Move Over Lisbon! These 4 Gorgeous Towns Offer Medieval Charm & Smaller Crowds

Home to a picture-perfect Old Town of rolling hills, Baroque church buildings, and a scenic riverfront, it is protected to say Lisbon is well one of the vital unbelievable metropolis breaks in Europe.

As charming as it may be, it is also price stating that Lisbon has now develop into one of many most overtouristed cities within the Old Continent. With Portugal’s surging recognition, it is not just like the numbers are dwindling anytime quickly.

Thankfully, these 4 much-smaller historic cities a brief 1h–2h away are simply as stunning, and filled with medieval wonders with much more respiration room:

Óbidos

A small village of about 3,100 inhabitants, a 1h49 practice journey away from Lisbon, or a fair shorter 1h driving, Óbidos stands alongside Carcassonne, in France, and Dubrovnik, in Croatia, as considered one of Europe’s best-preserved medieval treasures.

Its Old Town seems copied and pasted straight from a storybook for youngsters: it has a superbly preserved cobbled middle, with slender alleys organized in a maze-like manner, all lined with whitewashed homes and surrounded by partitions.

Other than being extremely picturesque, Óbidos is bound to attraction to the candy fiends on the market: it is the proud house of Ginja de Óbidos, a singular cherry liqueur served in an edible home made chocolate cup. For the most effective cheeky ginjinha on the town, head straight to Bar Ibn Errik Rex.

Alenquer

A hilltop city with over 44,000 residents, a 1h bus journey from Lisbon (there aren’t any trains working on this route), Alenquer is a type of uncommon situations of a Portuguese city but to be ruined by the nation’s overwhelming levels of tourism.

Similarly to Óbidos, it’s guarded by medieval partitions and dotted with medieval monuments, from the Twelfth-century Castle of Alenquer, to ornate church buildings like Igreja de Santa Maria da Várzea, characterised by its rib-vaulted ceiling and mix of Gothic and Portuguese Manueline components.

Portugal is extensively celebrated for its wine, and to our fellow oenophiles, Alenquer is formally a wine area. Some of the nation’s greatest reds originate right here, together with the thick, velvety Castelão, and for those who’re driving, be sure to set out on the Quintas de Alenquer route, visiting 12 close by estates.

Palmela

A handy 37-minute drive from Lisbon, throughout the Tagus, and into the Setúbal District, you may discover Palmela, a 63,000-people-strong citadel city perched on a distinguished hill, looking onto the Atlantic, and even the Portuguese capital far within the distance.

Palmela’s primary attraction is its Moorish fort, constructed by Islamic conquerors who have been current in Portugal for quite a few centuries earlier than the Christians took over as soon as once more. The citadel now homes a pousada (Portuguese for guesthouse), and a historic church.

If you are coming right here for the wine and meals, you need to know Palmela’s Castelão, a fortified wine created from a purple grape that thrives in sandy soils, may be present in abundance right here, in addition to Queijo de Azeitão, a signature, tangy sheep’s milk served with cured meats and recent olives.

Alcácer do Sal

Dating again over 2,700 years, which makes it one of many oldest continuously inhabited towns in Europe, Alcácer do Sal was initially established by the Phoenicians, and additional developed by the Romans, and afterward the Moors as a buying and selling submit.

It straddles the essential Sado River, notoriously identified for its salt manufacturing and fishing tradition, and between the fairytale medieval citadel and the idyllic stone-paved pathways, peppered with family-run eating places and boutique retailers, Alcácer has rather a lot to supply vacationers.

Most importantly, it is called Portugal’s rice capital, and far of the native delicacies options the staple grain: duck rice, rice with seafood, candy rice desserts… you identify it. On that observe, be sure to try the aptly-named O Arrozeiro (the Rice Maker), proper on the banks of the Sado.

Ordering a starter + a primary rice dish + dessert and a drink will set you again between $25–$35.

Vinicius Costa

Vini, our senior lead author at Travel Off Path, has over 60+ nations beneath his belt (and at the moment weaving tales from Paris!), and a knack for turning off-the-beaten-path experiences into informative tales that can have you ever packing your baggage.