Ninho d'Águias Restaurant
What to order: the pickled partridge to start and the sericaia with Elvas plums for dessert.
geocalia
Day itinerary · 39.39° N · 7.38° W
Roast chestnuts in Marvão, the town above two countries.
Roast chestnuts and producers' stalls along the streets of Marvão at its November festival, a climb to the castle and Alentejo lunch with the plain spread out in front of you. An hour and a half from Badajoz.
Leaving from
Direct flight to Badajoz fromMadrid 1 hBarcelona 1 h 45Gran Canaria 2 h 30
Part of Marvão
Add to my trip
Total time10 h
By car1 h 30 each way
WalkingSloping streets · 2 h
DifficultyEasy
Spend€40–60 pp
Date15 November 2026
TimePortugal, an hour behind Spain
The plan
The day at a glance
Any part can be swapped for another without spoiling the day.
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Leave Badajoz 1 h 30 by car
Spanish time · along the N-521 and Valencia de Alcántara; you arrive around 9:30 Portuguese time
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1
Marvão Chestnut Fair
Portuguese time · park below and go up on the council shuttle
- 5 min on foot
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2
Marvão Castle and its cistern
walls above two countries and the cistern · 1 h
- 6 min on foot
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3
Ninho d'Águias Restaurant
Ninho d'Águias, at the Pousada · Alentejo cooking · €€€ · book
Rua 24 de Janeiro, 7, 7330-122 Marvão · +351 245 993 201
Restaurant €€€Book - 15 min by car10,8 km
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4
Castelo de Vide and its Jewish quarter
11 km away · Jewish quarter and castle · 2 h
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Back home
Portuguese time · in Badajoz around 20:15 Spanish time
Approximate cost
About €35–60 per person
Adds up the activities and meals in the plan at their published prices; travel and accommodation not included.
The route
Marvão Chestnut Fair
Every November Marvão celebrates its Chestnut Festival, and in 2026 it is the 42nd edition, on 14 and 15 November. The walled town, perched more than 850 metres up on the border, fills with producers' stalls, the smoke of roasting chestnuts and people from both sides of the frontier. It is the Sunday of the year when Marvão is most alive. This plan goes up to the festival in the morning, sees the castle, lunches at the pousada with the plain spread out in front of you and heads down in the afternoon to Castelo de Vide.
The day, hour by hour
The times of the stops are Portuguese times, an hour behind Spain.
9:00 (Spanish time) · Departure. From Badajoz, about 90 km via Valencia de Alcántara; from Cáceres, two hours. When you cross the border you put your watch back: you arrive at 9:30 Portuguese time.
10:00 · The festival. On the days of the fair you cannot drive up to the town: the council runs a shuttle from the car parks below. Up top, the streets fill with producers' stalls and roast chestnuts. Go early: by midday the narrow streets are packed.
12:00 · The castle and the cistern. The highest point of the ridge, with views over the Alentejo and Extremadura. Go down to the cistern, one of the largest in Portugal. An hour.
13:15 · Lunch at Ninho d'Águias. The restaurant of the Pousada Marvão, inside the walls, is open daily from 13:00 to 15:00. On these days the chestnut gastronomic fortnight brings chestnut dishes to the menus of the municipality: ask what they have. With the festival on, book without fail.
15:30 · Castelo de Vide. Eleven kilometres away, bigger and lower: the medieval Jewish quarter of sloping streets and the castle. Two relaxed hours.
17:45 · Heading back. In Badajoz around a quarter past eight Spanish time; in Cáceres, around a quarter to nine.
What to order
Alentejo cooking: pickled partridge or oven-baked cacholeira to start, the house salt cod as a main course and sericaia with Elvas plums for dessert. If there is a chestnut dish from the fortnight, have that.
If you go on Saturday
The festival lasts both days, Saturday and Sunday. If you sleep in the town, the Pousada and the Dom Dinis are inside the walls.
Where to eat
Where to eat?
Lunch is half the plan: book before you set off.
fago
What to order: the wood-oven bread with the mushroom pâté and one of the three mains: meat, fish or vegetable.
Map
The stops, in order
With where to park at each one.
What to do
Eat
88 €Stay
Services
Getting there
By car or without one?
When to go
When to go to Marvão
In 2026, the 42nd Marvão Chestnut Festival is on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 November; from the 14th to the 29th there is a chestnut gastronomic fortnight in the restaurants of the municipality. On those days you park below and go up on a shuttle.
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Best timeGood timeLow season
Tips
Worth knowing first
- 1Bring cash
For the small stalls at the fair, it is best to carry some loose change.
- 2Comfortable shoes
The streets are cobbled and steep, and slippery when damp.
- 3A coat
At 850 metres, in November, the wind blows along the walls.
We'd skip it
If you hate crowds: on the Sunday of the fair Marvão is full. Go on another weekend of the gastronomic fortnight, which runs until 29 November.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
When is the Marvão Chestnut Fair in 2026?
Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 November. The chestnut gastronomic fortnight runs until the 29th.
Can you drive up to the town?
Not on the days of the fair: you park below and go up on the council shuttle.
What time is it in Marvão?
Portuguese time, an hour behind Spain.
Is it a good plan with children?
Yes: chestnuts, stalls, castle and walls. Keep an eye on them on the wall-walk and bring a baby carrier rather than a pushchair.
More plans like this
Other days of walking and good food
geocalia.com/en/portugal/alentejo/marvao/itineraries/roast-chestnuts-at-the-fair
Prices, opening hours and times are approximate: check them before you go. Each place has its own page on Geocalia.