Free walking tours in Coimbra and what to see

Must-sees

Coimbra is Portugal's university city, and the university, at the top of the hill, is its great monument. In the Paço das Escolas courtyard you can visit the Joanina Library, with its gilded baroque shelves, the Chapel of São Miguel and the rooms of the old royal palace. From the terrace you see the Mondego river at the city's feet.

Heading down to the Baixa you come to the Sé Velha, a Romanesque cathedral that looks like a fortress, and the Machado de Castro museum, built over a Roman cryptoporticus. In the lower town, the Monastery of Santa Cruz holds the tombs of Portugal's first kings. Across the river are the Santa Clara-a-Velha monastery and the Portugal dos Pequenitos park.

Free tours and guided visits

The Coimbra free walking tour covers the upper and lower town and explains student traditions, such as the black capes and Coimbra fado, sung by men. It is the best way to understand a city that lives to the rhythm of its university.

Among the paid visits there are guided tours of the university, trips in a traditional boat on the Mondego and day trips to the Lousã hills and their schist villages. Tickets to the Portugal dos Pequenitos park are also sold.

How long to spend

A full day is enough for the university, the Sé Velha and the Baixa. With two you can cross the river, visit Santa Clara and go to a Coimbra fado concert. From here it is a short trip to the Roman ruins of Conímbriga, the Buçaco forest and the beach at Figueira da Foz.

Where to stay

The Baixa, by the river and Coimbra-A station, is flat, with shops and restaurants, and leaves the university a walk uphill. The upper town, around the university, has more charm and student life, at the cost of hills. Across the Mondego, in Santa Clara, there are hotels with views of the hill lit up at night.