Castles in Portugal
32 real castles, fortresses and walled cities in Portugal — each mapped, dated and ready to explore.
Castle of the Moors
Snaking Moorish ramparts that ride the crags above Sintra
Linhares Castle
Granite eyrie on the flank of the Serra da Estrela
Trancoso Castle
Walled frontier town where King Dinis married Isabel of Aragon
Guimarães Castle
The 'cradle of Portugal', birthplace of the kingdom's first king
Alcácer do Sal Castle
Ancient salt-town citadel above the river Sado
Castle of Santa Maria da Feira
Fairytale castle bristling with conical-roofed turrets and battlements
Montemor-o-Velho Castle
Long-walled hilltop fortress above the rice fields of the Mondego
Silves Castle
Great red-walled Moorish castle, capital of the Algarve
São Jorge Castle
Moorish hilltop citadel crowning Lisbon, long a royal palace
Lamego Castle
Medieval keep and cistern above the wine country of the Douro
Mértola Castle
River-port castle above a town layered with Islamic history
Sortelha Castle
Storybook stone village ringed by walls among giant boulders
Tavira Castle
Garden-filled castle walls above an elegant Algarve town
Óbidos Castle & Walls
Portugal's fairytale walled hill town crowned by a medieval castle
Leiria Castle
Hilltop royal castle with an elegant loggia overlooking the town
Palmela Castle
Hill castle of the Knights of Santiago, over vineyards and the sea
Pombal Castle
Templar hilltop castle founded by Gualdim Pais
Castle of Chaves
Frontier keep guarding a Roman river crossing in the far north
Castle of Tomar
Headquarters of the Knights Templar in Portugal, with its round Charola church
Monsaraz Castle
Walled hill village with sweeping views over the Alqueva lake
Almourol Castle
A Templar castle marooned on a rocky island in the river Tagus
Ourém Castle
Three-towered medieval castle crowning a walled hill town
Castle of Castelo de Vide
Hilltop keep above a whitewashed town and its old Jewish quarter
Bragança Castle
Walled citadel of the dukes who became Portugal's last royal house
Belmonte Castle
Castle of the Cabral family, home of the discoverer of Brazil
Marvão Castle
Eagle's-nest border castle on a sheer crag over the Alentejo
Beja Castle
Towering Gothic keep over the wheat plains of the Alentejo
Estremoz Castle
Marble-white royal castle where Queen Isabel died
Évoramonte Castle
Cube-shaped castle wrapped in carved stone 'ropes'
Elvas Fortifications
Portugal's vast star-shaped border fortress, a UNESCO bastion stronghold
Fortress of Almeida
Twelve-pointed star fortress guarding the Spanish frontier
Pena Palace
A riot of coloured towers crowning the hills of Sintra, a Romantic fairy-tale palace