Practical Information for visiting Alentejo

Coverage for mobile networks is good across the region with 4G everywhere and 5G in the larger towns.

Portuguese SIM cards are cheap, and EU roaming rules mean visitors from within the union pay domestic rates.

Wi-Fi is standard in accommodation and cafes, and Portugal has invested heavily in rural broadband, so a converted farmhouse in the middle of nowhere often has a perfectly good connection.

Signal has gaps on the emptier stretches of road and in some of the deeper valleys near the Spanish border.

Power is reliable, on European standard sockets.

Several villages have set out to attract remote workers, with co-working space in restored buildings.

The Alentejo is very safe — Portugal is among the most peaceful countries in the world, and this is one of its quietest regions. The hazards are heat, fire and the sea.

• Summer heat inland is genuinely dangerous, with temperatures above 40°C for days at a time. Do not walk the megalith sites or the hill towns in the middle of the day in July or August.
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• Wildfire: risk is high in summer, access restrictions are legally enforced, and the emergency number should be used for any smoke seen.
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• The Atlantic coast is cold, with powerful surf, rip currents and undercut cliffs. Swim only at guarded beaches, and keep back from cliff edges, which collapse.
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• Driving: empty roads encourage speed, and there are unlit farm vehicles and wildlife at dusk.
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• Petty theft from cars at trailheads and viewpoints.

Portugal has good healthcare. EU visitors should carry a European Health Insurance Card; everyone else needs travel insurance. Health centres exist in the main towns and hospitals in Evora, Beja and Portalegre, but distances are long.

No vaccinations are required beyond routine cover.

Heat is the main risk: heatstroke and dehydration are the commonest summer problems, and the low humidity disguises how much water you are losing. Carry more than you think you need.

Sun is strong from April to October.

Tap water is safe throughout.

Ticks are present in the montado; check after walking in long grass.

Pharmacies are excellent and can treat minor problems directly; a rota covers nights and weekends.

Greet people on entering a shop, bar or restaurant — bom dia or boa tarde — and again on leaving. In the villages it is close to obligatory.

Lunch runs from one to three and dinner from eight; kitchens genuinely close between, and finding food at five is difficult.

Couvert is charged for; decline it if you do not want it.

Tipping is modest — rounding up, or five to ten per cent for a good meal.

Patience: things are slow here by choice. Visible impatience is the fastest way to be badly received.

Fire restrictions in summer carry real penalties — no barbecues, no cigarettes discarded, no access to restricted woodland.

Dress modestly in churches; beachwear stays at the beach.

Emergency number: 112 across Portugal for police, fire and ambulance, with English-speaking operators.

Medical. Hospitals are in Evora, Beja, Portalegre and on the coast at Sines; health centres cover the towns, and a pharmacy rota covers out of hours. Distances are long, so allow for it.

Wildfire: report any smoke immediately on 112. Civil protection issues daily risk ratings by municipality in summer, and access restrictions are enforced.

Heat warnings are issued by the meteorological institute and matter here more than almost anywhere in Europe.

On the coast, lifeguards operate only in the summer season and only at designated beaches; the maritime police cover the rest.

Breakdowns: carry water, as you can wait a long time on an empty road.

Consular help is in Lisbon.