central Portugal

A small place of Roman origin situated right in the heart of the verdant Upper Alentejo region, Alter do Chão is a pretty town with a long equestrian history.

It is widely claimed that Portugal is the land of the azulejo painted tile and in no other country and by no other people has it been used on such a vast scale or in such an original way.

Whilst visiting Portugal, golfers can immerse themselves in their favourite sport and complement their trip with all the wonderful things you’d expect from one of the world’s top tourist destinations.

As its name implies, the lovely town of Caldas da Rainha (Queen’s Spa) an hour’s drive north of Lisbon in central Portugal preserves the eternal and loving memory of one of the country’s most popular queens – Leonor – whose … Read more

Located in the heart of the Ribatejo, one of the flattest and most extensive regions in Portugal, Golegã is a charming town in the centre of the country with a great horse-breeding and agricultural tradition.

The longest of all Portugal’s rivers, the Tagus (Tejo in Portuguese) meanders across the Iberian Peninsula for just over 1,000 kilometres before spilling out into the Atlantic Ocean in Lisbon, right at the point where Portuguese caravels set sail on … Read more

Nestling between the Minho in the north and the Beiras of central Portugal, the Douro region is one of the most scenic parts of the country and a magnet for visitors looking for a true taste of the country’s wine-rich … Read more

Covering more than 100 hectares of prime terrain, Buçaco Forest rises majestically out of the coastal plain north of Coimbra to form one of the most luxuriant areas of woodland in the whole of Portugal.

The magnificent Convento de Cristo (Convent of Christ) in the historic town of Tomar in central Portugal is one of the most impressive religious complexes in the whole of southern Europe.

Spurred by Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460), the Portuguese discovered precisely what Columbus was seeking – the fabled Indies. They also charted new sea routes halfway around the world to destinations as far as Japan.

One of Europe’s most iconic castles is undoubtedly the Castelo de Almourol, a fairy-tale fortress of Disney-like proportions perched in timeless splendour on top of a rocky island in the middle of the River Tagus in central Portugal.

Southern Europe has many impressive caves to explore but some of the largest, deepest and most spectacular of them all are the cathedral-like Grutas de Mira de Aire located in the heart of central Portugal.

The construction of Lisbon’s imposing cathedral began in the middle of the 12th century, during Afonso Henriques’ siege and capture of the city from the Moors.

The story of Pedro and Inês is an intriguing one; Portugal’s very own Romeo and Juliet. In essence, it’s a story of forbidden love.

The undisputed queen of Portugal’s many first-rate cheeses is queijo da serra (serra cheese), made from the milk of ewes leisurely grazing in elevated pastures full of wild vegetation throughout the Estrela mountain region of central Portugal.

Surrounded by one of the oldest state forests in the world, the lovely old city of Leiria was once the southernmost outpost of the early Portuguese kingdom at a time when Lisbon was still under Moorish occupation.

Besides being a strong, independently-minded woman back in the middle of the seventeenth century, Josefa de Óbidos (1630-84) over almost four decades created some of the most attractive and instantly recognisable paintings in the history of Portuguese art.

Perched high on a line of hills near the Serra da Estrela mountains of central Portugal, Belmonte is a medieval village of considerable charm commanded by an imposing 13th-century granite castle.

Perhaps the most striking of all the marble towns in the Alentejo region, Vila Viçosa might be small in stature but it’s an immense place in the overall context of Portugal’s long and chequered history.

A lively and cosmopolitan seaside resort at the mouth of the Mondego River in central Portugal, Figueira da Foz’s glorious centrepiece is its wide and very extensive sandy beach.

In 1830, when Gaspar Henriques de Paiva left his home in Monsanto, central Portugal, for the village of Azeitão in the Arrábida mountains close to Lisbon, he took with him the winning formula for one of Portugal’s best cheeses.

Situated in a large and beautiful valley on the banks of the River Nabão in central Portugal, Tomar is very closely linked to the Knights Templar and one of the most important chapters of Portugal’s history.

An old ritual of pre-Roman origin, and with its roots firmly set in an ancient fertility festival dedicated to the goddess Ceres, the Festa dos Tabuleiros is one of the most colourful and traditional events in Portugal‘s cultural calendar.

Once an offshore island as recent as the mid-16th century, the old port town of Peniche is a place of history, ocean-fresh air and fun-filled seaside pursuits on some of the best beaches to be found in Portugal’s enchanting Estremadura … Read more

Surrounded by vineyards, orchards and pine-forests, the charming city of Viseu has been a major crossroads since the time of the Romans who chose its site for a military camp, one of the largest in the Iberian Peninsula.

To many people, the Beiras region of central Portugal is the most quintessential part of the country, a land of vineyards and fortress towns characterising the area with long sandy beaches embroidering its extensive Atlantic coastline.

Encircled by imposing mountains, the enchanting Dão wine-making region is a land of sprawling pine and eucalyptus forests stretched right across the northern parts of central Portugal between Aveiro on the Atlantic coast and Guarda near the Spanish border.

Located on a 1,075-metre-high plateau on the north-east flank of the Estrela mountains in central Portugal, Guarda is a city of great historic interest and the highest place in the country.

With a height of 1,993 metres, Estrela (meaning star) is by far the highest and most imposing of all the mountains on the Portuguese mainland.

Standing on a ridge above the River Tagus, the historic town of Santarém is one of the oldest and most intriguing places in the centre of Portugal.

Well sited above the River Tagus and always of strategic importance over the centuries, Abrantes provides an excellent base from which to explore the lower central regions of Portugal.

With its steep narrow streets and spectacular views, Covilhã is one of the most charming places in central Portugal. It’s also an excellent base from which to explore the wild and rugged Serra da Estrela mountain region.

Basking in crisp air and affording the most breathtaking vistas, the charming town of Caramulo is the centrepiece of a region renowned for its health and wellness benefits set against a backdrop of mimosa and heather-laden mountains.

Dating from the early 12th century, many rare examples of Romanesque architecture still exist in Portugal, most notably in the northern regions of the country.



Besides Portugal’s intrepid, ground-breaking explorer of the same name, another famous Vasco born in the 15th century was the master painter Vasco Fernandes, aka Grão Vasco (or Vasco the Great).

With all the wonder of a tale from the Arabian Nights, Portugal’s long and chequered history is today still greatly evident from the many humble objects associated with the simple daily existence of the past.

Besides enjoying Portugal’s enchanting landscape, fine wines, sandy beaches and warm year-round sunshine, the best moments for many visitors are served up in the country’s eateries, with the dining experience further enhanced by the choice of soups and other starters … Read more

With its broad avenues, large squares and a pleasant air of prosperity, Castelo Branco is an attractive town of parks and gardens and a very good base from which to explore the border region of central Portugal.

Few places in Portugal are more welcoming and atmospheric than the Aldeias Históricas, a series of a dozen ancient and very historic villages spread out mostly along the Spanish frontier in the heart of the country.

One of the most picturesque seaside towns in Portugal, Nazaré is a bustling resort with a large crescent-shaped stretch of golden, sandy beach on the west coast of central Portugal.

There’s a feeling in some parts of Portugal that bread is sacred – ‘pão é sagrado’, they say – and that it sustains life like the wafer taken at Communion.

Located 30km north of Abrantes, the small town of Vila de Rei (which means King’s Town) is a pretty place set in a wonderland of pinewoods, lakes, running streams and waterfalls right in the very heart of Portugal.

When the Portuguese voted for their favourite land and seascapes as part of the 7 Natural Wonders opinion poll, the outcome was a genuine showcase of the country’s most magnificent and much-loved vistas.

The Berlengas form an archipelago of extraordinary red rock formations located twelve kilometres off the coast of Peniche in central Portugal.

The Iberian wolf might be an endangered species but several of them can be seen roaming free at the Centro de Recuperação do Lobo Ibérico (CRLI) near Mafra in central Portugal.

A short drive to the north-east of Fátima lies Ourém, a loftily-perched medieval town clustered around an ancient, well-preserved castle.

The great Dominican monastery of Santa Maria da Vitória in the small town of Batalha, central Portugal, isn’t just a national shrine but one of the finest examples of Gothic architecture in Europe.

Laid out flat between the Atlantic and the Alentejo like a vast patched picnic blanket, the Estremadura region is one of the most varied in the whole of Portugal.

Portugal is a land of pageants, processions, lively country fairs and other joyful folklore-based festivities where tourists who happen upon them by accident can expect the unexpected.

The attractive little town of Luso on the north-west slope of the Serra do Buçaco lies just 3 km from the northern tip of Buçaco Forest, one of the jewels in the central Portugal‘s tourism crown.

One of the most decisive conflicts in the history of Portugal – the famous Battle of Aljubarrota – took place on an isolated plain in the centre of the country well over six centuries ago.

Grand Master of the Order of Avis, King João I was king of Portugal from the 6th of April 1385 until his death on the 14th of August 1433 aged 76.

Full of history and rustic traditions, Celorico da Beira is a small town nestling on the edge of the Serra da Estrela mountains approximately 50 kilometres east of Viseu in the heart of central Portugal.