Observatorio do Lago Alqueva

Observatorio do Lago Alqueva

Observatorio do Lago Alqueva
4.5
Science MuseumsObservatories & PlanetariumsEducational sites
2:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Tuesday
2:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Wednesday
2:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Thursday
2:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Friday
2:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Saturday
2:00 PM - 10:00 PM
About
The Observatório do Lago Alqueva – OLA (Lake Alqueva Observatory) is the first and largest an astronomical observatory in Alentejo. Located in the heart of rural Portugal, near to the medieval village of Monsaraz, its location offers a trully magnificent dark sky to all visitors. OLA offers almost daily tours of the magnificent night sky of Monsaraz, where one can learn the orientation by the North Star, identify the constellations and know their legends, relate stellar colours with their ages, observe star clusters, nebulas and distant galaxies with the help of telescopes. The explanations are presented with clear examples and language by OLA’s guides. When the weather is cloudy, we resort to a simulation using astronomy software. The observatory also promotes courses on astronomy and astrophotography and has a vast program of outreach talks and activities for the general public, schools and senior groups.
Suggested duration
1-2 hours
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  • Adam G
    Spain2 contributions
    Great experience
    Great experience, the guide was very informative and helpful. Short, interesting briefing at the start then outside for star gazing through two telescopes. Saw the moon, Mars, constellations, nebulas and galaxies inbetween lots of info from the guide. Well worth it.
    Visited July 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 25 July 2023
  • ruthiecoop
    12 contributions
    A really interesting visit and we’ll worth it
    We visited with two adults and three teens. The guide was really interesting and passionate about the subject. We did the sun visit and were sad not to have the time to see the night show. I really recommend a visit here.
    Visited August 2023
    Travelled with family
    Written 12 August 2023
  • Travel546754
    1 contribution
    Brilliant evening
    Last time we visited the observatory was fully booked so we made sure to book early this time! And we are glad we did, we had a fabulous evening, Catarina was knowledgeable and friendly and had endless patience for our many questions, and those of our two young children! We saw constellations, nebulas, we were shown how stars develop and we saw the craters on the moon, Andromeda, Saturn (along with her rings and four of her moons). It was brilliant, thank you very much
    Visited August 2023
    Travelled with family
    Written 22 August 2023
  • barneypalf
    65 contributions
    Unforgettable Experience
    Yesterday we attended both the solar experience and the evening astronomical observations. As a complete novice on this stuff I can honestly say I wasn’t sure how much I was going to enjoy it but it was absolutely amazing. We had Fred for both sessions and his knowledge and passion for his subject is a joy to listen to. He also has the skill to share his knowledge in a way which is easy to understand. I loved all of it but seeing the ring around Saturn and stripy Jupiter and it’s moons were the highlights for me. It was a night I will remember and talk about for the rest of my life.
    Visited November 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 15 November 2023
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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4.5
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barneypalf
England65 contributions
Nov 2023 • Couples
Yesterday we attended both the solar experience and the evening astronomical observations. As a complete novice on this stuff I can honestly say I wasn’t sure how much I was going to enjoy it but it was absolutely amazing. We had Fred for both sessions and his knowledge and passion for his subject is a joy to listen to. He also has the skill to share his knowledge in a way which is easy to understand. I loved all of it but seeing the ring around Saturn and stripy Jupiter and it’s moons were the highlights for me. It was a night I will remember and talk about for the rest of my life.
Written 16 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Anan
155 contributions
Aug 2023 • Family
Tomas was knowledgeable and welling to answer all questions the place was in the middle of no where but it’s worth the experience
Written 26 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Travel546754
1 contribution
Aug 2023 • Family
Last time we visited the observatory was fully booked so we made sure to book early this time! And we are glad we did, we had a fabulous evening, Catarina was knowledgeable and friendly and had endless patience for our many questions, and those of our two young children!
We saw constellations, nebulas, we were shown how stars develop and we saw the craters on the moon, Andromeda, Saturn (along with her rings and four of her moons). It was brilliant, thank you very much
Written 22 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ruthiecoop
London, United Kingdom12 contributions
Aug 2023 • Family
We visited with two adults and three teens. The guide was really interesting and passionate about the subject. We did the sun visit and were sad not to have the time to see the night show. I really recommend a visit here.
Written 12 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Adam G
Spain2 contributions
Jul 2023 • Couples
Great experience, the guide was very informative and helpful. Short, interesting briefing at the start then outside for star gazing through two telescopes. Saw the moon, Mars, constellations, nebulas and galaxies inbetween lots of info from the guide. Well worth it.
Written 25 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Adele K
22 contributions
Mar 2023
This review is about our experience in booking and not about the visit that we never got to have due to no fault of our own. Mid-day, we called and booked a tour for 21:30 that evening. At 21:15, we approached the site. There was what appeared to be a tour guide waiting in his car. We entered the area and were approached by the director who was not pleased we were there, stating he was in the middle of a private tour we could not join and we were supposed to come at 23:00. He stated that his "colleague" must have made a mistake. We left puzzled. Then, checking messages, there was one confirming our appointment that had been sent at 21:13 stating we were to meet at 22:50! In conversation on text, it was said that an attempt to call us had not gone through (we had our phones on all the time) and he should have texted us the change in time, admitting it had been changed. But, it appears that another better opportunity had bumped us, pretty last-minute. When he was told where were we staying, he seemed embarrassed (as he knows the owner) and offered us the 22:00 time again or the next day. It was an empty offer, as we had already stated we would never had made an appointment that late in the eventing. Well, we were leaving and that was unacceptable. Please beware.
Written 15 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Felipe8aP
Madrid, Spain83 contributions
Aug 2022 • Couples
It was a real pleasure to hear Dr. Nelson engage with us about the universe. We were lucky enough to be a small group so Dr. Nelson really has time to talk to us and show us a lot of things. We will certainly return (provided we can hear Dr. Nelson and all his astronomy related humor).
Written 25 August 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mobile54884121714
1 contribution
Aug 2022 • Family
Suzan was our English speaking guide and she did a great job! She is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic! Definitely worth a visit. We did the evening session at 21:30h
Written 2 August 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Andre Archie C
9 contributions
Jul 2022 • Solo
I went on July 28,2022. I specifically wanted to see a galaxy outside of our own. I SAW THREE!!! I saw our neighbor Andromeda and 2 others. The professor was so patient and helpful. One of his students, Susana, led our tour and she was great. Our group was in english and another group was in portuguese.
Many thanks to Susana and her professor, I'm sorry I don't know his name. He was great and we are both fans of Carl Sagan!!!!
Written 29 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Darren L
Queenstown, MD766 contributions
Nov 2021 • Couples
We had a fantastic experience with Bruno looking at and learning about the stars. The moon was a little brighter than desirable, however we were able to see everything he wanted to show us.

We began by looking at Saturn and Jupiter. We could clearly see the rings of Saturn. For Jupiter we could not only see the planet clearly but 4 of its moons. We moved onto various types of stars and then galaxies. Throughout the experience Bruno took time to provide excellent explanations that taught us something new without losing us in the science. He is clearly a good teacher (no quiz at end, though).

This is a great experience for young and old. We remarked that our 9 year old granddaughter would have loved it. It does get cold and windy there at night so dress appropriately.
Written 16 November 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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OBSERVATORIO DO LAGO ALQUEVA: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

Frequently Asked Questions about Observatorio do Lago Alqueva