Praia da Ursa

Close to Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point of mainland Europe, the cliffs of the Sintra coast fall to a strip of sand guarded by enormous rocks standing in the surf. The largest, known as the Ursa, the she-bear, and the Gigante, the giant, rise like dark towers between beach and ocean, and the cliffs behind them, part of a coastline that here reaches more than 100 metres in height, shut the beach off from everything inland. With no road down to the sand, it is one of the wildest places on the Atlantic coast of Portugal.

The beach takes its name from the Ursa stack, whose outline, seen from the north, is said to resemble a bear holding a cub. Local legend tells of a mother bear who refused to leave her cubs behind when the gods ordered the animals north as the ice withdrew from the Sintra hills; as punishment she was turned to stone, and her cubs became the smaller boulders scattered around her. At low tide further coves appear on either side: Palaia to the south, frequented by gatherers of goose barnacles, and Pesqueiro do Abrigo to the north.

The only way down is on foot. From near Cabo da Roca an earth track leads to the cliff edge, where a zigzag path descends the slope; walking down takes about an hour, the climb back somewhat longer. The beach lies within the Sintra-Cascais Natural Park, which protects the coast and hills at the western end of the Lisbon region, and the Michelin Guide has named it among the most beautiful beaches in the world.

Cabo da Roca itself, a headland of crystalline rock, has had a lighthouse since 1772 and was known to the Romans as Promontorium Magnum; to sailors of later centuries it was the Rock of Lisbon. It belongs to the municipality of Sintra, about 42 km west of Lisbon.

Getting there

The beach is reached on foot from Cabo da Roca. The nearest town is Alcabideche, about 10 km away in a straight line. The nearest airfield is Cascais Airport (CAT), about 14 km away; the main international airport for the region is Lisbon Humberto Delgado Airport (LIS), on the far side of Lisbon.