Set on a promontory, Vila Real preserves an aristocratic architecture, with houses displaying noble coats of arms, Manueline style windows and traditional wrought iron balconies.
It is an ancient city, located near the confluence of the rivers Corgo and Cabril, surrounded by the Serra do Alvão and the Serra do Marão to the west, and the Serra de Montemuro to the south. Inland town, it has an avenue along a cliff at the bottom of which the Corgo River flows.
The Avenida Carvalho Araújo Avenue, flanked by paved sidewalks, crosses the city and is closed to the south by the 19th century building of the Paços do Concelho (Town Hall). Further along is the Self, the Gothic cathedral, and opposite, a 16th century house with Manueline style windows, where the Tourist Office is currently located.
Continuing the walk along Carvalho Araújo Avenue and Marginal Avenue, between noble houses and trade routes, we arrive at the most lively and characteristic part of Vila Real. Here there are two churches, the Igreja da Misericórdia and the Igreja dos Clérigos, the latter a masterpiece of the Italian architect Niccolò Nasoni. Walking around, you can see wrought iron balconies and windows with granite frames, which form a gallery of genuine Portuguese civil architecture.
