Porto is the most important city in the North of Portugal lent its name to the famous wine and to Portugal. One must stroll around its typical quarters (especially the area on the waterside, the ‘zona ribeirinha’) and its bustling downtown. Visit: the Stock Exchange Palace, the Romanesque-Gothic Cathedral, the church of Cedofeita (Romanesque), the Clérigos tower (Porto’s ex-libris of Baroque architecture) and church; the church of São Francisco, of Romanesque origin, with its interior covered in gilded carvings, and the church of Carmo, with tiled façades. Museums: Soares dos Reis, Casa de Serralves (modern art), Casa-Museu de Guerra Junqueiro and the Romantic Style Museum of Quinta da Macieirinha. One should not miss a visit to the Port lodges in Vila Nova de Gaia and free tasting of the famous port wine.
First and foremost, Albufeira is famed for its beaches, for the countless shades and tones of its rocks and cliffs. This is a place where people live to the rhythim of the great holiday destinations, sunbathing during the day and at sunset flocking to enjoy the restaurants, bars and discos that enliven the night-time hours. Just a few miles inland and everything changes. The green of the countryside is dotted with almond, fig, orange and pine trees and decorated chimneys stand out against the ochre of tiled roofs.
Stylish summer resort. Amongst the numerous restaurants, bars and discotheques are the following historic places: Castro Guimarães Museum and Sea Museum, the 18th century churches of Nossa Senhora da Assunção and Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes; the chapels of Nossa Senhora da Guia (15th century) and São Sebastião (16th and 17th-centuries) and the 17th century fortress. Just a few minutes away lies Guincho beach (a great place for those who enjoy surfing and windsurfing).
Museum town of Roman origins, with historic center classified in UNESCO’s International Heritage list. The town ex-libris is its Roman temple, located close to the Cathedral, which houses an important Sacred Art Museum (Roman-Gothic). Among its many convents and churches, the following can be visited: São Brás Chapel (Gothic-Moorish); São Francisco Church (with its Capela dos Ossos, a chapel walled with human bones) and São João Baptista Church (Gothic-Manueline); churches of Nossa Senhora da Graça (with-convent), Santo Antão and São Vicente (Mannerist). Palaces: Archepiscopal, Dom Manuel and Dukes of Cadaval. A special reference also to: Praça de Giraldo, with 16th-century arches; Aqueduct; convents of Santa Clara, Santa Helena do Calvário and Lóios (this one currently a pousada); University; ancient Jewish quarter; Évora Museum.
Fátima is one of the most important shrines of the world dedicated to the Virgin Mary. This Sanctuary welcomes millions of pilgrims and tourists from all over the world. The fame of this place is the result of the Apparitions of Our Lady of the Rosary to three shepherd children Lúcia and her cousins, Francisco and Jacinta that, between May and October of 1917, witnessed successive apparitions. The last one, on October 13th, was confirmed by a miracle witnessed by 70,000 people 'on the day the sun danced'.
The island’s capital, with manors and gardens that descend into the ocean, evokes a natural Nativity scene. Numerous examples of religious architecture: the Cathedral, with its Manueline pulpit; the churches of Carmo; São Roque, Santa Clara Convent, Recolhimento do Bom Jesus. One may also visit the chapels of Santa Catarina, Corpo Santo and Consolação. Special reference to the following civic architecture buildings: Paços do Concelho and the forts of Pico and São Tiago. Most importante museums: Sacred Art (Flemish and Portuguese art, gold objects and collection of statues), Quinta das Cruzes (furniture and decorative arts), Vicentes Photographia Museum, and Frederico Freitas (dwelling-museum). You can also visit gardens (particulary the Botanical Gardens) and farms (where one can even take a tour on a typical bull cart). Also available to visit the Madeira wine lodges.
Portugal’s birthplace, with medieval castle and walls, houses a magnificently well-preserved historic centre. In the cloisters of the church of Nossa Senhora da Oliveira is the Alberto Sampaio Museum; and the cloister of São Domingos Convent houses the Martins Sarmento Museum. In the ancient dominican convent stands the Sacred Art Museum. Also deserving special mentions are the palace of the Dukes of Bragança (15th-century), the church of São Miguel (Romanesque), the church of Santos Passos (Baroque), and the monastery of Santa Marinha da Costa (converted in to a pousada). Nearby lies the early settlement of Briteiros.
Spreading out along the right bank of the Tagus, its downtown, the Baixa, is located in the 18th-century area around Rossio. East of the arcade Praça do Comércio, are the medieval quarters of Alfama and Mouraria, crowned by the magnificent St. George's Castle. To the west lie Bairro Alto and Madragoa, with their typical streets, and on the western extreme is Belém, with its Belém Tower, (the sentinel over the Tagus river that protects the entrance into Lisbon), the Jerónimos Monastery (masterpieces of Manueline architecture and classified in UNESCO's International Heritage list) and the Cultural Center of Belém.
The capital of the largest island of Azores. In Ponta Delgada, the famous 18th century portals open up to a number of monuments that are worth visiting, most of them built between the 16th and the 18th century: Carlos Machado Museum and churches of São Sebastião, São Pedro, São José, Colégio and Nossa Senhora da Conceição; convent and chapel of Nossa Senhora da Esperança and Santa Ana Chapel. Palaces: Fonte Bela and Santa Ana; Conceição and Santa Catarina; Casa de Carlos Bicudo and the Paços do Concelho. Other places to visit: Caldeira das Sete Cidades (green and blue lakes); Lagoa do Fogo; Ribeira Grande; Vale das Furnas (spas and hot mineral pools) and Vila Franca do Campo.
First the blue sea and its gently lapping waves. Then fine golden sands framed by cliffs and rocks. The cosmopolitan atmosphere of an international tourist destination. This is the Algarve of beach holidays in the sun. Portimão and its municipality have more to offer though. A rich heritage of historical monuments. The eternal natural beauty of the Ria de Alvor. The charm of cultivated fields, of slopes covered with pine trees and wild flowers. The allure of walking up into the hills and looking down on the Algarve from a new perspective.
In the center stands the National Palace, with its beautiful painted rooms and huge pair of conical chimneys, the village’s ex-libris. Other palaces: Pena (royal palace, 19th century), Seteais (18th century and currently a luxurious hotel) and Monserrate, renowned for its gardens and water courses. The churches of São Martinho (Romanesque origin), Santa Maria (Romanesque-Gothic) and São Pedro de Penaferrim (15th-16th-centuries). Nearby are the church of Santo António do Penedo (16th-century) and Peninha Chapel (Baroque tile works). The Toy Museum, over 20 000 pieces from the 16th to the 20th-century and the Berardo Collection of Modern Art. In the suburbs: the Capuchos Convent (16th-century) and Cabo da Roca (the westernmost point in continental Europe).
With its inviting long beaches, typical roofs and chimneys, this picturesque town offers a beautiful view over the Gilão river and its Roman bridge. Churches to visit: Santa Maria do Castelo (13th-18th centuries), Misericórdia (Renaissance), Nossa Senhora das Ondas (17th century), São José (with Gothic and Manueline elements), São Paulo and Carmo (17th-18th-centuries). If you are browsing along the Travessa de Dona Brites, you will see beautiful medieval houses, with Gothic windows and portals. In the suburbs, at the village of Luz there is a Renaissance church, which has been a pilgrimage place for many centuries.
It is one of the largest single tourist complex in Europe and covers some 2.000 hectares of land. The land is variable in its vegetation, some parts covered in pine forests whilst others open recovered marshland. Vilamoura is a special place, a unique leisure and recreation resort community where the pace of life is so easy it feels like summer all year round. Designed from the start to be self-sufficient, Vilamoura is ideally located, features a wide choice of prime accommodation, offers the commercial structure for day-to-day needs and is bursting with sporting and leisure facilities for the whole family. It is a luxury hotel, a private villa or a serviced apartment for the visitor, but also a home to the resident and seasonal population. It is Portuguese, but also truly cosmopolitan. Away from the hectic pace and the stress of the modern world, all who visit are revitalised by the lifestyle, the convenience and the hospitality of this truly special place.
