Visit Serra da Estrela in Portugal

Planning to visit Portugal? Then you may consider the beach destinations, like the Algarve, or a nice weekend city break, maybe in Lisbon or Porto. But what if you are a Nature lover? What should you visit in Portugal? Well, there are many options, but in today’s article, I will take you to Serra da Estrela!

And at the very end, there is even a little storytime. I hope you enjoy this article.

Let’s go to Serra da Estrela!

 

About Serra da Estrela

Serra da Estrela, Portugal, is the highest mountain range in Portugal, and at its highest point, in Torre, it reaches 1993m of altitude. A true delight for those who like to enjoy time in Nature and overall relaxation.

Serra da Estrela is part of the Central System, a system of mountain ranges located in the Iberian Peninsula; in Portugal, you find two of these mountain ranges: Serra da Lousã and Serra da Estrela. Geology isn’t my strongest skill, but after some research, it seems that this Central System divides the Tagus drain basin from the basin of the Douro river. And guess what? You can find both rivers in Portugal!

For us Portuguese, a visit to Serra da Estrela means a snow party, and as you may expect, snow is something quite extraordinary in Portugal.

Also worth to mention, is that three rivers start in Serra da Estrela: Mondego, being the longest river entirely within Portugal’s territory; Zêzere and Alva, both tributary rivers.

 

Location

Serra da Estrela mountain range can be found in both Beiras provinces (Beira Baixa and Beira Alta), spreadings accross several Portuguese municipalities, like Seia, Manteigas, Covilhã and Guarda.

 

How to get to Serra da Estrela

The way to Serra da Estrela depends on where you are traveling from.

• Lisbon – Torre, Serra da Estrela: 350km ~ 4h drive
• Porto – Torre, Serra da Estrela: 276km ~ 3h30 drive
• Coimbra – Torre, Serra da Estrela: 147km ~ 2h35 drive

 

Most of the way is done on the motorway, however, the closer you get to Serra da Estrela you will need to drive on municipal roads. From my experience, the roads are good and well marked. But driving on mountain roads can be challenging depending on the season and how experienced you are. Just keep those things in mind when you are planning your visit to Serra da Estrela.

 

 

Sights to visit

The Natural Park of Serra da Estrela has many sights of interest. The difficult thing to do is select just a few to visit if your stay in the area is limited. Here are some sights you should definitely check out:

• Torre, the highest point of Serra da Estrela and Continental Portugal
• Covão d’Ametade
• Covão dos Conchos
• Senhora da Boa Estrela
• Mondeguinho, where Mondego river starts.

 

When to visit Serra da Estrela?

By far one of the most difficult questions to answer, as the landscape is equally beautiful regardless of the Season.

As a child, I visited Serra da Estrela mostly in late Fall or even Winter, and those images will forever remain in my memory; the red tones of the trees or the never-ending white lands covered in snow.

However, my last visit to Serra da Estrela was during the Summer months, more precisely, early September, and it was magic! Especially, when you get to Torre, you have this clear blue sky allowing you to see as far as you can… It’s just so beautiful!

I felt like I was at the top of the world and gave me this sense of peace. I don’t know how to explain it, but a visit to  Serra da Estrela during Summer is totally worth it!

 

 

Things you can do

Strongly depending on each time of the year you visit Serra da Estrela, the activities may be different.

 

Visits during Spring / Fall

Probably the best time to go for hikes! To my knowledge, there are several hike trails in Serra da Estrela for every hike experience level.

Make sure you do your research before going on a hike, and I’m sure you will enjoy the landscapes!

 

Visits during Summer

How about a family BBQ session? Or even a picnic at Covão d’Ametade?

I had a picnic there and it was amazing! Perfect place to relax, and take a moment to simply disconnect.

If you choose to have a BBQ, please use the designated BBQ areas and do not do open fire!

 

Visits during Winter

If you are a fan of Winter sports or activities this is the time to visit Serra da Estrela! Skying, snowboarding, snowball fights, and building snowmen, all can guarantee you an amazing time!

 

Storytime in Serra da Estrela

Are you in for a little storytime?

Last summer, after spending a day in Piódão, our (mine and Mr. A’s) road trip in Portugal continued towards Serra da Estrela. I have been wanting to show Serra da Estrela to Mr.A for the longest time, but we just never had the chance.

So this time, and given the circumstances, we were living in at the time, we could finally make it!

 

As I mentioned above, I had been to Serra da Estrela as a kid, so obviously, I didn’t have to drive. But this time, things were “a bit” different! I was driving and even though I love to drive and don’t get scared so easily, I never really had the chance to drive on mountain roads.

Not going to lie; I was a bit anxious. But you know, driving during Summer and not having to follow any sort of schedule, really helped to keep the anxiety level as low as possible. I took my time, drove within the speed limits (which made many fellow drivers mad… too bad!), and was super alert!

 

The drive from Piódão to Serra da Estrela is really beautiful, and at some points, I just wished I didn’t have to be behind the wheel! The views were mesmerizing!!!

We both enjoyed not only the way to the Torre but as soon as we parked the car and took a moment to appreciate the view, it was o liberating!!

No matter how hard I try to put it in words, I’m certain that no words will do justice.

So, I hope you enjoy the photos in this post; those translating the beautiful landscapes in and around Serra da Estrela.

 

We knew right there and then, that one day, we will come back!

Probably during Fall, to appreciate the red tones on the trees, but yeah, we will be back.

 

* * *

I hope you liked this post and if you have not yet been to Serra da Estrela, then please consider adding this beautiful location to your itinerary in Portugal.

Have you ever visited Serra da Estrela in Portugal? 

 

Let me know in the comments below if you’ve been there.

If not, I hope this article helped to convince you to add Serra da Estrela to your “to visit” list!

 

Stay healthy & I’ll see you soon!