The Santa Clara-a-Velha tourist office is to reopen on March 21st after its extensive refit. The remodeling is aimed to provide "a better service for tourists and boost the tourist offer of the interior," according to the council in Odemira.
Santa Clara-a-Velha, (dwindled population estimated at around 500), due north of Monchique and just over the border into the Alentejo, is a picture perfect village on a well-used Rota Vicentina walking route and to near the massive 1968 reservoir overlooked by a defunct 'pousada' that now is privately owned and has been 'opening soon' for years.
The tourist office has all new electrics and now boasts Wi-fi and is the third western Alentejano office to be tarted up, preceded by the posts in Zambujeira do Mar and Vila Nova de Milfontes.
"These investments are part of a strategy of adding value to the area and upgrading tourist services, with a view to affirming Odemira as a quality destination," says Odemira council.
Santa Clara-a-Velha has a church, three shops, a petrol station, a post office and two cafes and also is the nearest village to the thriving Paradise in Portugal lakeside guesthouse (see picture below) owned by ecologist and bird expert, Frank McClintock and run as a family business.
McClintock also is famed for organising the 33,720 signature petition to ‘Save Salgados,’ the bird sanctuary near Armação de Pêra in the Algarve, that is threatened by developer Finalgarve.
As the Alentejo continues its development into a holiday destination for nature-loving tourists, walkers and outdoor activity enthusiasts, its rural councils have become aware that there not only is money in the air, but tourism can go some way in halting the drift of the region's local population to coastal and city locations.
Santa Clara-a-Velha draws foreigners who have opted for a rural lifestyle, with as many northern Europeans as locals in the local shops.
Upgrading the local tourist office is just a start and marks an improvement in council and regional tourist board thinking, as well as in facilities.
Paradise in Portugal offers the quiet and peace of the countryside, with birding trips requested by many guests. In fact a large proportion of the Quinta's guests visit this part of the Alentejo specifically for the abundance of bird species within easy travel, and the expert Guiding service the business offers.
On regional and off-season tourism, Frank McClintock comments, "This Spring our family-run business has garnered over 250 nights of reservations simply from nature lovers who are coming to the Quinta and booking at least two whole days of Guided birding, with most booking four. This puts our small business on a firm footing at the start of the season.
"To put it into figures, that’s over 500 people coming to this area who otherwise wouldn’t be just during the two months of April and May, months that many places in the Algarve and elsewhere struggle to make profitable. Mind you, it has to be remembered that this has taken more than a few years to build up and is dependent upon extensive knowledge of the subject as well as a dedication to good all-round service. It’s an eye-opener into the market that’s out there and one of which our local Councils are increasingly aware."