Northern Portugal

Quaint medieval houses in Guimarães (UNESCO), Portugal

After a fabulous week in Porto, we were driving into northern Portugal in our motorhome, Vanni. Initially we had trouble getting out of Porto without going on a toll road. But as soon as we could, we drove onto a minor road, aiming for Guimarães.

The historic town centre of Guimarães is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You could see why, as the houses are very old, well-preserved and so quaint.

We walked through the narrow, cobbled streets overhung with interesting balconies, and through various arcades, to arrive at Largo de Oliveira Square. 

It’s surrounded by traditional painted houses, and open-air cafes. We found it very vibrant. 

Marg at the Castle of Guimarães, Portugal

Guimarães has a huge 10th century castle that sits at the top of a hill giving fabulous views. 

The city was settled in the 9th century, and is often referred to as the birthplace of Portugal because Portugal’s first king was born here. 

Also a famous battle was held nearby, that led to the foundation of the Kingdom of Portugal. The Castle apparently played a key role in the battle, and an emblem of its crenelated towers can be seen on Portugal’s flag.

We found Guimarães to be fascinating and saw the Dukes of Bragança Palace, several ancient mansions, and some churches, before moving on.

Us at the restored Castro house in Citânia de Briteiros, Portugal

A few hours later, we drove on to nearby Citânia de Briteiros, an archaeological site which was inhabited from about 300 BC to 300 AD by people of the Castro culture. This site is really amazing.

The Castro culture emerged during the first two centuries of the first millennium BCE, where stone was the main material for construction.

The ruins were discovered in 1875 and the foundations of more than 150 stone huts were found. Two of them have been restored to show their original appearance. 

It is believed that this site, the city (Citânia) of Briteiros, was the very last stronghold of the northern Celtic-Iberian people, against the invading Romans.

Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte, Portugal

Our next stop was at the ancient Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte (Good Jesus of the Mount). Believers make a spiritual journey here by walking up an extremely high but stunning Baroque staircase, that is lined with chapels representing the Stations of the Cross.

It was founded by a Celtic tribe and later occupied by the Romans. It eventually become Portugal’s religious capital in the 11th century.

We managed to drive our way to the top of the Sanctuary in Vanni, and satisfied ourselves by walking around and just looking down the 650 steps rather than climbing up them!

From Bom Jesus, we had a short drive to Braga.

Leigh in the Central Square of Braga, Portugal

Braga is the 3rd largest city in Portugal. It has a very lovely, lively and attractive old centre with plazas, fountains, monuments and several pedestrian-only streets.

Founded in 300 BC by the Celts, it is known now as the religious centre of Portugal because of the high number of churches and other religious buildings lining its historic centre.

We walked around the old centre for a while, seeing the 11th century Cathedral, the Churches of São Marcos, Misericórdia and several others, with our favourite being the small and quaint São João do Souto. We also enjoyed the Bishops Palace, and the beautiful azulejos tiles on the Palacio do Raio.

Marg with a Barcelos Cockerel, Portugal

Our next stop was Barcelos, a walled medieval market-town known for its pottery, and as the birthplace of the Barcelos Cockerel, the symbol of Portugal.

The Cockerel story is that a Barcelos pilgrim was wrongly accused of theft. To prove his innocence to the judge, who was about to dine on a roast cockerel, he said, "If I am innocent, may that cockerel get up and crow!" The cockerel did crow and therefore came to represent faith, justice and good luck, and became a national symbol.

We walked around Barcelos and saw the old town market square, the beautiful Church of Santa Cruz, the ancient Jewish Quarter, and lots of cockerels!

Marg in the old town of Viana Do Castelo, Portugal

Leaving Barcelos, we were soon in Viana Do Castelo, a traditional port town sitting on an estuary of the Lima River.

The old town is full of character with narrow winding streets lined with small shops and houses, and overlooked by interesting balconies.

It was an important seaport during the Age of Discovery (João Velho set off from here to explore the Congo), and the resulting prosperity led to the building of opulent mansions in the Manueline, Renaissance and Baroque styles in the largely pedestrians-only old centre. 

Leaving there, we had a 1 km walk back to Vanni, which was in a very muddy carpark. 

Leigh at the ancient Ponte de Lima bridge, Portugal

Driving on, we arrived at the market town of Ponte de Lima, which is known for its ancient Roman Bridge. The Bridge has been the main crossing of the Lima River since the Romans built it in 1 AD.

We found parking right on the river-front and decided to free camp there for the night, along with a number of other vans. Then we went exploring.

Ponte de Lima is one of the oldest towns in Portugal, and you can see this in its well-kept mix of ancient, yet elegant houses, attractive plazas, and ancient churches.

It is also awash with lovely gardens, many wonderful statues of village life, and plenty of cafés and restaurants.

Vanni (with grey and red bike cover), facing the town with river behind

Unbeknown to us, this vibrant little town was gearing up for a major cultural festival, and that evening, big trucks and fairground sideshows began arriving, and parked right beside us!

Several left their engines running all night and at 1:00 am the noise became unbearable, so we moved to a quieter spot at the other end of the park.

The next day, the area was absolutely packed with people, so we moved on. This also meant that we were moving out of Portugal.

We have really loved Portugal, its people, villages, cities, architecture and scenery. After all of the places we have travelled, Portugal struck a note in our hearts and we loved it…..goodbye for now Portugal, we’ll be back here someday.

Our next stop is in north-western Spain.

This blog describes part of our 6 month campervan trip around western Europe, which began in Prague in April