The Alentejo region of Portugal has been recognized by AAA’s Via magazine as one of the top 11 “Off the Beaten Path” places to visit in 2025, highlighting its rural charm, stunning landscapes, and authentic traditions. Published by Whitney Phaneuf, the article celebrates destinations that offer an authentic travel experience away from the crowded tourist hotspots.
The article by Via magazine, titled "11 Places to Go in 2025 Without the Crowds" highlights the Alentejo’s commitment to preserving its unique heritage while welcoming travelers to enjoy a slower pace and the cultural wealth of Southern Portugal.
With its rolling plains, cork forests, vineyards, and walled towns, the Alentejo offers a journey through Portuguese culture, less than 1 hour from Lisbon. The region is celebrated for its olive oils, wines, and cork production, as well as its many historic sites that span from ancient Roman ruins to medieval castles. AAA’s recognition further adds to the Alentejo’s growing reputation as a destination for travelers seeking something sustainable.
It is place that remains sustainable being both rural and natural with thousands of miles of cork forest and a richness of wildlife. Here the balance between nature and humanity goes back millennia. It is a place with a clear harmony between nature and humanity — people and nature live in balance-in Montado cork forests that protect and are impervious to drought or fire. Here you can hike for hours and see no one. Here you can dine on locally harvested foods in small walled towns amid the locals, and no one else. Here you swim in an ocean cove, and nothing in view is built by humans. Here you see industries that conserve nature — from olive oil to cork to wines. And the only crowds are made of sheep, and the lines are the endless straight old road made for cycling.
This is the reason why the Alentejo was included as one of the 52 world destinations to visit by those who want to contribute to "a more sustainable planet” as chosen by The New York Times. The newspaper placed the Alentejo in one of the 52 Places for a Changed World, a list that highlighted destinations around the globe where travelers can be part of a solution. The article points to the sustainable wine movement in the region, where sheep help clear wine fields, and water is used sparingly. The Montados cork forests of the Alentejo surround wine country — and serve as refuge to rare species of plants and animals. The cork oak is the key to the Alentejo’s living landscape. Cork forests extend for miles and each tree plays a role in this balanced ecosystem. Their bark is harvested every nine years, and a cork tree can live for centuries. After the bark is harvested, the trees light up the day with their red hues, a sign of the only tree that has a renewable bark.
For more information on visiting Alentejo go to https://www.visitalentejo.pt/en/
