Overlooked by a trio of impressive buildings – the Catedral, Paço de Três Escalões (home of the Museu Grão Vasco) and the Igreja da Misericórdia – the Adro da Sé is Viseu's handsome cathedral square. On its southern flank, the Passeio dos Cônegos is another key feature, an elevated colonnaded porch attributed to the Italian architect Francesco da Cremona.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
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Adjoining the cathedral, the granite Paço de Três Escalões (Palace of Three Steps) was originally built as the bishop’s palace. It's now a splendid museum…
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Viseu’s cathedral is a striking hybrid of architectural styles. Originally built in the 13th century, it now has a 17th-century Mannerist facade and a…
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Mosteiro de São João de Tarouca
24.65 MILES
The stunning, massive yet skeletal remains of Portugal’s first Cistercian monastery, founded in 1124, stand eerily in the wooded Barosa valley below the…
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26.79 MILES
The burel factory originally opened in 1960 and employed 1000 people at its height (burel is a wool fabric similar to felt). After a decline in the…
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28.91 MILES
With picturesque pink stone arches, the Cistercian Mosteiro de Salzedas is located 3km up the Barosa valley from Ucanha in Salzedas. This was one of the…
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27.43 MILES
Sernancelhe, a tranquil village 30km northwest of Trancoso, boasts a pristine historic centre fashioned out of warm, beige-coloured stone. There are no…
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28.73 MILES
This waterfall, which descends the steep gorge of Ribeira de Lenadres, is a magnificent spectacle, particularly in spring. To get there from Manteigas,…
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Museu Municipal de Arte Moderna Abel Manta
20.36 MILES
This fascinating modern-art museum pays homage to Abel Manta, a (controversial) Portuguese modernist painter, who was born in Gouveia in 1888. Around 23…
Nearby Viseu attractions
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Adjoining the cathedral, the granite Paço de Três Escalões (Palace of Three Steps) was originally built as the bishop’s palace. It's now a splendid museum…
0.02 MILES
Facing the cathedral is the 1775 Igreja da Misericórdia, whose white rococo exterior contrasts markedly with its rather dull neoclassical interior. A…
0.02 MILES
Viseu’s cathedral is a striking hybrid of architectural styles. Originally built in the 13th century, it now has a 17th-century Mannerist facade and a…
0.06 MILES
An attractive sloping square looking up to the Passeio dos Cônegos, this was the city's principal square until the 19th century. Standing in the centre is…
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North of the cathedral along Rua Silva Gaio is the longest remaining stretch of Viseu's medieval town walls.
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The grandest route into the old town is through the Porta do Soar, a 15th-century gate set into a section of Afonso V’s town walls. Look for the shield…
0.09 MILES
Traversing the historic centre, Rua Dom Duarte was originally the most direct path to the hilltop citadel. The narrow lane is flanked by many beautiful,…
0.15 MILES
The 19th-century, azulejo-adorned Museu Almeida Moreira is housed in the former home of art critic and collector Francisco António Almeida Moreira,…