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.
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.
Portuguese Baroque architecture is a revelation that’s held in great esteem around the world for its vigour, purity and astonishing abundance, especially in the north of the country.
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
Covering some 600 square-kilometres, Portugal’s very own cowboy country – the Ribatejo, meaning ‘bank of the Tagus’ – is a highly fertile province and the country’s geographical and agricultural heartland.
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.
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.
When the renowned English travel writer William Beckford visited Portugal (his favourite European country) in the late-18th century, he happened upon two of the shiniest jewels in the country’s tourism crown – the monasteries of Batalha and Alcobaça.
From Atlantic-fresh fish to the wild meats of the mountains, Portuguese food is distinctive and varied with many of the most popular regional dishes having evolved from age-old recipes based on locally-grown ingredients.
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.
Located close to the Spanish border in the centre of Portugal, Monsanto is generally considered to be the most typical and picturesque of all Portugal’s prized villages.
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.
Located 120 km (about an hour’s drive) due north of Lisbon, the church and adjacent monastery of Alcobaça are the earliest examples of truly Gothic architecture in Portugal.
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.
Closely associated with the beginning of the Portuguese monarchy, the national Gothic style is elegant and ethereal with strains of the Romanesque sobriety and austere grace seen in some of its earliest examples.
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.
Built in the second half of the 12th century, Coimbra’s magnificent cathedral known as Sé Velha is one of the finest Romanesque churches in Europe.
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.
Bordering the south-western edge of the Iberian Peninsula, with around half of its periphery surrounded by water, Portugal’s shoreline has been a source of attraction as well as a gateway to the rest of the world for hundreds of years.
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.
Synonymous with the town of Tomar in the heart of the Ribatejo region, the legendary Knights Templar played a very important role in the reconquest of Portugal in the 12th century.
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.
Conímbriga is the most extensive Roman site so far discovered in Portugal…but its story is a chequered one.
Surfing fans need to take note that Portugal is one of the main midwinter venues of the Big Wave Challenge, along with a growing number of other top international surf destinations.
Over four million people visit a small town called Fátima in the centre of Portugal each year where three children saw the Virgin Mary more than a century ago.
Napoleon’s attempts to conquer the Iberian Peninsula came to an abrupt halt when his army under Marshall Massena encountered the Lines of Torres Vedras, a defensive stronghold designed to protect Lisbon.
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).
Often punctuated by snow, the vast rolling landscape of Serra da Estrela Natural Park is an absolute must for hikers, bird-watchers and nature lovers of all types visiting central Portugal.
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