Located next to the Portuguese-Spanish border, Monsaraz is a charming hilltop village surrounded by its original medieval walls and miles of beautiful Portuguese countryside. The area has been settled since prehistoric times, evidenced by the unusual Megalithic monuments carved from rock. Today it bears the marks of the successive periods of history it has been through, from the fortifications built by the Knights Templar to the Moorish influence throughout the town’s architecture. The surrounding landscape is as picturesque as the town itself, with typical Mediterranean scenes of rolling hillsides, olive groves, and the sparkling river Guadiana which runs past the Spanish border.