Fortaleza de Sagres

The fortress occupies a dramatic headland on the western tip of the Algarve, where the land drops away in cliffs on three sides. Prince Henry the Navigator allegedly established a school of navigation here in the early 15th century and sent his sailors out to map the African coast. The current walls date largely from reconstruction after the 1755 earthquake.

Inside the fortress is a simple 16th-century church (Igreja Nossa Senhora da Graça), the giant stone wind compass (Rosa dos Ventos), and a lighthouse. The views from the cliffs are remarkable — on a clear day you can make out the Atlantic swells breaking on the offshore rocks far below. The site gets busy in summer; arrive early or visit in the late afternoon when the light is better anyway. Admission is a few euros.

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The most dramatic feature inside the fortress isn't the walls or the old church — it's the Rosa dos Ventos, a huge wind rose laid out in stone on the ground, 43 metres in diameter. Debate still runs over whether Henry the Navigator used it or whether it was added later, but it's extraordinary to walk around regardless.

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