São Martinho do Porto is located 100km north of Lisbon, 3km form Highway 8 and 13km South of Nazaré. The village belongs to the municipality of Alcobaça and has 5000 habitants. There’s a primary school and a college.
Since the beginning of the century the fine sandy beach of the shell shaped bay has attracted tourists. Here the water is calmer as it is protected from the exposed Atlantic. There is an array of small hotels, apartments, guest houses and interesting shops. The restaurants have many fish and sea food specialties.
Centuries ago the bay reached Alfeizerão. It is said that Julius Ceaser passed here. The first King Afonso Henriques gave this land to the Cister Monks in the XII century. They used it as sea port to transport wood form the pine forest of Leiria. This wood was also used as the primary source to build ships.
All across the bay there are Salir do Porto where in those years they extracted salt. There was also a sea port and a shipyard. The ruins of a medieval Customs House can still be visited today.
These days tourists prefer, swimming, sailing, rowing or just enjoying the beach. Many Lisbonites come here for the weekend to wind down and relax away from the hustle of city life, although the town and beach does become very busy in August.