Housed in a 19th-century fish cannery, the ultramodern, award-winning Museu de Portimão is the city's number-one draw. The museum focuses on three areas: archaeology, underwater finds and, the most fascinating, a re-creation of the fish cannery (mackerel and sardines). You can see former production lines, complete with sound effects – clanking and grinding and the like. An excellent video (in Portuguese) of the fishing industry reveals each step in the process, from netting the shoals to packaging.
Museu de Portimão
Top choice in Portimão
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
6.83 MILES
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Igreja de São Lourenço de Matos
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11.23 MILES
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20.99 MILES
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Europe’s southwesternmost point is a barren headland 6km northwest of Sagres' town centre that was the last piece of home that Portuguese sailors once saw…
Nearby Portimão attractions
0.6 MILES
The town’s parish church stands on high ground to the north of the centre. A 15th-century Gothic portal and a gargoyle are all that remain of the original…
2. Fortaleza da Santa Catarina
1.01 MILES
Praia da Rocha's petite fortress was built in 1621 to stop pirates and invaders from sailing up the Rio Arade to Portimão. Panoramic views extend along…
4.21 MILES
Right in the town, this diminutive arc of sandy beach gets very busy in summer.
4. Casa da Cultura Islâmica e Mediterrânica
6.29 MILES
Built with an art nouveau flourish in 1914, this wonderfully restored neo-Moorish cultural centre 600m west of the centre hosts occasional exhibitions,…
5. Centro de Interpretaçao do Património Islâmico
6.57 MILES
This interpretative centre promotes the network of Islamic routes through Portugal, Spain and Morocco, with a small but interesting exhibition on…
6. Museu Municipal de Arqueologia
6.61 MILES
Built tight against the defensive walls, this archaeological museum has a mix of interesting finds from the town and around. The modern building was…
6.66 MILES
The exterior of the 16th-century Igreja da Misericórdia is plain apart from its distinctive, fanciful Manueline doorway hanging well above street level …
6.67 MILES
Just below the castle is the sé, built in 1189 on the site of an earlier mosque, then rebuilt after the 1249 Reconquista and subsequently restored several…