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Casa Alegra
Carvalhal, Portugal
Casa Alegra
Carvalhal, Portugal
Light and Easy Near Comporta
Named for its easygoing style, this cute coastal retreat, just south of Comporta, is ideal for couples or small families seeking a cheery, spick-and-span beach getaway. The small home’s high ceilings hold a sleeping mezzanine, and the open plan puts you mere steps from a sweet plunge pool and two outdoor patio showers, ideal for rinsing off after the beach.
Walkable to shops and restaurants, and a 10-minute stroll or two-minute drive to the beautiful beaches of Carvalhal and Pego, this pretty beach house offers a cheery cabana for soaking up the sunshine. The outdoor dining area is shaded by a stripey wood ramada and set with a designer picnic table and bench seats on casters for easygoing, moveable family feasts. Man the barbecue from the turquoise plunge pool and spend the night in cheerful bedrooms dressed in breezy, colorful linens.
AROUND
Some 10 miles south of buzzy Comporta and its cool neighbor Melides, Carvalhal is one of seven coastal towns in the Herdade de Comporta, a zone of rice paddies and the wetlands of the Sado Nature Reserve. Carvalhal Beach is located a 10-minute walk from the house, at the end of the village’s main street. Dune backed and flanked by rice paddies, the family-friendly beach also has a well-loved traditional waterfront restaurant, and there are beach loungers and umbrellas available for a fee. Pego Beach is a bit further afield, a 4km stretch of golden sand surrounded by pine forest, with a family-run restaurant serving grilled fish and freshly caught seafood. Dolphins jump in the waters offshore, and the waves make the entire region a surfing hotspot for pros and beginners alike, well-served by surf schools and local guiding companies. Carvalhal is also known for its boutique shopping and antique outlets, as well as its simple cafes and taverns.
Hip global nomads have marked nearby Comporta, about 10 minutes north, as a favorite playground, riding in on the coattails of fashion designers, international architects, entrepreneurial urbanites, and modern art collectors. Comporta is well loved for its easygoing elegance and trendy artisanal boutiques, lively galleries and handful of cute cafes. Nearby Melides is also a favorite of design-conscious shoppers who delight in the burgeoning selection of galleries, studio/workshops, and carefully curated boutiques. This mostly unspoiled region remains undeniably beautiful in spite of its trendiness—a landscape of vineyards and cork oak fields, rice paddies and groves of glinting olive and orange trees.
LOCATION
Carvalhal, Portugal. Nearest airport: Lisbon (75 miles)
BEST TIME TO VISIT: April to October
