
The XVI century church is a perfect example of the National Mannerist architecture. Starting with its dimension reflecting the importance of the village it has a very rich interior with several gilded altars, mannerist style altarpieces and painted tiles. The Alms Chapel, built around 1604 is particularly interesting due to its paintings. The church was classified as a Public Interest Building.
Church of Senhor dos Passos
The Church of Senhor dos Passos belongs to the Philippine Period in Portuguese Architecture and contains several points of interest namely murals from the XVII century depicting the works of Mercy (Misericórdia), Medallions with saints and other paintings depicting scenes from the Life and Passion of Christ. Also mention should be made to the altarpiece from the XVI century by Francisco Campos. This church is presently used as the village mourning chapel.
Azinhal Bridge
The Azinhal Bridge is situated west of the village on the Vila Nova brook. It is a small bridge dating back to the year 500, having been rebuilt using an older roman bridge that existed previously. It has 3 round arches with the one in the middle more elevated than the others and with inclined ramps. The bridge is part of the pedestrian walk of Stª Águeda route.
Pillory/Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Conceição
The Manueline Pillory dates from the XVI century and is a symbol of the ancient administrative autonomy of the parish that, until 1936, was head of municipality. It is situated in Praça da República and was classified as National Monument.
The Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Conceição probably founded in 1655 by Dr. Sebastião Lopes Toscano catches the eye due to the extraordinary painted tile composition that covers its sides as well as the painted tile panel of the altar table.
Shrine of Nossa Senhora D'Aires
This Baroque shrine was built in the XVI century as a small chapel surrounded by five hostels for pilgrims. The House of Miracles constitutes its main attraction.
Roman Ruins Of São Cucufate
The roman ruins of São Cucufate, dated from I century B.C. are believed to have been a farming centre as well as the lord residence and developed until the IV century. Having been inhabited before the Roman Occupation, judging by remains found during archaeological excavations, there are traces of structures destined to the processing and storage of agricultural products.
After the decline of the Roman Empire this site continued to be inhabited until the end of the XVIII century, taking advantage of the richness of the soil and abundance of water. In recent times, besides the archaeological station, the Garden of S. Cucufate was established in order to perpetuate human presence in the place.
Odivelas Dam
Odivelas dam is situated on the frontier between Alvito and Ferreira do Alentejo counties. The dam was built in 1972 using the waters from the small Odivelas brook and the Sado basin and is one of the biggest dams in this region. It is one of the main places for bird watching and ornithology lovers. There can be found dozens of bird species like the Crested Grebe (mergulhão-de-crista), the Sea Partridge (perdiz-do-mar), the Small White Heron (garça-branca-pequena), the Heron (garça-real) or the White Stork (cegonha-branca).
To enter this village you have to cross the Odivelas brook through the roman bridge of Vila Ruiva, part of the old roman road that connected Ebora Liberalitas Iulia (Évora) to Pax Julia (Beja). Originally built in granite, it has 26 arches with perfectly round eyelets between them. The bridge was subject to several interventions in the Visigoth and Arab periods with the addition of brick arches. Shale was added in later times.
In this village the main point of interest is the Main Church (Matriz) of Nossa Senhora de Encarnação, a beautiful building in gothic Manueline style dating from the second half of the XVI century.
On the road to Cuba we can find the shrine of Senhora da Represa, the ancient shrine of S. Caetano.
Vila Alva
Vila Alva Is considered the most typical village of the Cuba County due to its buildings of Alentejo traditional architecture.
Alvito Reservoir and Dam
The reservoir next to the Dam in Alvito occupies an area of 1480 ha and is part of the Alentejo Irrigation Plan. In the future it will receive water from the bigger Alqueva Dam through de Álamos reservoir.
It is situated in an area that offers excellent possibilities for tourism development due to good environmental conditions, natural resources and heritage, good conditions for practicing outdoor activities such as water sports and fishing.
Oriola, is a small village that recent history placed next to the Alvito reservoir. The reservoirs shape, the beauty of its peaceful waters and the existence nearby of some points of interest invite to its discovery by boat or on foot.
Nearby, S. Bartolomeu do Outeiro village is a privileged site offering an excellent panoramic view over the reservoir.
Solar de Água de Peixes – The road to Albergaria dos Fusos passes at the doors of this private property. But we can admire the exterior of this old family house dating back from the XV-XVI centuries with its gothic portal and double windows in mudejar style.