Just south of Lisbon, the long, sandy beach of Costa da Caparica extends many kilometers and is subdivided into zones that correspond to about a dozen parking lots. The southernmost of these parking lots is at Praia da Bela Vista, and a bit south of the lot is stretch of beach that has been officially designated for nudists since 1996. The nude area begins about 400 meters south of the parking lot, approximately where this placemark is pinpointed, and extends south about one kilometer. The southern boundary of the nude area is about 700 meters north of Praia da Fonte da Telha. Bela Vista is the closest nude beach to Lisbon, and it is very popular.

There is a small tourist train (Comboio Transpraia) that runs along the beach from Costa da Caparica to Fonte da Telha during summer, letting visitors off at multiple stops along the 8-kilometer stretch. Bela Vista is accessed from stops 17, 18 and 19, going north to south. (Stop 21 at Fonte da Telha is the end stop.) The train stops are marked by posts indicating the number of the stop (paragem). The southern part of the nude area corresponding to stop 19 is a gay beach—the most popular gay beach in Portugal, in fact. It is often known simply as Praia 19.

There are beach restaurants at the parking area and at Fonte da Telha. While it is possible to approach Bela Vista from the south via Fonte da Telha, most visitors arrive from the northern approach.

Bela Vista can be reached by public transit by going from Lisbon to Costa da Caparica by bus (#153 or #161). A walk of just a few minutes south from the bus station takes you to the start of the seasonal tourist train, which departs every half hour. The last train back to Costa da Caparica leaves around 7:00 pm.

VISUAL RESOURCES

GPS: 38.5923, -9.2068

municipality, district, region, country
      Almada, Setúbal, Lisboa, Portugal

There are 11placemarks related to these nearby sites: Praia da Bela Vista and Praia da Adiça.