Secret Portugal Directory

Pinhal de Leiria

A marvel of nature is the “Pinhal de Leiria” (King’s Pinewood or Leiria’s Pinewood), unique nation-wide. It was ordered to be planted by a Portuguese King to protect the agricultural lands from advancing coastal sands.  Later, the wood from this forest would be used to build the ships used in the Portuguese Navigations of the 15th and 16th centuries. This forest still exists as one of the most important woods of Portugal and is known as the Pinhal de Leiria.