Must-see attractions in Évora

  • Roman temple of Diana, Evora, Portugal

    Templo Romano

    Évora

    Once part of the Roman Forum, the remains of this temple, dating from the 2nd or early 3rd century AD, are a heady slice of drama right in town. It's…

  • EVORA PORTUGAL- October 20, 2015:The Capela dos Ossos (Chapel of Bones), Church of St. Francis.The Chapel gets its name because the interior walls are covered and decorated with human skulls and bones; Shutterstock ID 530589013; Your name (First / Last): Tom Stainer; GL account no.: 65050 ; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial ; Full Product or Project name including edition: Best in Europe 2017

    Capela dos Ossos

    Évora

    One of Évora’s most popular sights is also one of its most chilling. The walls and columns of this mesmerising memento mori (reminder of death) are lined…

  • Panoramic  of Almendres Cromlech, Evora, Portugal.

    Cromeleque dos Almendres

    Évora

    Set within a beautiful landscape of olive and cork trees stands this huge, spectacular oval of standing stones, 15km west of Évora. It is the Iberian…

  • Great Dolmen of Zambujeiro. Portuguese: Anta Grande do Zambujeiro, is a megalithic monument located in Nossa Senhora da Tourega, near Valverde, in the municipality of Evora.; Shutterstock ID 553023091; Your name (First / Last): Tom Stainer; GL account no.: 65050 ; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial ; Full Product or Project name including edition: Best in Europe 2017

    Anta Grande do Zambujeiro

    Évora

    The Great Dolmen of Zambujeiro, 13km southwest of Évora, is Europe’s largest dolmen. Under a huge sheet-metal protective shelter in a field of wildflowers…

  • Évora

    Guarded by a pair of rose granite towers, Évora’s fortress-like medieval cathedral has fabulous cloisters and a museum jam-packed with ecclesiastical…

  • Gruta do Escoural

    Évora

    Around 27km west of Èvora, the Escoural Caves contain several cave paintings and rock carvings that date back more than 13,000 years. One-hour guided…

  • Convento dos Lóios

    Évora

    The former Convento dos Lóios, to the right of Igreja de São João, has elegant Gothic cloisters topped by a Renaissance gallery. A national monument, the…

  • Igreja de São João

    Évora

    The small, fabulous Igreja de São João, which faces the Templo Romano, was founded in 1485 by one Rodrigo Afonso de Melo, count of Olivença and the first…

  • Aqueduto da Água de Prata

    Évora

    Jutting into the town from the northwest is the beguilingly named Aqueduto da Água de Prata, designed by Francisco de Arruda (better known for Lisbon’s…

  • Praça do Giraldo

    Évora

    The city’s main square has seen some potent moments in Portuguese history, including the 1483 execution of Fernando, Duke of Bragança; the public burning…

  • Museu do Évora

    Évora

    Adjacent to the cathedral, in what used to be the archbishop’s palace (built in the 16th century), is this elegant museum. The cloistered courtyard…

  • Jardim Público

    Évora

    For a lovely tranquil stroll, head to the light-dappled public gardens (with a small outdoor cafe) south of the Igreja de São Francisco. Inside the walls…

  • Palácio Cadaval

    Évora

    Just northwest of the Igreja de São João is the 17th-century facade of a much older palace and castle, as revealed by the two powerful square towers that…

  • Aldeia da Terra

    Évora

    The artist Tiago Cabeça has created this wondrous miniature world of Portugal moulded in clay and peopled with humorous and irreverent characters. You'll…

  • Largo da Porta de Moura

    Évora

    The Moura Gate Sq stands just southeast of the cathedral. Near here was the original entrance to town. In the middle of the square is a strange-looking,…

  • Menir dos Almendres

    Évora

    If you're headed out to Cromeleque dos Almendres, it's worth stopping en route at the Menir dos Almendres, a single stone nearly 4m high, with some faint…

  • Universidade de Évora

    Évora

    Just outside the walls to the northeast is the university’s main building (Colégio do Espírito Santo), a descendent (reopened in 1973) of the original…

  • Igreja de São Francisco

    Évora

    Évora’s best-known church is a tall and huge Manueline-Gothic structure, completed around 1510 and dedicated to St Francis. Legend has it that the…

  • Casas Pintadas

    Évora

    Painted on the garden walls of an open-vaulted gallery are a series of unusual 16th-century murals that were once part of a noble’s residence. Recently…

  • Fórum Eugénio de Almeida

    Évora

    In a building that once housed the Holy Office of Inquisition, this centre of arts and culture hosts some of Évora’s most thought-provoking art…

  • Coleção de Carruagens

    Évora

    Part of the Eugénio de Almeida Foundation, this pint-sized museum houses an intriguing collection of old carriages. It’s hidden away behind the Sé and is…

  • Termas Romanas

    Évora

    Inside the entrance hall of the câmara municipal (town hall) are more Roman vestiges, only discovered in 1987. These impressive Roman baths, which include…

  • Ermida de São Brás

    Évora

    The crenellated, pointy-topped Arabian Gothic Ermida de São Brás dates from about 1480. It’s possibly an early project of Diogo de Boitaca, considered the…

  • Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Graça

    Évora

    Down an alley off Rua da República is the curious baroque facade of this church, topped by four ungainly stone giants – as if they’ve strayed from a…

  • Casa Cordovil

    Évora

    Among several elegant mansions around the Largo da Porta de Moura square (and contemporary with the strange-looking, globular 16th-century Renaissance…

  • Museu Relogio

    Évora

    This is one of two watch museums that houses one family’s extraordinary private collection (the other is in Serpa). You name it – if it ticks, chimes,…

  • Igreja do Carmo

    Évora

    The extraordinary knotted Manueline stone doorway of the Igreja do Carmo lies south of Largo da Porta de Moura.

  • Galeria das Damas

    Évora

    Inside the walls of the 16th-century Palácio de Dom Manuel is the Galeria das Damas, an indecisive hybrid of Gothic, Manueline, neo-Moorish and…

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