Parque dos Monges

Parque dos Monges is located in Quinta das Freiras, in the city of Alcobaça and consists of six strands: Environmental, Zoo, Adventure, Theme, Animation and Accommodation that reach the public through a set of equipment and activities aimed at creating experiences unique, by the way they will recreate the way of life of the monks of the Cistercian Order.

Quinta das Freiras is one of the most visible areas of the monastic presence, as it was here that the monks initially settled - and that, for 22 years - in a small community to prepare the foundation and construction of the Santa Maria de Alcobaça Monastery, on the site where today it is found and later in it, through innovative agricultural practices for the time, they guaranteed all the food that they were obliged by the respective Order, to provide to the nuns residing in the convent located a few kilometers in the locality of Cos. Thus, the name of Quinta das Freiras was born, constituting an important historical landmark linked to the presence of the Cistercian Order in the region, but also to the Battle of Aljubarrota, since it was here that the Portuguese troops set up the camp to recover their strength and celebrate the victory over the Castilians. During this period there was no more powerful order in Portugal, mainly due to the wealth of Alcobaça, which was also the artistic and intellectual center of the Order.

As it turns out, it is on the basis of all this historical and cultural value that the Parque dos Monges is based on its theme, by recreating through tourist entertainment a place of exhibition and participation of visitors in activities that recreate the monks' way of life of the Cistercian Order. On the other hand, this complex unites the tourist entertainment component with a strongly pedagogical attitude in terms of education and environmental awareness, as seen in the equipment and activities that constitute it.