Mexilhoeira Grande
Rural parish in the municipality of Portimão on the edge of the Ria do Alvor
- District: Faro > Municipality: Portimão > Parish: Mexilhoeira Grande
- Population: 4.092
- Distances: Faro Airport 75 km, Lisbon Airport 283 km
- Tourist Info: Portimão Tourist Info
Mexilhoeira Grande is a parish (freguesia) in the municipality (concelho) of Portimão in the western Algarve (Barlavento).
This rural village is situated north of the bay Ria do Alvor and national road EN125 between Portimão and Lagos.
A few kilometers to the north of Mexilhoeira Grande are the Megalithic Monuments of Alcalar, a group of burial tombs dating from the Copper Age during the period 2000 - 1600 B.C.. This necropolis, the largest of its kind in Portugal, has been classified as a National Monument. On a nearby plateau an interrelated settlement was discovered in the 1970s. The country road M532 leads from Portimão to Alcalar.
On the border of the Ria do Alvor south of the EN125 the remains of a Roman settlement dating from the 1st century, Quinta da Abicada (Estação Romana da Quinta da Abicada) have been excavated. The former railway station of the Linha do Algarve has been converted into an environmental educational centre (Centro de Interpretação Ambiental da Ria de Alvor). It is a starting point for a pleasant tour along the lagoon of the Ria do Alvor between Alvor and Lagos.
The racing circuit Autódromo Internacional do Algarve north of Mexilhoeira Grande opened in 2008. The circuit is 4,692 km long and is the venue for several international car and motor bike races. It also has a karting and off road track.
