Picked by our team
Towns worth discovering along the Camino de Santiago, chosen by our team. Open one to see its history and sights, and where to stay.
25 towns on the Via Nascente
View on the mapCelorico da Beira lives off its stores: according to legend, a trout saved the besieged castle, and today the town is the capital of Serra da Estrela cheese. After 23.9 kilometres of descent from Guarda, an afternoon is enough for the castle, the church and the cheese, and then it is another 18.8 kilometres to Trancoso.
Via NascenteCrato was the seat of the Knights Hospitaller in Portugal: the town belonged to the order from 1232, and from the 14th century its head bore the title Prior do Crato. In 1662 Spanish troops destroyed the castle. An afternoon is enough, and the best part of it is the walk to Flor da Rosa, 2.1 kilometres further on.
Via NascenteCuba is a small place in the Baixo Alentejo with a big claim: Columbus is said to have been born here, and since 2006 the seafarer has stood in bronze in the middle of the village. In the evening the taverns are worth a visit, with wine from clay amphorae and, with a bit of luck, cante. An afternoon is enough before it is 22.4 kilometres on to Alvito.
Via NascenteEstremoz is where the road from Badajoz ends, and the Via Nascente carries you on to the north. The white marble town is where Queen Isabel died in 1336, eleven years after she received her pilgrim's staff in Santiago. A rest day is well spent here, ideally on a Saturday.
Via NascenteBadajoz - EstremozÉvora is the city that throws nothing away: a Roman temple from the first century, wall rings from Roman and medieval times, a cathedral like a fortress and a chapel made from the bones of around 5,000 people. A World Heritage Site since 1986, and after 264.8 kilometres of the Via Nascente the first big place. Stay a day.
Via NascenteÉvora Monte is a village under a tower you can see from up to 60 kilometres away. Its outer walls are carved with stone ropes and knots, the emblem of the Dukes of Bragança, and in 1834 a civil war ended here with a treaty. For pilgrims it is the end of a very long stage from Évora: an afternoon is enough.
Via NascenteFlor da Rosa is a village with a church that looks like a fortress: Álvaro Gonçalves Pereira, prior of the Hospitallers and father of Nuno Álvares, began building it in 1356 and had himself buried here. A break is enough, best taken the afternoon before from Crato, because the monastery opens late in the morning.
Via NascenteFronteira means border, and in front of its gates in 1384 knights climbed down from their horses and won on foot the first battle that kept Portugal independent. Today pilgrims sleep at the fire station on Avenida Heróis dos Atoleiros, free of charge according to one pilgrim guide. An afternoon is enough, for the museum of the battle and a rest after 30.4 kilometres.
Via NascenteFundão is the cherry town beneath the Serra da Gardunha: this morning you climbed to around 990 metres at Castelo Novo and came down 500 metres through the cherry orchards of Alcongosta. Below waits a town of the 1764 wool factory and of cherries with protected origin. An afternoon is enough, and tomorrow brings a long stage.
Via NascenteTop rated
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