Small places like this are often visited because someone recommended them to us or because they were described as a must-see by some tourist guides after the hundreds of other places to visit. Isn't that how people find out about towns like that?
It was a bit different for me. I had no idea the place existed and had such a lovely church and monastery until I bought a bag of apples in the supermarket. Yep - apples. The following again.. again...
And they had this sticker on the saying "Maçã de Alcobaça". For a foreigner, it is such a catchy name! Easy to remember, and that made me google the place. Not because of the history, but because I wanted to see where all those apples came from.