The surrounding countryside has both the large quintas of the major Port Wine houses and also small estates with vineyards terraced down the mountainside.

Visits can be made to the Port Wine Quintas to sample this famous wine and also to learn how it is produced.

One of the most spectacular times to visit is in autumn for the 'vindima' (grape harvest). The fields are filled with workers picking the grapes and carrying then to collection points to begin the journey to be pressed.

A few quintas still produce their luxury brands in the old fashioned way of treading the grapes by foot to extract the juice without damaging the pips which can cause a bitter taste.

It is said that the Douro River is one of the most beautiful landscapes in Portugal and is best visited by train or boat with car being a very poor third option.

The management will be pleased to help arrange boat trips. Train tickets for one of the great journeys of the world can be bought at the stations.

Even if not taking a train journey, a visit should be made to Pinhao Railway Station to see the famous tiles on the walls containing scenes of the wine production process.

The Pousada de Alijo has 21 rooms with en-suite bathroom, air conditioning/heating, Cable television and satelite, telephone, minibar and hair dryer. Some bedrooms are inter-connected.

The Pousada has a restaurant offering a variety of dishes including a selection of local and regional specialities. Other facilities include bar, terrace, swimming pool, tennis court, lift and parking.

Activities in this area include hunting for wild boar and fishing for barbel and other fish. Also country walks and bicycle tours.

August is the time of the local festivals when the villages have their music, dancing, markets and, of course, the religious processions and services.

The festivities start in the nearby village/town of Favaios at the beginning of August, followed by Sanfins do Douro a week later and in Alijo itself usually from 14 to 16 August.

The Pousada is named in honour of one the great names in the Port Wine industry. In 1831 the 22 year old Englishman, Joseph James Forrester, came to Porto to join his uncle's firm of Offleys Forrester and Company. He soon produced high quality hand drawn maps of the production region and also paintings and watercolours of the Douro and Porto. He wrote on technical matters relating to Port Wine including a pamphlet accusing the port wine shippers of malpractice.

He was later made Baron Forrester by the king for his services to Port Wine. In 1892 at the age of 53 he had a good lunch at the quinta of Taylor, Fladgate and Yeatman. Returning home with Baroness Fladgate and Dona Antonia Adelaide Ferreira (of Ferreira Port) the boat hit a rock in the rapids in the Douro and was lost. It is said that the ladies crinolines kept them afloat but Baron Forrester was wearing a money belt containing gold sovereigns and perished.

The international airport at Porto (Oporto) is approximately 136 kilometers from this Pousada of Portugal.