Peniche: Surfing Through the Waves and Historical Attractions
Peniche is a town of rich marine resources. This explains why many people here rely on fishing as their primary source of income. However, that is not all that Peniche Portugal Region has to offer. More to seafood restaurants teeming in the town, this eight-kilometer-wide island has fantastic sandy beaches with great surfing conditions for surfers and thrill-seekers. Moreover, it has equally breathtaking structures like museums that still hold the town’s historic jewels.
Today, Peniche is becoming popular as a surfer’s paradise. In fact, many surfers not only from other towns in Portugal but also from many places all over the world visit Peniche Portugal region for its waves. Offering surf spots facing different directions and with varied surfing conditions, Peniche has something to offer to amateur and experienced surfers alike. Another thing that makes it a great surf spot is that the quality of the waves in the town is consistently good, and it is rare a day without surfing.
However, for visitors who are not into surfing, they can also take a fulfilling gastronomic trip to restaurants to taste the tastiest sardines Portugal has to offer. Peniche takes pride in dishing out this specialty, more so during the summer, when the town gets extraordinarily busy.
For those who prefer to see historical structures, Peniche will definitely not disappoint. As Peniche is also a culture haven, visitors can burn off all the calories from eating at seafood restaurants by surfing through the sights in this quaint fishing town. A famous tourist destination in the south side of town is the Fortaleza, which was once used as a prison in the time of Salazar’s regime. Nowadays, the structure serves as a museum containing various crafts made by locals, as well as the archaeological findings of Peniche Portugal region
Another structure that tourists should not miss in the town is the Chapel of Our Lady of Remedios, which is 3kms away from the center of Peniche. This beautiful chapel contains white azulejo-glazed tiles that were common architectural pieces in the 18th century. To complete visitor’s travel experience, they can also visit the Church of Misericordia. This chapel showcases a 17th century panel ceiling that shows people the life of Jesus Christ. Located north of Peniche is Foz do Arelho beach, another sandy beach popular for its calm and clear waters.
Peniche in Portugal may look like an ordinary fishing village at first glance. But visitors who have surfed through the bedrock of centuries-old traditions and architecture as well as its natural attractions claim that this unassuming town has many things to offer to tourists to make their visit memorable and extraordinary.
Peniche is only 1 ½ h away from Lisbon and it can be reached by bus or car.
