With traces of Roman occupation since the Neolithic, the region hosted communities of farmers and shepherds who successively influenced the local communities. During the Roman colonialization and the Visigothic domination, Alte evolved from a rural villa integrated in the large Roman property, to an autonomous peasant community of the mountainside, maintaining trade relations with the coastal cities. In the Muslim period, Alte becomes a fortified town and in the bordering lands new agricultural techniques are developed and the almond, carob and fig cultures. The Arab and Berber cultures decisively marked the local architecture. After the Christian conquest of the Algarve, the lordship of Alte is established and maintained until the 20th century.

Parish Church Founded before the fifteenth century, the church underwent renovations in the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries, currently featuring an interior composed of three naves separated by arches, supported by strong columns. The biggest highlight is necessarily the beautiful vaulted vault, covered with 18th century blue and white tiles and rich baroque carvings. The portal and the baptismal fonts are Manueline. The golden carving of the altarpieces of the chapels of Nossa Sr.ª do Carmo, Nossa Sr.ª do Rosário and São Francisco contrasts with the polychrome tiles lining the Capela de São Sebastião. Beautiful images of Saint Teresa, from the 17th century, and of Nossa Sr.ª do Rosário and Santa Margarida, from the 18th century, complete the church's decoration.