Comporta: Your Next Beach Escape

A little more than an hour’s drive south of Lisbon there’s a beach sanctuary where only a few in the know spend their summers.

Comporta is a raw and pristine part of Portugal, offering wild landscapes and an unspoiled outlook. Comporta is the new international ‘black’, where designers, actors and artists stay to play – quietly. The best beaches here are Praia do Pego and Praia del Comporta. Inspired architecture dots the beachside and the ramshackle harbour. Holiday villas have sandy floors, and creative architects have indulged the estate with amazing accommodation. Fancy a contemporary timber hut designed by Aires Mateus, a hotel in a forest or an eco-chic holiday home? The doors are open. There are places to socialise, if you must. You might find a restaurant in a stable or a fisherman’s hut where you’ll rub shoulders with the rich and private who have gone off the grid. The local village of Comporta is whitewashed, rustic and has retained a laid-back character of times past. Comporta translates to ‘behave’ and it’s fitting; good manners prevail in this sparkly beach beauty.