One day in Coimbra – travel diary

In today’s post, I’m taking you along on a day trip to beautiful Coimbra! A city that is often forgotten among tourists but rest assure: you should visit Coimbra! I will be sharing a bit more about my day in Coimbra and give you some tips.

One day in Coimbra – travel diary

 

It is not the first time Coimbra is mentioned here on the blog (featured on 10 days in Portugal Itinerary, for example), and the reason for that is very simple: Coimbra is a beautiful city and I believe anyone should visit Coimbra, even if it is just for one day!

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Last Summer, I did a road trip through Portugal, and the starting point was Coimbra! It was the perfect way to start what would become a great holiday.

It had been about 5 years since the last time I visited Coimbra (you can read about it in these 2 posts: Coimbra I and Coimbra II), and it was about time to come back.

As I said above, Coimbra can be a perfect day trip destination, but you can also spend a couple of days there and not run out of interesting sights to see! And I’m not exaggerating.

 

About Coimbra

 

Located on a hill by the Mondego river, which happens to be the only exclusive Portuguese river. Those visiting Coimbra should prepare their legs for all those hills! Worth it, though! 😉

Coimbra is the 4th largest city in Portugal, and you probably don’t know but between 1131 and 1255, Coimbra was the capital of Portugal! Coimbra is considered to have been one of the cultural European hotspots back in the day, mostly helped by the fact that it hosts the renowned University of Coimbra – #8 out of 10 oldest European Universities – which became part of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2013.

 

How I got to Coimbra

For the first time in my life, I rented a car in Portugal! haha It was quite an experience, but for sure one to repeat. The flexibility that a car gives, is just something I value.

So, this time, I got to Coimbra by car and parked the car at the hotel parking garage.

The drive from Lisbon lasted about 2 hours, via the A1 motorway. Something to consider when driving in Portugal is the toll costs, and in my case, it was €11,70.

 

Accommodation in Coimbra

There are many options for accommodation in Coimbra to chose from but for this vacation, I (or we, I should say) had a few requirements:

• A hotel with Clean & Safe certification (due to Covid-19 pandemic).
• Outdoor swimming pool, since late August/early September, are traditionally very warm in Portugal
• Private Parking facilities (I don’t like to search for parking spots… LOL
• Ah, good breakfast, is always a must!
• And comfy bedroom

Yes, I’m that picky! haha, the truth is, I rather spend more money on a comfortable stay, than on other things.

So with all that in mind, we ended up staying, for one night, at the Vila Galé Hotel in Coimbra.

 

My favorite spots in Coimbra

Trust me when I say that it is very hard to select favorites when talking about Coimbra. Really, it’s such a  beautiful city, with so much to see, to discover, so much history to dive into.

But the cool thing about Coimbra, in my opinion, is that if you plan it well, it is possible to visit many of the main landmarks/points of interest even in one day! Yes, you will have to walk a lot, or perhaps even take an Uber, to speed up the process, but it will be worth it!

 

University Campus

 

This is one of those places that gives me a sense of “time-traveling” and wisdom whenever I visit the campus of the University of Coimbra.

It is not so common to see a University campus at the highest hill of a city, at least not in Portugal. Such locations were usually “reserved” for castles. But in Coimbra, they did it differently. Why?

According to the tour guide I had, back in 2015, they built the University at the highest spot of Coimbra as a statement of how important Education and Wisdom are.

And remember, this was in the 1500s, but it’s just as important and significant today!

Must-sees:

• The Tower of the University.
• The Johannine Library.
• Admire the landscape and sights of the Mondego river.

 

Coimbra’s riverfront

If you are new here:

Hi, my name is Bárbara, and I simply love cities with rivers or ocean fronts! haha

Do I need to say more? Ok, jokes aside, I always prefer cities that have some sort of waterfront, whether it’s a river or ocean, it doesn’t matter.  May be related to the fact that I grew up in such a city, and I’m so used to have a river to admire. I don’t know, I just like it!

Now, how can you not like such a view?! I thought so…

 

Coimbra’s old city center

And last but certainly not least, I would select the old city center of Coimbra! How precise, right? haha, There is just so much to see and admire in Coimbra’s old city center, that I could write a whole post about it. 🙂

I particularly enjoyed walking through the city center in the early hours of the day, to experience the “wake up” of Coimbra.

In pre-pandemic times, you could expect these streets to be jampacked, day or night, but nowadays the reality is slightly different. Yet, it does not change the beauty of this city. At least it didn’t for me.

 

Walk tour in Coimbra

If I were to suggest you a one day Coimbra walk tour, this would be it:

• Start at the Botanical Garden;
• Visit the campus of the University of Coimbra, the Tower, and the Johannine Library
• Walk towards Coimbra’s Sé Velha
• Check the Porta de Almedina
• Stop by the Praça 8 de Maio to appreciate Santa Cruz church
• From there go towards the Praça do Comércio
• Then, walk towards Largo da Portagem
• Cross the Mondego River via the Santa Clara bridge
• Then, take a moment to look back towards the city and appreciate the view.

 

 

There are many more things in and around Coimbra to visit. Therefore, whenever in Portugal, try to spend a couple of days in this beautiful city. You will not regret it!

 

I hope you have enjoyed this post and it may be useful in the future when the World is ready for us to go explore new places again.

These are challenging times, for all of us, but keep your head up; this shall pass! Until then, stay safe and start planning your future adventures.

Have you been to Coimbra?

Let me know in the comments and also where do you plan to go when the Pandemic is over.