What to see and do around Viseu (Central Portugal)

When a trip to Portugal, Lisbon and its surroundings or the city of Porto, are priority destinations, and the southern regions of the country Algarve y Alentejo They are also quite visited places.

But the truth is that due to lack of knowledge, people hardly think about knowing the possible attractive destinations that the city may have. central region of Portugal.

After our recent car route through this region, we can already tell you that there you can discover one of the most beautiful and varied areas of the neighboring country.

Located between the rivers Duero, to the north, and Tajo, to the south, due to its orography, it offers you a lot of possibilities since it covers a territory that goes from the sea to the border with Spain, which is more mountainous.

What to see in the center of Portugal, between Porto and Lisbon

This region is subdivided into eight subregions that extend both along the coast and inland.

Specifically, the subregions are the Beira Baja, Half Pit, West, Coimbra region, Liria region, Aveiro estuary, Sierra de Estrela y Viseu Dao Lafoes.

In the coastal zone that extends along the coast from Porto to Lisbon, you have as your most important city Coimbra, which in addition to being a university city, is one of the historical capitals of Portugal together with Porto y Guimarães.

Other significant cities are Figueira de Foz, with its traditional Portuguese charm, and Aveiro, which is a beautiful fishing and commercial city.

In the coastal area you will find fabulous beaches ideal for practicing sports where the wind is an important factor.

For its part, the northern area of ​​the interior of the Central Portugal region shows a very varied landscape with mountains, natural parks, pretty towns and cities such as Viseu o Vouzela with a great historical and cultural legacy.

Enjoy the nature is the attraction offered by the Sierra da Estrela, and its natural park is perfect for doing hiking trails, with old roads and small granite villages.

Mountain massifs and beautiful open valleys through which rivers like the vogue and Mondego to lead to Aveiro y Figueira da Foz.

The river beaches are another of the region's attractions, such as the rocks beach, riding a Pear Chestnut Tree, or the pool with artificial waves in the Lousa mountain range.

If you like to visit charming towns, in the interior there are a series of historical places in the process of recovery such as Piódão, Idanha-a-Velha, Aldeias do Xisto (slate towns) and some more that will surprise you.

It is a vineyard and cereal region, with large fields of corn and rye, as well as apple and orange orchards.

As for the lower area of ​​the interior of the central region of Portugal, you find a very uneven landscape in which you will see beautiful green valleys, gentle hills, small medieval towns and defensive fortifications.

A notable capital is Castelo Branco, famous embroidery of quilts for bride and groom.

It is also worth noting the Gardunha mountain range, famous for the production of cherries, the Tagus Natural Park with more than 26.000 hectares, and the great plain of Idanha.

In addition to being able to make a route through the Historical Villages, within walking distance of Castelo Branco There are interesting places like Idanha-a-Velha y Monsanto.

A perfect place for family tourism.

The best things to see and do around Viseu

On our trip we made a route by car through some of the most prominent towns and places in the subregion Viseu Dao Lafoes, which extends through the surroundings of Viseu.

Viseu and its monuments

The main city of the subregion is Viseu, and is considered as the best city to live in Portugal.

Nice city to walk through its narrows medieval streets, visit its churches and its impressive cathedral; here you have extensive information for you Viseu visit.

The Town Hall Square You can start a nice tour through its gardens and museums to end in the Plaza de la Catedral, one of the most beautiful in Portugal

In this city the memory of the mythical figure of Viriatus, famous warrior who led the Lusitanian tribes against the Romans.

A city also with gastronomic attractions, such as the typical dishes that we tasted in the cozy restaurant Or cortico in the historical center.

In particular, the secrets with rice and beans, Carqueija rice, red with blood sausage, as they do in the villages, duck rice old-fashioned, and of course, their delicious desserts.

Parador Casa da Insúa in Peñalva do Castello

A 25 km of Viseu is the Parador Casa da Insúa, riding a Peñalva do Castello, an 18th century manor building in the Baroque style, with an incredible interior decoration in which you will even find a private chapel.

Its romantic French-style gardens, with protected species and beautiful facades, will make it worth a visit.

Currently it is a recommended hotel to stay in, in addition to having a restaurant with international food.

They also make cheeses, jams and wines with designation of origin that you can buy right there.

Vouzela and her cakes

A 3 km of S. Pedro do Sul, in the Lafões area, is the beautiful town of Vouzela.

Vouzela It is located on a hillside where rivers converge vogue y Zela, and that may be where its name comes from.

In this town with a great historical past you will find many attractive monuments, such as the 13th century Main Church, the medieval tower of Acofra, and, above all, the Roman bridge.

Walking through its streets is to transport you a little to the past, and in the past a train ran across its bridge, a route that is now a pedestrian path of several kilometers, and only one machine remains of the train as a memory.

In any case, what you can't do is leave. Vouzela without trying their incredible and famous cupcakes made with a delicious puff pastry and filled with sweet eggs and sugar. They are incredibly good.

Wine tourism near Viseu, which wineries to visit

If you are lovers of good wine, you can consider making a wine tourism route.

You have to know that you are in the Dão -Lafões wine area, where one of the most important wine brands in Portugal is produced, “The wines of the Dão".

This was the first region with a designation of origin for wines in the country, and is known as Portuguese Burgundy.

It has a large area whose main characteristics are its rugged relief and basically granite soil, as well as a climate with a great thermal variety.

On that route you can meet various wineries through guided tours, and where to try different varieties of wine.

We highlight two wineries that we visited on our trip.

Wineries of the Casa de Santar in Nelas

Located 16 km from Viseu, Is one of the most emblematic wineries of the Give It is more than 200 years old and its wines are internationally recognized, as it is one of the most prestigious wine-growing areas in Portugal.

La Casa de Santar It has belonged to the same family for 13 generations and its construction dates back to 1609.

The history of this palace has always been related to wine, in addition to containing an important collection of antique decorative pieces and being surrounded by fabulous gardens.

The winery has the largest continuous plot of land in this wine-growing area, with more than 103 hectares, 83 of red grape varieties and 20 of white grape varieties.

During the tour you will see the breeding room where the wines rest in French oak barrels, and where extremely old copper is found.

In addition to its fabulous wines, you can enjoy a author's kitchen in the restaurant Pacó dos Cunhas de Santar with the chefHenrique Sampaio Ferreira.           

Quinta de Lemos wineries near Viseu

Protected by four mountainous areas and watered by the Paiva river which borders the area and gives moisture to a very dry terrain, you will discover the oldest wine region in Portugal.

It is an impressive landscape of vineyards surrounded by mountains, in addition to having more than 3.000 olive trees and wild aromatic plants such as lavender, which give the wine special characteristics.

The Quinta de Lemos Wineries were founded by Celso Lemos, a businessman dedicated to the textile industry who in 1997 bought this 25 hectare farm.

After uprooting the existing vines and planting native Portuguese grapes, its wineries now have more than 400 French oak barrels, in which their wines age.

On a lower floor you access a room carved into the granite stone, with large cages in which the bottles rest for a minimum of two years.

The estate has a curious hotel also embedded in the stones, with large windows to enjoy the views of the vineyards and the winery.

The restaurant Lemos Mesa, Portuguese haute cuisine, is in charge of the chef Diego Rocha, natural to the area and with a estrella Michelin.

An impressive place very close to Viseu and five minutes from the beautiful town of Santar, where you can savor its wines and gastronomy, with natural products from its orchards and national ingredients. 

Vale da Estrela Cheese Factory in Mangualde

In the route around Viseu You also have the opportunity to meet a it would, As is the case Vale da Estrela In the town of Mangualde, a place where it is worth making a stop to learn how these fabulous 100% natural cheeses with protected designation of origin are made.

Made from sheep's milk of the breed Bordaleira, which feeds exclusively on the grasslands of the demarcated region of the Serra da Estrela, where the shepherds take it, a fundamental element of the quality of these cheeses.

When making the cheese, with three different varieties, wild thistle flower and salt are added to the raw milk.

During the visit you have the opportunity to try the three cheeses; each one in its own style, they are delicious, although it should be noted that the cheese Serra da Estrela Velho DOP has won an important award.

What museums to visit around Viseu

Another of the attractions that this subregion has central Portugal is the possibility of visiting various museums, whose offer we are going to point out the following ones that we visit on our route.

Caramulo Museum in Tondela

Located in the town of Tondela, Caramulo museum It is considered one of the most important in Portugal; It covers a wide variety of historical periods, with nearly 500 artistic pieces in its rooms.

You will find works of Pablo Picasso. Salvador Dalí, Miró, Vieira da Silva and Jean Lurçat.

In addition to paintings, it also has sculptures, furniture and silverware from different centuries, as well as some archeology pieces, among which three Egyptian bronzes stand out.

For toy lovers, at the beginning of the visit there is an exhibition of miniature pieces of cars, soldiers and countless figures that will surprise you.

Muse of Caramulo classic cars

In another pavilion next to the aforementioned Caramulo museum There is this other museum that is truly wonderful.

It has more than 100 automobiles from all eras, with various historical pieces, such as a armored Mercedes at the service of Salazar, And a Cadillac which said president also used for many years.

During your visit you will also be able to see a Pegasus Sport which franc gave to the president carnation, Bugatti 35B, which was the fastest racing car of that time; or a Rolls Royce Phantom III, called the dads car, and a lot more.

Caramulo Motorfestival

Perfectly preserved and ready to be driven, every year in September the museum organizes the Caramulo Motorfestival in this beautiful location of the Sierra de Caramulo, event aimed at fans of vintage sports cars.

In addition to the competition component, with the celebration of a rally, various activities take place that attract tourists from all over the world.

After visiting the museum, you can take a walk around the Sierra de Caramulo and admire the impressive landscape with its enormous stones between the trees.

Taste typical food of the area is another way to finish the tour well.

We did it in the restaurant 3 pipos in Tondela, where we tried different typical dishes such as cod tiborna, el octopus in the press or fried with crumb which are delicious, in addition to the ribs with carqueja rice.

I assure you that you will not leave hungry.

Aristides de Sousa Mendes Virtual Museum 

Located Home, this museum shows you the house where the former Consul of Portugal in Bordeaux, Aristides de Sousa Mendes.

In addition to his political side, he was known above all for his disobedience during the Second World War since he signed more than 30.000 visas for people of different nationalities, mostly Jews, so that they could escape Nazi persecution.

The house is a mansion currently awaiting reconstruction, in which you can imagine a fabulous home with a central staircase that opens the house, with a very special magic.

El Arístides de Sousa Mendes Virtual Museum It has documents, photographs, unpublished films collected from national and foreign archives, as well as oral testimonies of some of the refugees who were saved by the consul Aristides de Sousa.

Apart from the museum and taking a walk around this beautiful town, be sure to try the Bolo Torto en Palmyra House.

This establishment in the center of town makes baked buns filled with different salty and sweet ingredients, which are very good.

It is an experience of local gastronomy in which one's own Palmira, a character you will love to meet, tells you how he has been making the Tortos Bowling, which have received several awards.

Viseu History Museum

In a review of the museums that you can visit in the subregion Viseu Dao Lafoes can not miss the Museum of the History of Viseu.

Located in the heart of the city, in the Right Street, the museum shows you the birth and evolution of Viseu, 2.500 years of the history of this beautiful town full of life and spectacular monuments.

It will make you understand the long history of this city and the reason for its importance.

Castro Daire Regional Craft Center 

30 minutes from the city of Viseu is the beautiful town of Castro Daire., located on a slope of the Montemuro Mountains, and on the banks of Paiva River.

Here is the museum of the Regional Craft Center in which they show you the way of life of its people and the way in which agricultural and craft work was traditionally done, as well as embroidery and wool work.

If you go with time, you can eat in a restaurant that offers typical dishes from the region.

This is the restaurant of the Ethnographic and Social Association of Montemuro, and in it you will find very delicious dishes, such as onion cod or bean rice with sausages.

If you go on Sunday you can choose the emblematic roasted goat in a wood oven.

The Nasturtiums in Castro Daire

Being in Castro Daire you can't stop knowing Nasturtiums; Although it may seem to you that we are talking about a convent, it is not at all what it seems.

It is a place of making articles made from wool, linen and burel, using traditional methods in their creation, and being inspired by the fabulous nature that surrounds them to create the designs.

It is made up of a cooperative of four women from the Montemuro Mountains which is located in a house in a small mountain village in Benfeito Field, In the Castro Daire region.

The name of this entrepreneurial business that has been in operation since the 80s, comes from the Capucha, which was the cloak that shepherds used to protect themselves from the cold and rain in winter.

Thermes near Viseu

After this visit, if you want to relax, there is nothing better than going to San Pedro do Sul and enjoy your medicinal waters.

São Pedro do Sul Hot Springs

Located a few kilometers from Viseu, São Pedro do Sul Hot Springs It is the perfect place to spend a day relaxing and enjoying its fabulous mineral-medicinal waters.

The city of S. Pedro del Sur (São Pedro do Sul) is located in the district of Viseu, in the area of Lafões, and is surrounded by lush vegetation within the beautiful Vouga Valley.

This is the main seaside resort in Portugal, in addition to being one of the largest in the Iberian Peninsula.

The very well preserved Roman remains that you can visit in a building next to the current spas, indicate that this place was used as a thermal station during the time when the Romans lived on the peninsula.

Their healing properties made them frequented by kings of Portugal, which for this reason granted the city the jurisdiction of Water Village.

Currently the hot springs are a modern complex where you can choose various treatments, and where people from all over the world come because of the properties of its waters.

The water in the hot springs emerges from the interior of the earth at a temperature of 68,7ºC; It is a weakly mineralized water, within the group called sulphurous waters, so you will notice the smell of sulfur.

That's why we give you some advice: take off all silver objects that you carry, otherwise, when you go out, you will see them black, and although washing it with baking soda or neutral soaps later will clean it, it will make you uncomfortable.

Finally, another tip: if you want to go as a family and spend a few days in a special environment in S. Pedro do Sul, we saw a different place, The Fox House, whose owners rent the house to you alone, with all kinds of comforts.

They welcome you and make you feel as if you were in your own home, except that they are not there later, but they offer you all the services you need in this accommodation alternative, in addition to the hotels in the area.