It was actually more quiet than I’d expected in this former campsite. The dog that threatened to bark didn’t, and the late night loud voices of revellers didn’t materialise.

So, well rested we wandered into lovely Tomar, only a few minutes away by foot. Lots of character in the old town, which has a castle and convent dominating it on the hill above. Sophie was up for the climb to the heights above and so up we went.

It’s €6 to go in the castle, but it’s free to explore the gardens and ramparts, which is what we chose, so no surprises there then 😉. After this we dropped back to the town to check out some more of the lovely back streets.

As we finally drove out of town, we also visited Tomar’s well-known aquaduct, which was impressive, and then drove in the direction of Ourem. This town’s main attraction is its very high castle. Unfortunately, access for motorhomers isn’t very practical. We could have parked lower down in the coaches section, but the prospect of another hike up to a castle didn’t really appeal.

So Batahla’s famed Mosteiro de Santa Maria da Vitoria had to be next on the agenda, taking us to the furthest West we’d like get to on this trip. En route, Sophie saw the road sign for Fatima, where there is a famous sanctuary. An 8km diversion seemed to make sense. Problem was that this was the Sunday before Easter, and everyone was there today, so parking was crazy, despite a vast carpark. I was admittedly relieved not to have to see this one, preferring to continue with my planned route.

Batahla’s vast monastery was actually very impressive and definitely a worthwhile visit. Knowing the complete lack of a decent Park4night around Batahla, I was keen to get back East asap. The road was excellent and in no time we’d already passed Tomar and we were in new territory.

As we homed in on my possible stop for night there was only one particularly narrow section of road to deal with, but with Sophie being my barometer of doability, she gave me her approval and we easily got through.

We’re now settled Lakeside in a picnic area near Pombeira, overlooking the water and surrounding hills. Looks like a stunning spot.