Barcelos, Braga & Guimarães Tour | La Vacanza Travel

Barcelos, Braga & Guimarães Tour

Duration: 8 to 9 hours
Destination: Portugal, Northern Portugal, Braga
from
134.68

Check Availability

  • 8 to 9 hours
  • Braga
  • E-Voucher
  • Lowest Price
  • Not-Cancellable

Overview

You will start you northern Portugal adventure discovering the medieval centre of Guimarães. You will see why the historical center city -the birthplace of the nation- was warranted as UNESCO World Heritage.

Besides the ancient center city you will also visit the castle that accommodated the Counts of Portugal during the 10th and 11th century and the 15th century Palace of the ´Duques de Braganza`.

In Braga, you will find a religious city with more than 2000 years of history. You will visit Portugal’s oldest cathedral, the famous sanctuary and ancient attractions such as the 14th-century Castle of Braga and the ´Arco da Porto Nova´.

After lunch we will drive to Barcelos, where we will walk around in the historic center, famous for its colorful ceramics, medieval monuments and for creating Portugal’s national symbol - the rooster.

On Thursdays you can get involved in one of the oldest and biggest markets in Portugal.

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Campo da Feira, Campo da República, 4750 Barcelos, Portugal

On Thursdays you have the possibility to visit the biggest market of Portugal. This market takes place right in the center of Barcelos.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Templo do Senhor Bom Jesus da Cruz, Largo da Porta Nova 14, 4750-270 Barcelos, Portugal

We will visit this baroque church with its lovely blue tiles and golden carvings. This church is known for its legend about a dark wooden cross.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Torre do Cimo da Vila, Largo da Porta Nova, Barcelos 4750-329 Portugal

One of the old city doors. On the top of the tower you have an beautiful view on the baroque gardens and the marketsquare. Inside of the tower there is an interesting artcraft expositions from local artists.

Duration: 15 minutes

Stop At: Igreja Matriz da Paroquia de Santa Maria Maior, Largo do Municipio, Barcelos 4750-323 Portugal

We will visit the main church which is the oldest church in the city.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Museu Arqueologico de Barcelos, Largo do Municipio, Barcelos 4750-323 Portugal

Here you will discover the legend of the rooster and see the original cross from the legend.

There are also some other interesting artifacts found all over the city.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Ponte Medieval de Barcelos, Barcelos 4750-295 Portugal

Enjoy the lovely view on the Medieval bridge from the 15th century castle of the duke of Bragança.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Arco da Porta Nova, R. Dom Diogo de Sousa 127, 4700-424 Braga, Portugal

We will start our citywalk in Braga entering by the old citygate.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, 1212 Mission Canyon Rd, Santa Barbara, CA 93105, USA

Wander around in the Gardens of Santa Barbara and enjoy the flowers of the season.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Torre de Menagem, Rua do Castelo, Braga 4700-311 Portugal

You will pass by the remainings of the 11th century castle part of the old city wall.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Praca da Republica, Braga 4710-305 Portugal

On the central square of Braga -where the ´old locals´ gather around to socialize- you will see a mix of interesting architure from different periods.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Braga Cathedral, R. Dom Paio Mendes, 4700-424 Braga, Portugal

We will visit the main church of the city. Parts of this church are even older than Portugal itself.

In one of the chapels of this cathedral you will find the tumuls of the parents of the first King of Portugal.

Duration: 20 minutes

Stop At: Bom Jesus do Monte, 4715 Braga, Portugal

The sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte is famous for its extensive staircase and its lovely gardens.

Here you will enjoy the beautiful scenery with a spectacular view over the city of Braga.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Sanctuary of Our Lady of Sameiro, Av. Nossa Sra. do Sameiro 44, 4715-616 Braga, Portugal

Enjoy the silence at the most peacefull sanctuary of Braga.

The sanctuary is build in neoclassical style and is the the largest Marian devotional shrine in Portugal, second only to the Sanctuary of Fátima.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Centro Historico de Guimaraes, Guimaraes Portugal

The typical Largo da Oliveira is named after a miracle with a 500 years old olivetree what was situated on the square.

The square is surrounded by some 17th century traditional ´Porch Houses´ and the ´Nossa Senhora da Oliveira´ Church.

In the middle of the square there is a porch called "Padrão do Salado".The porch referes to the succesfull battle of Salado in the 14th century.

The charming square of San Tiago is marked by the presence of the old City Hall building and some residencial buildings from the 17th and 18th century. Lunch time (not included).

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Paco dos Duques de Braganca, Rua Conde Dom Henrique, Guimaraes 4800-412 Portugal

The Palace of the Dukes of Bragança was built in the 15th century by D. Afonso. He was the ´bastard´ son of King João I.

We will also visit the museum on the first floor of the palace with a collection of national and international antiques.

Duration: 20 minutes

Stop At: Igreja de Sao Miguel do Castelo, between Castelo and Paco dos Duques de Braganca, Guimaraes 4810-245 Portugal

According to the legend the first king of Portugal, D. Afonso Henriques, was baptized here. The presumed baptismal font that was used in the ceremony is kept here.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Guimarães Castle, R. Conde Dom Henrique, 4800-412 Guimarães, Portugal

From the top of the mountains in Braga you will drive to Guimarães, the cradle of the nation, here you will discover the castle where the first King of Portugal was born and the chapel where he was baptised.

Duration: 15 minutes

Inclusions
  • Bottled water and softdrinks
  • Snacks (Candybars)
  • Driver/guide
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
  • Transport by private vehicle
  • Entry/Admission - Guimarães Castle
  • Entry/Admission - Braga Cathedral
  • Entry/Admission - Paco dos Duques de Braganca

Exclusions
  • Food and drinks, unless specified
  • Entrance fees, unless specified
  • Lunch
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • May be operated by a multi-lingual guide
  • A minimum of 2 people per booking is required
  • Near public transportation
  • A maximum of 6 people per booking
  • Minimum age is 12 years
  • Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
  • This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
  • Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
Departure Point

Traveler pickup is offered


Departure Time

09:00 AM

Voucher info

You can present either a paper or an electronic voucher for this activity.

Duration

8 to 9 hours


User's Reviews

mediaguru

01 Aug, 2018

We went on a tour of Barcelos, Braga, and Guimaraes with José and his companion Evangeline (?) and it was a great day. They picked us up right outside our place in central Porto in the morning, and then we headed to the street market in Barcelos (which runs on Thursdays... we didn't buy anything, but it was fun to experience)... Other than the market, Barcelos is a fairly sleepy town, feels pretty "local" and off the beaten path, though it is famous for the legend of the "Rooster of Barcelos" which has become a symbol across all of Portugal. From there, we headed to Braga, which has something like 26 churches -- and we got to take a look at probably a dozen of them over the course of the day, including the impressive Cathedral which was a major seat of Catholic power in the area... in addition to the nearby Bom Jesus, which is beautifully located up a mountain at the end of a long-stretching staircase (although unfortunately they are doing renovations inside the church right now... but the exterior views are the star of the show, anyway.) Finally, we made our way to Guimaraes, the "birthplace" of Portugal since this is where the first king, Alfonso Henriques was born, and where he battled his mother to declare independence from Spain (long story. The guides will tell it to you!) There is a castle here, but we walked past it and spent time touring the more grandiose Dukes manor nearby. The town itself is also pleasant to walk through -- quaint and medieval in its layout, but still a fairly large city. After all of this, we were quite satisfied but, even though the tour was technically done, José was nice enough to show us a few more sights... he had time, so he extended the tour to do a little detour down the coastal region, seeing the beach towns and fisherman villages, such as Vila Nova do Conde, with a historical Portuguese sailing ship and a couple more interesting churches. Oh, I forgot to mention... this is billed as a "small group tour" which would have been fine, but it ended up being a private tour for just the two of us! Even better!

Matthew_G

01 Aug, 2018

We went on a tour of Barcelos, Braga, and Guimaraes with José and his companion Evangeline ? and it was a great day. They picked us up right outside our place in central Porto in the morning, and then we headed to the street market in Barcelos which runs on Thursdays... we didn't buy anything, but it was fun to experience...
Other than the market, Barcelos is a fairly sleepy town, feels pretty local and off the beaten path, though it is famous for the legend of the Rooster of Barcelos which has become a symbol across all of Portugal.

From there, we headed to Braga, which has something like 26 churches -- and we got to take a look at probably a dozen of them over the course of the day, including the impressive Cathedral which was a major seat of Catholic power in the area... in addition to the nearby Bom Jesus, which is beautifully located up a mountain at the end of a long-stretching staircase although unfortunately they are doing renovations inside the church right now... but the exterior views are the star of the show, anyway.

Finally, we made our way to Guimaraes, the birthplace of Portugal since this is where the first king, Alfonso Henriques was born, and where he battled his mother to declare independence from Spain long story. The guides will tell it to you! There is a castle here, but we walked past it and spent time touring the more grandiose Dukes manor nearby. The town itself is also pleasant to walk through -- quaint and medieval in its layout, but still a fairly large city.

After all of this, we were quite satisfied but, even though the tour was technically done, José was nice enough to show us a few more sights... he had time, so he extended the tour to do a little detour down the coastal region, seeing the beach towns and fisherman villages, such as Vila Nova do Conde, with a historical Portuguese sailing ship and a couple more interesting churches.

User's Picture Gallery

Image

Very thorough tour, excellent if you love history, architecture, or churches

Image

We went on a tour of Barcelos...

ImageImage

Similar Packages