Mira De Aire

An interesting side trip from Batalha is to head south through Porto de Mós, with its splendid castle, and then southeast on N243 toward Mira de Aire, an important textile area. Here there are four caves you can visit: the Grutas de Alvados, with a series of interesting chambers; the nearby Grutas de Santo Antonio, some 6,000 square meters in area (both of these are reached before Mira de Aire); the Grutas Mira de Aire, supposedly the deepest in Europe; and, north of Mira de Aire near São Mamede, the Grutas de Moeda, smaller and at a depth of 45 meters. If you are only casually interested in caves, the second and third are the most interesting.