With twisting alleyways and quaint whitewashed houses, the small town of Palmela is located on mountain slopes 40 km south of Lisbon and 10 km north of Setubal. The Pousada de Palmela, is an ancient castle which had originally been founded by the Romans and was captured from the Moors by Afonso Henriques in the 12th century and later given to the monks of the Order of Saint James. Celebrated on the first Sunday of September, the town’s annual wine harvest festival or Festa das Vindimas is one of the liveliest occasions in the region.