Roughly rectangular in shape and with a population of around ten million people, Portugal has much to offer the modern visitor – young and old alike.
Taking a stroll down Lisbon‘s memory lane, through the historic square mile of Belém, the place from which Portugal‘s fearless adventurers set sail for unknown lands in the 15th and 16th centuries, is one of the highlights of any person’s visit to the capital.
The story of Évora dates back more than twenty centuries to Celtic times. This fascinating museum-city reached its golden age in medieval times when it became the residence of Portuguese kings.
Along with its glorious stretch of golden coastline, Lisbon was a hive of spying activity during World War II, with many secret agents from both sides operating under the cover of their diplomatic status.
The green and pleasant north of Portugal is a place of traditional merry-making where annual festivals are ablaze with colourful costumes, lively processions and frenetic folk-dancing followed by a feast of fireworks.
History has shaped the Portuguese capital with a succession of architectural influences over the centuries, most notably the Moors who occupied the city for more than four hundred years.
Faro, the sunshine capital of the Algarve, has metamorphosed into a major tourism hub in recent years, and not just in the high season.
Founded in 1272, Vila Real (which means ‘royal town’) is a thriving agricultural centre ideally situated on an upland plateau ringed with mountains.
Following in the footsteps of the great English Romantic poets, few tourists can resist the lush, green setting of Sintra just a few kilometres west of Lisbon.
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.
One of Portugal’s lesser-known but much-savoured wines is vinho verde, so called because the grapes are picked young and the wine is mostly drunk just a year or two after bottling.
A maze of narrow, winding streets, Lisbon‘s Alfama quarter is the oldest and most historical part of the Portuguese capital, having survived the great earthquake and subsequent fires and tidal waves of 1755 almost intact.
The age-old custom of hurtling visitors downhill at breakneck speed in something resembling an over-sized laundry basket is thankfully very much alive on the Atlantic island of Madeira.
Nestling in a vast mountain bowl a thousand metres deep, the small whitewashed village of Curral das Freiras is one of Europe’s hidden gems and the most majestic place on the Atlantic island of Madeira.
Full of customs and tradition, the delightful UNESCO World Heritage city of Angra do Heroísmo has played a strategic role as a mid-Atlantic port over the centuries.
Legend attributes the founding of Lisbon and the derivation of its name to the heroes of Greek myth Ulysses, Lisa and Elixa. History, however, traces the city back to the Phoenicians, who settled in the port they named Alisubbo (balmy … Read more
One of the most joyful expressions of love and happiness can be witnessed in the faces of the Noivas de Santo António (Brides of St Anthony) who take their wedding vows in the hallowed setting of Lisbon’s magnificent Sé Cathedral each … 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.
One of Lisbon’s architectural treasures, the Casa dos Bicos (or House of Pointed Stones) stands just off the city’s main square, Praça do Comércio.
Without doubt one of Europe’s most astonishing cityscapes, Porto’s old quarter, with its thick flagstones and delicately-moulded façades, is attracting a fast-growing number of culture-hungry tourists.
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.
Situated high on a plateau near Portugal’s north-eastern frontier with Spain, the ancient city of Bragança was once the seat of the Dukes of Bragança, the country’s fourth and final dynasty, which ruled the country from 1640 to 1910.
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.
Generally regarded as the cradle of the Portuguese nation, Guimarães played an important role in many of the events that led to the country’s hard-fought independence. It also witnessed the birth of Afonso Henriques, Portugal’s first king.
Devastated by a succession of earthquakes over the centuries, Setúbal is rich in relics of the past and nowadays is one of the busiest ports on Lisbon‘s southern shoreline.
The largest place in the archipelago and capital of both São Miguel Island and the Azores since 1522, Ponta Delgada is a charming city stretched out along a wide bay on the island’s south coast.
Easter is a much-celebrated occasion all over Portugal but Braga, the country’s ecclesiastical capital, transforms itself into a place of pure pilgrimage and intense religious fervour during the popular Holy Week (Semana Santa) festivities.
Largely unspoilt by the effects of modern development, Nordeste is a small outpost situated at the north-eastern tip of São Miguel island in the Azores, a nine-island archipelago located west of mainland Portugal in the North Atlantic.
Birthplace of six kings and the seat of Portugal’s first university, Coimbra is one of the most celebrated cities in southern Europe.
To get close to Lisbon and its residents there’s nothing better than a nostalgic roller-coaster ride in an elétrico, one of the capital’s old streetcars, which are constantly rumbling through the city’s narrow streets passing old, weather-beaten façades in one of Europe’s most dignified … Read more
The Glória Funicular (known locally as the Ascensor da Glória) was the second of its kind to operate in the heart of the Portuguese capital.
The year 1942 was a very turbulent one but it did spawn one of the world’s most iconic and popular table wines.
For independent visitors travelling under their own steam, there are several routes to the Portuguese capital from the Spanish frontier and other outlying areas of the country, each offering a wide variety of sightseeing opportunities along the way.
Visible from most parts of Lisbon and beyond, the imposing statue of Christ the King (Cristo Rei) stands a striking 82 metres (270 feet) high on its angular pedestal overlooking the south bank of the River Tagus.
With its colourful vistas, wide-open roads and dazzling whitewashed villages, the great expanse of the Alentejo is perhaps the most vivid of Portugal’s landscapes.
Rich from centuries of trade, the ancient city of Porto is as much a cosmopolitan centre as it is a place steeped in the historical events of the past.
The great earthquake of 1755 wasn’t exclusive to Lisbon. In fact, the epicentre was calculated to have been out in the Atlantic some 200 km south-west of the Algarve.