571 Best Sights in Portugal

Used as a military support hub during both World Wars and still partly in use today by the naval forces, this 16th-century fort on the far west side of Ponta Delgada’s waterfront houses a compact yet comprehensive museum chronicling the country's military history up to colonial times. Inside the museum, you’ll find collections of weaponry, uniforms, photos, and military vehicles, along with temporary exhibits such as the role of the Azores during World War II. Finish your visit with a walk along the ramparts to see the lovely harbor views.

Many travelers make a beeline for this 16th-century fort—which since 1903 has also served as a lighthouse—as the ideal vantage point for watching the waves that attract the world's best surfers. The structure also houses a small surf museum, whose displays include fascinating explanations of how the offshore Nazaré Canyon enables the waves to form. It's a steep walk down from Sítio (and back up), but there are usually tuk tuks or shared transport standing by.

On a hill just north of the city, Forte de São Vicente was the first of 152 redoubts built on the Duke of Wellington's orders to form three defensive lines between the Atlantic Ocean and the Tagus, to protect Lisbon from possible invasion by French troops. Since 2017, it has housed a small visitor center for these Lines of Torres Vedras, with fascinating displays such as a model of the system used to communicate between forts.

This small but beautiful museum in a former silk factory displays paintings, drawings, and prints by Maria Helena Vieira da Silva and her Hungarian husband, Árpád Szenes. The couple lived in Lisbon, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro and were influential artists after their participation in the 1937 World Exhibition in Paris. Most of Vieira da Silva’s pieces are geometrical abstractions and can be seen over the two floors of the building that face the arches of the city’s landmark aqueduct. Throughout the year the museum also hosts temporary exhibits of 20th-century and contemporary art.

This gallery is one of the few dating back to before the 1974 revolution, presenting some of the best contemporary Portuguese artists from the 20th and 21st centuries. You may find works by big names like Paula Rego and Maria Helena Vieira da Silva together with pieces by emerging artists.

After five years as a nomadic gallery, presenting exhibitions in other museums and commercial establishments, this art space opened in its permanent home in Marvila in 2017. It continues to show the work of artists such as Helena Almeida, Diogo Evangelista, and Tris Vonna-Michell, among many others. Their genres range from video art to sculpture installations, meaning there's always something thought-provoking to see.

This horizontal lava tube running 2,287 feet is worth a self-guided visit, as long as you wear good footwear and don’t feel claustrophobic in tight spaces. Navigating the sometimes dark, narrow, and low-clearance tube requires some ducking and squatting at times (you will be given a helmet for extra protection). Christmas Mass is held here when possible, hence the name.

The hills to the south and west of Fátima are honeycombed with limestone caves. Legend has it that many years ago, a wealthy man carrying a bag of coins was traveling through the woods when he was attacked by a gang of thieves. Struggling from the attack, the man fell into one of the grottoes. Through the cave, the lost coins were spread around, thus giving the Grutas da Moeda, 3 km (2 miles) from Fátima, their name. It's a 10-minute drive from the shrine; if you lack wheels, you can phone or Whatsapp them and they will pick you from Fátima. Within about a 25-km (15-mile) radius of the town are four other major caverns—São Mamede, Alvados, Santo António, and Mira de Aire ( grutasmiradaire.com/en), the country's largest—equipped with lights and elevators. On a guided tour in any of these (for a minimum of two people; ask for an English-speaking guide) you can see the subterranean world of limestone formations, underground rivers and lakes, and multicolor stalagmites and stalactites.

Just outside the village of São Vicente, you'll find a series of underground caves formed during Madeira's last volcanic eruption around 890,000 years ago. Half-hour tours led by enthusiastic guides descend about 1 km (½ mile) into the chocolate-colored rock caverns. Next door, the Centro do Vulcanismo is a slightly dated but still interesting interactive exhibition detailing the region's volcanic past, complete with a 3-D film that transports you to the center of the earth. Note that the caves are currently closed for maintenance and scheduled to reopen in 2023, so check before you visit. Dress appropriately: it's slippery underfoot and you'll often get dripped on from above.

If you're interested in sampling Madeira wine, visit Henriques & Henriques, a winery very close to Câmara de Lobos's promenade, at the western end of town. You'll be made to feel right at home during a tour of a facility that combines state-of-the-art technology with down-home hospitality. And, yes, the bottles are for sale.

Extremely simple on the outside, the interior of this 16th-century church is lined with large azulejo panels in massive gilt frames depicting scenes from the life of Christ. The unsigned 18th-century tiles are thought to be the work of António de Oliveira de Bernardes.

This late-17th-century church next door to the Torre de Menagem is lined with huge panels of blue-and-white azulejos depicting scenes from the New Testament, and also features elaborate gilt altarpieces.

Facing Praça da República, in a small square a little way from the old town, you'll find the 18th-century Igreja da Misericórdia and its imposing baroque portal. The walls of the otherwise sober interior are resplendent with blue-and-white azulejos. Look out for the gilded altarpiece and finely carved woodwork, as well as the quiet courtyard next door, often missed by passers-by.

If the cathedral looks like a fortress, the 16th-century Igreja da Misericórdia across from it looks like a palace. The intricate rococo details around the windows and unusual entranceway are more dramatic than the simple, unfussy interior. An adjoining museum has a good collection of sacred art.

The 16th-century Church of Our Lady of the Assumption at the head of the town square, the Praça da República, has an impressive triple-nave interior lined with 17th-century blue-and-yellow azulejos. The church was designed by Francisco de Arruda, architect of the Elvas aqueduct, but underwent subsequent modifications. It was a cathedral until the diocese was moved to Évora in the 18th century.

A splendid example of classic Italian-style architecture, this church represents the first breath of the Renaissance in provincial Portuguese architecture. Note the massive figures on columns on either side of the portal. According to local legend, these four figures represent the first victims put to death in the Inquisition in Évora in 1543. The interior is lovely, but not quite as distinctive.

One of Portugal's prettiest baroque churches, the slim Church of Our Lady of Consolation and the Holy Steps rises up at the end of a long, elegant formal garden. Begun in the 18th century, the building was topped by two pointed towers almost a century later. The steps and balustrade were added at about the same time. The interior is impressively neoclassical. The exterior is especially magical at Christmastime, when every inch of its facade is adorned with decorative lights.

The 14th-century Gothic church contains the gravestone of Pedro Álvares Cabral, the discoverer of Brazil. (There's also a tomb of the explorer in Belmonte, the town of his birth in northeastern Portugal, but no one is really sure just what—or who—is in which tomb.) Note the delicate rose window whose setting was carved from a single slab of stone. 

This church in the delightful square Largo da Oliveira was founded in the 10th century to commemorate one of the city's most enduring legends. Wamba, elected king of the Visigoths in the 7th century, refused the honor and thrust his olive-branch staff into the earth, declaring that only if the stick were to blossom would he accept the crown—whereupon it promptly sprouted foliage. In the square in front of the church, an odd 14th-century Gothic canopy sheltering a cross marks the supposed spot. The square is now surrounded by charming cafés.

A peek into the cool interior of this hilltop church reveals several ornate carved golden altar pieces, a grand organ, and gilded chapels decorated with colorful azulejo tiles. The tiny statue above the altar was found by a shepherdess in the nearby town of Terreiro da Luta in the 15th century and has become the patron saint of Madeira. The church also contains the tomb of Emperor Karl I of Austria, the last Hapsburg monarch. He was exiled to Madeira, developed pneumonia, and died on the island in 1922. Standing in front of the church rewards you with dramatic views of the city and ocean.

This is one of Lisbon’s richest and most beautiful churches but one of the least visited, despite its central location on the edge of Bairro Alto. The baroque and rococo interior is a monumental mix of gilded wood carvings and stucco decoration, added in 1727 to a building that dates from 1647. The organ is considered a masterpiece of gilded woodwork, while the altar is a highlight of the art commissioned during the wealthy reign of King João V, with sculptures brought from Flanders. Two of Portugal’s most prominent 18th-century artists (Vieira Lusitano and André Gonçalves) are responsible for the large paintings in golden frames on the side walls. There are more treasures in the attached museum (open from 9-1).

The 17th-century artist Josefa de Óbidos came to the town as a small child and lived here until her death in 1684. You can see some of her work in the azulejo-lined Church of Saint Mary, which was a Visigoth temple in the 8th century. The church is in a square off Rua Direita. Next door is a small, charming museum dedicated to the work of local artist and theater designer Abílio de Mattos e Silva.

One of the town's two major churches, Santa Maria was built on the site of a Moorish mosque in the 13th century. Although it was almost entirely destroyed by the 1755 earthquake, the church retains its original Gothic doorway.

The 13th-century Igreja de Santa Maria do Olival—still set in an olive grove, as the name suggests—is where the bones of several Knights Templar are interred, including those of Gualdim Pais, founder of the order in Portugal; his original tomb slab, dated from 1195, can still be seen inside. The church later served the same purpose for the Order of Christ, which succeeded the Templars in the 14th century. Popular belief—supported by some archaeological evidence—has it that the church was once connected with the Convent of Christ by a tunnel.

Note the striking white Renaissance facade of this church, which stands near the fountain at the north end of Praça do Giraldo. A medieval hermitage of the Knights Templar was razed in 1553 to make way for this church, which has massive round pillars and soaring vaulted ceilings. The marble altar in bas-relief is a holdover from the primitive hermitage. Packed with locals on Sundays, this is a good place to see a mass—or a glimpse of a local wedding on a Saturday in spring, if you're lucky.

This church, constructed in 1767, sits on the site where Lisbon's patron saint, Saint Anthony, was born. Although it's fairly compact, the interior is stunning, with ornately painted walls, abundant natural light, and stone carvings. The altarpiece on the side of the nave's gospel is thought to be from the 16th century, representing Saint Anthony (known as the "effigy of the Saint"), and locals still come to express their devotion.

Outside the walls of the Citadel is this Renaissance-era church, with a fine Mudejar (Moorish-style) vaulted ceiling in the chancel, and a gilded retable. Founded in the 16th century to serve the attached monastery, it has some 18th-century additions, such as the nave's impressive trompe l'oeil ceiling. The church is usually open from around 5 pm for a couple of hours.

This 13th-century church has handsome tiles, wood carvings, and an unusual wrought-iron pulpit. It was formerly a mosque, whose minaret is now a bell tower. The chestnut wood altar crafted by João Amado is an unusual find.