Viseu
Cathedral City Of The Beira Alta And Capital Of The Dao Wine Region, Home Of The Painter Vasco Fernandes (Grao Vasco) · Viseu, Viseu
Viseu is a prosperous cathedral city on a hill in the Beira Alta, in the centre-north of Portugal, and the capital of the Dao wine region. Its compact old town climbs to the Adro da Se, a granite square where the cathedral, with its knotted Manueline vaults and a Renaissance cloister, faces the white baroque facade of the Misericordia church. Beside the cathedral, the Grao Vasco Museum holds the altarpieces of Vasco Fernandes, the sixteenth-century painter known as Grao Vasco. Around them are old gates, granite lanes, a shady park and a city often said to be one of the best places to live in Portugal. People come for the art and the cathedral, for Dao wines such as Touriga Nacional reds and Encruzado whites, for the long-running Feira de Sao Mateus fair and for cycling the Ecopista do Dao on an old railway line. The honest caveat: there is no train, the sights fit in a day, and for most travellers Viseu is a pleasant stopover on the way to the Douro or Serra da Estrela rather than a destination in its own right.
Viseu historic centre around the Adro da Se, the cathedral and the Grao Vasco Museum, Viseu, Viseu, Portugal
The old town and the squares are open at all hours. The cathedral usually opens daily with a midday break, its cloister and treasury on shorter hours; the Grao Vasco Museum and most museums close on Mondays - confirm each. There is no railway: Rede Expressos coaches run from Lisbon (about 3.5-4 hours) and Porto (about 1.5-2 hours), or drive via the A25 and A24 - confirm times. Nothing needs booking except rooms during the Feira de Sao Mateus and wine-estate visits, which usually need an appointment.