Inland, beyond the mountains of Monchique and the Serra do Caldeirao stretch the plains of the Alentejo, a magnificent landscape of sweeping fields of wheat and sunflowers dotted with tiny whitewashed villages, forests of pine and cork and mighty rivers. The coastal region of the Alentejo, the Costa Azul, is still practically deserted, with just a handful of pretty seaside villages such as Vila Nova de Milfontes with its fine sandy beaches.
