In Portugal, a secluded stretch of untouched natural beauty hides at the bottom of a steep hill.

An early work of the architect Álvaro Siza Vieira, these swimming pools blend into the beach.

This fairy-tale, neo-Gothic church in the Azores is a world of magical realism.

Perhaps the most spectacular grotto along the Algarve coastline.

The verdant mossy ruins of a Franciscan monastery lie in the remote Sintra hills awaiting exploration.

An ancient and majestic fortress that played an integral role in Portugal's road to independence.

A submerged village appears when dam levels drop.

This gaping hole in the middle of a remote mountain lake looks like a portal to another dimension.

This eccentrically decorated palace is replete with grottoes, fountains, tunnels, and caves.

One of the most beautiful bookstores in the world hides a neo-Gothic interior behind an art nouveau facade.

Legacy of the earthquake that nearly wiped Lisbon off the face of the Earth.

Stone pillars and a petrified wedding party in the hills of North Macedonia.

This 3,800-year-old site contains markers used to study the movement of the sun and moon and create a lunar calendar.

This cluster of little wooden huts once ground local farmers’ wheat into flour during the days of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

There's a mini version of Iguazu Falls hidden in the Balkans, and it's got a rope swing.

Bridge that died in war and was resurected.

Two geological phenomena in one precarious locale: a towering stone window, and a deep blue void.

This prison on the Maltese island of Gozo is almost 500 years old, and they have the graffiti to prove it.

Stone Age solar temple is aligned with the sun on each equinox and solstice.

This 13th-century monastery chiseled into the side of a mountain is equipped with a bridge that can be lifted to protect against raids.

Ruins of a 13th-century fortress perched above a breathtaking Mediterranean bay.

This medieval "painted village" is famous for its geometric facades.

Legend says this sacred tree was a gift from goddess Athena.

An alien landscape on the banks of the Aegean Sea.