Braga and Guimaraes private tour

Minho is the northernmost province of Portugal. It is the area where Portugal was born as a nation. Minho has a very rich history and culture and it is one of the most beautiful regions in the country. It is painted with fields of emerald green cut through by mountains and valleys and crossed by rivers that carve their way to the Atlantic Ocean. Minho is also known for its rich and abundant cuisine with an enormous variety of traditional dishes. This is the region where the renowned “Vinho Verde”, a Portuguese white wine, originated from. Guimaraes and Braga are the two capitals of the Minho region.

The historic city of Guimaraes was, in the beginning, the first capital of Portugal. It is also called the “cradle” of the Portuguese nationality. It was here that in 1143, the first king of Portugal, Afonso I, started conquest of the Moorish’ s lands and gave form the first Knights Templar Nation in Europe. Visit to the medieval castle.. Next, we will visit the Bragança’s Ducal Palace, (optional), the royal family that governed Portugal from 1640 to 1910. Leisure time to discover the historical center of this wonderful city which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We will walk through the medieval streets and squares discovering the charm of its granite carved buildings, the shops selling typical regional products and its Cafes and restaurants serving local gastronomic specialties.

Braga, known as the city of bishops because of its strong religious roots, was once the headquarters of the most important diocese in the Iberia Peninsula. Nowadays it is one of the wealthiest Portuguese cities with a solid base of local industries and a commercial center that rivals the two largest cities in Portugal, Lisbon and Porto. In Braga, we will visit the 12th-century cathedral and walk through the busy commercial streets: “Rua do Soto” and “Avenida Centra”l. Next, get ready for an unforgettable experience! It’s time to climb to “Bom Jesus de Braga” in the oldest cable railway car in the world moved by water. It was inaugurated on March 25th, 1882 and it’s a masterpiece of Portuguese engineering. Once at the top we can admire the Baroque style sanctuary Sanctuary of Bom Jesus, and contemplate in the valley below the ancestral city of Braga.