Why move to Vila Real District
With many quiet corners of great natural beauty to discover, Vila Real is perfect for anyone wanting to escape the rat race, but still keep Porto within easy reach.
Until the 1980s, when a highway was cut through the mountains, Vila Real was a truly remote area of Portugal’s northern frontier. It remains quiet with population falling steadily since the beginning of the century. But if peace and quiet is what you’re after that leaves many beautiful towns and villages to explore with excellent properties and access to the mountainous countryside and extensive pine forests.
The population elsewhere might be low but the capital city, Vila Real is far from being in decline. Positioned above a deep valley at the intersection of two rivers, you’ll find it a busy commercial centre with much to offer residents. While there isn’t much of its historical or architectural legacy remaining, this is a place built for living, with many wide avenues, light squares and streets where you’ll find a selection of modern shops and local craft stores.
To the east of the city is perhaps the most famous of Portugal’s country houses, familiar to anyone who’s ever enjoyed a bottle of Mateus rosé: the Palacio de Mateus – an elegant Baroque house with extensive vineyards. Vila Real is also the perfect base for exploring the valley of the Douro river and the Port wine route. Centuries of work have created countless terraces along the steep banks of the river producing grapes for the sweet dessert wine. There are many villages worth exploring here as well, including Sabrosa, once the home of the explorer Magellan and whose vineyards and grand 15th century houses can be found in the picturesque surroundings of the Pinhao river.
Vila Real is well situated for reaching the Parque Natural do Alvao, the country’s smallest natural park, covering an area of 8,000 hectares. It might be small but every available arable piece of land in this mountainous landscape is terraced or planted with fragrant pine trees.
A number of small villages still remain in and around the park and are well worth your attention. Mondim de Basto on the northwest side is surrounded by vineyards and a relaxing central flower garden. Ermelo, which claims the title ‘largest village in the park’ is an old village which retains many properties with attractive plaited black slate roofs typical of the area as well as traditional espigueiros (stone granaries) and a granite pelourinho (pillory).
Head north and you’ll reach the town of Murca, a foodies’ paradise where you are greeted in the central square by its ‘porca’, a great iron age pig sculpture thought to be linked to fertility cults, but now more closely aligned to the excellent local sausage. Smoked hams are the order of the day in the city of Chaves, a Roman spa town serviced by nearby hot springs.
Porto to the west and Braganca to the east are both easily accessible by a major highways, but you’ll need to factor in a little more time for getting around the roads less traveled. It’s definitely worth the effort, as Vila Real is a district that reveals its distinct treasures to those who take the time to stop and look.