Forget about Spanish castles and think of a beautiful Portuguese palace, where you can live for a time, hike a gorgeous national park, golf, ride horseback or just relax while living like, well, a king or queen. It's not often you get a chance to stay in a national shrine, but when you can, I advise you to go for it. That's the case with an amazing palace hotel in the Central Portuguese highlands called Bussaco, about which, more later. The entire region around the hotel is a kind of shrine, in fact, centering on a national park which commemorates not one, but two, major battles in which the Portuguese, led by their English ally the Duke of Wellington, defeated Napoleon's troops and saved the country from the French at the height of Bonaparte's powers. If you aren't staying in the hotel, pay the €2.50 (about $3.25) admission fee to the park and look around, and maybe stay for lunch or dinner. (Hotel guests don't pay the park fee.)
In addition to history and elegance, you can check out one of Portugal's premier wine districts, the Dao region, with what are reportedly the nation's very best reds and whites. Lushly forested, this part of the country is replete with beautiful winding roads (though you can stay on the modern highways if you wish), pretty villages and pleasant vistas. And, as always, there are dozens of dignified churches and a great deal of religious art to look into.
Highlights
The elegant Quinta do Cabriz, has been producing excellent wines (both Dao and Douro) and olive oil for 15 years. Half their product is exported, they say. They are proud of a unique varietal, the Touriga-Nacional, however, of which they can't make enough to satisfy local demand, so little is exported. I can recommend their Quinta do Cabriz Dao 2003 Reserve, a tri-varietal offering, all Portuguese; or the 100% Touriga-Nacional Dao 2003, with little notes of tea throughout. 2003 was a very good year, 2002 less so, 2004 and 2005 expected to be good, the 2004 ready later this year, they say. Tasting room and restaurant are at Dao Sul, Estrada Nacional 234, 3430-909 Carregal do Sal, tel. 351/232-960-140; www.daosul.com; e-mail: daosul@daosul.com.
In the town square of Viseu in June, you'll be blessed with the divine scent of the tilia tree in bloom, something like jasmine in my opinion, and it extends wherever those prolific trees abound. Sitting here, you may enjoy such sights as a flock of children being escorted by their teacher, a nearby fountain's bubble, or the scene of gas-saving taxi drivers pushing their cars up in the rank on one side of the square. Nearby, a street café with children's toys scattered outside keeps everyone occupied gainfully.
At the Grao Vasco Museum (tel. 351/232-422-049; www.ipmuseus.pt; e-mail: mgv@ipmuseus.pt; Paco dos Tres Escaloes, 3500-195 Visea), the works of painter Vasco Fernandes ("the Great Vasco", early 16th century) are featured in a former seminary (since 1916 a museum) of the cathedral, and most of his paintings here come from the cathedral (14 panels dating from 1501-1506), from an Episcopal palace and from churches and convents of the Beira region. Almost-primal faces (e.g., St. Blaise) beam out from some of his works, even his own self-portrait, though his saddened St. Peter is more refined and is thought by many to be his best piece. His second-best piece, I think, is The Last Supper, which is a rich triptych, depicting an almost confused scene full of evocative symbols (even a dog), especially when compared to Leonardo's quite formal depiction. Bookshop, gift shop, coffee shop and restaurant (open Wed, -Sun., a big sandwich for €2.80 (about $3.60). Open Tues.-Sun, admission €3 (about $3.85), free on Sundays until 2 PM.
Not far from Viseu is the National Museum of Bread (tel. 351/238-310-760; www.museudopao.pt; Quinta Fonte do Marrao, 6270-909 Seia), opened since 2002, showing on three floors how this wonderful Portuguese staff of life is made in its many forms. You also get a little Portuguese history, from the restoration of Independence (from Spain) in 1640 through the restoration of democracy in 1974. There's a bar and a restaurant with the improbable name of "Gastronomical Investigation Centre, as well as a gift shop selling foods of the region.
Lodging
A former hunting palace of the last Portuguese kings, the Bussaco Palace Hotel (tel. 351/231-937-970; www.almeidahotels.com; e-mail: gm.bussaco@almeidahotels.com; Mata do Bucaco, 3050-261 Luso) deserves its five stars, and then some. Located in a 17th-century walled forest planted by Barefoot Carmelite monks on 250 acres, the palace and its environs are just what many dream a fairytale mansion in the woods should be like. The lobby will amaze you with its huge tile murals of the Battle of Bussaco (1810), in which Wellington and his Portuguese allies defeated the troops of Napoleon on this spot. Other murals here and in the grand stairway depict different aspects of Portuguese history, including its quest for India and the East. At the foot of the grand staircase is a Portuguese flag on a staff that bears dozens of shields commemorating the visits of heads of state, including those of Portugal, Japan and many European countries, but alas, not of the USA as yet.
Built in 1885 and decorated in neo-Manueline (think Gothic) style, the palace (a hotel since 1917) is proud of its tiles and paintings, which seem to surround you. I suggest afternoon tea in the Grand Lounge just to get acquainted with its noble aspects. In the forest, there are walking paths, chapels, belvederes and Stations of the Cross. Golf is available 20 minutes away at Curia, in the Bairrada region, famous for its wines, and there is a first-class spa in the town of Bussaco, just five minutes away. The Convent of the Holy Cross (1628) is next door to the hotel, and boasts an impressive entrance, mosaics and glazed tiles and religious art, as well as a few relics of Wellington's campaign from his overnight stay the day before the Battle of Bussaco (Outside, in the middle of the road is an olive tree under which he took a stand with his officers while directing the battle).
There are 60 rooms, 6 suites, each with satellite TV, bath, phone, most amenities. Rates for a double start at €95 ($122) in winter, €169 ($216) otherwise, and include buffet breakfast, service and taxes. You can get half board (breakfast and one meal) from €40 ($52), full board (three meals) from €70 ($90). A Romantic Package for two nights costs €399 ($511) per room until August 2006, while another deal is for €299 ($383) per person for three nights. The hotel is owned by the Alexandre de Almeida Group, as are four other establishments in Lisbon, Coimbra and elsewhere.
Another of Central Portugal's only two five-star hotels (since February 2006) is in Viseu, where you can stay at the very modern Hotel Montebelo (tel. 351/232-420-000; www.hotelmontebelo.pt; e-mail: hotelmontebelo@visabeiraturismo.pt; 3510-020 Viseu), owned by the giant Visabeira telecom/natural gas/electricity/construction combine. Built in 1994, it was heavily renovated in 2004. Stay in a double room from €120 ($154), which covers buffet breakfast and use of the Health Club, including the pool, sauna and whirlpool. Horseback riding is available at the hotel's Centro Hipico Urbanizacao Quinta do Bosque from about €20 ($26) per hour. Golf at their club (about 25 minutes away) starts from €30 ($38, weekdays) and €45 ($58, weekends), club rentals €25 ($32), all prices including VAT tax.
Much more modest, but beautifully located on the central square (Rossio) of Viseu, is the Hotel Avenida (tel. 351/232-423-432; www.hotelavenida.com.pt; Avenida Alberto Sampaoio 1, 3410 Viseu), where comfortable but simple double rooms start at €40 or €45 ($52 or $58), depending on the season, including breakfast.
Dining Out
In addition to eating in the royal family's former dining hall at the Palace Hotel Bussaco (open also to non-guests) and trying their own Bussaco wines, consider one of these during your visit here:
The Quinta do Cabriz (tel. 351/232-960-140; www.daosul.com; e-mail: daosul@daosul.com; Solar do Sec. XVII, Travanca de S. Tome, 33430-909 Carregal do Sal) is one of Portugal's most prominent wineries, and after an optional tour, you can have a marvelous lunch or dinner here. Consider the Tourist Menu of soup, pork ribs and dessert, plus red wine and coffee, for only €20 ($26), or order a la carte. I had cod in egg batter (€2.50, $3.25), some appetizers of sausage (pork, chicken), codfish with onions in a loaf of bread (€25, $32), and veal plus chicken in a pot (€14, $18), as well as chocolate cake (€3.99, $5.10) with sparkling wine! Bread, butter and olive cover is €1.99 ($2.50), and if appetizers arrive and you do not return them immediately, you will be charged, the menu says. All prices include the VAT tax.
You will dine well at the Hotel Montebelo, with dishes such as these: marinated cod, asparagus soup, casserole of shrimp, octopus and rice, roast tenderloin of beef, and knotted French fries that look like tangled onion rings. Average entrée about €25 (about $32). Their wines are labeled Casa da Inua, the ancestral home of the Dukes of Albuquerque, they say, and both the 2002 Reserve red and white are excellent. For contact information, see Lodging, above.)
Wine Routes
The Dao Wine Route circulates within this region, whose wines are considered some of Portugal's best. There are three suggested routes, and you can start any of them from Viseu. In addition to the Quinta do Cabriz mentioned above, there are 34 other quintas or cooperatives where you can tour and taste. Ask for bottles of the last Great Harvests, which they say are 1980, 1983, 1985, 1990 and 1996. Get a route map from the office of the Rota do Vinho do Dao (tel. 351/232-410 060; e-mail: cvrdao@mail.telepac.pt; Av. Capitao Homem Ribeiro, Apt. 10, 3501-997 Viseu).
Contacts
For more information on Central Portugal, contact ARPT Centro de Portugal, Casa Amarela, Largo de Santa Cristina, 3500-181 Viseu, tel. 351/232-432-032; www.visitcentro.com; e-mail: info@visitcentrodeportugal.com.pt.
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