Get to know the perfect european holiday destination all year round - Guarda

In the highest of the seven hills lies the historic district of Graça, which belongs to the São Vicente parish. The whole of São Vicente comprises both iconic and historic venues such as monuments, parks and viewpoints, neighbourhoods and restaurants.  Here, you can feel a genuine Lisbon atmosphere and witness a truly cosmopolitan environment. Indeed, many young newcomers that come to work in Lisbon, choose to live in Graça due to its centrality, lively neighbourhood activity and a large offer of public transportation. Due to this multicultural environment, one can find an extremely rich and varied offer of restaurants and cultural activities. The Graça district is one of the most beautiful and oldest neighbourhoods of the Portuguese capital, located next to the iconic São Jorge Castle, known for its superb views over the city and the Tagus River.  Two of this neighbourhood’s highlights are well-known viewpoints: the Miradouro da Graça and the Miradouro da Senhora do Monte. But they are on top of one of the steepest Lisbon hills, so prepare for a good climb if you choose to walk.

Lagos is a historic town located on the magnificent and vivid Western Algarve. A city with a rich maritime history and spectacular natural environment. Lagos is today one of the best holiday destinations in the Algarve.The proud Portuguese city of Lagos has cobbled streets, amazing restaurants and a very relaxed and friendly atmosphere. Lagos blends traditional Portuguese culture with golden beaches and new tourist attractions.

The Marquês of Pombal Square is the heart of modern Lisbon and is known for its huge roundabout and a majestic statue in the middle. This area marks the start of Lisbon’s downtown. It is located between Avenida da Liberdade and the Eduardo VII Park in the parish of Coração de Jesus, being the radiating point for many important avenues: Avenida da Liberdade, Avenida Fontes Pereira de Melo and Duque de Loulé. In the centre, you’ll see an imposing statue by the name of Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, better known as Marquês de Pombal, who lead the reconstruction of the city after it suffered a catastrophic earthquake in 1755. Marquês de Pombal is surrounded by a plethora of corporate headquarters of important companies, including the largest Portuguese banks and several of the world’s famous 5-star hotels.

The neglected child of central Lisbon, Anjos has been relishing a lively rebirth in recent years. Part of the old Lisbon in Avenida Almirante Reis - one of the most sought-after Lisbon neighbourhood for investment -, Anjos is known for its rough edges, economic activities and its multicultural ambience.  The neighbourhood includes one of the city's most prominent late 19th-century Portuguese-style architecture. Gentrification is well underway, but it is balanced with a thriving activist and cooperative landscape.

Castelo Branco is the capital of the old province of Beira Baixa. Located just twenty kilometres from the Spanish border, most of the historical character of Castelo Branco has an attractive atmosphere to it, with generous parks, wide boulevards and bustling squares.  Full of history and with a heritage of infinite value, this secular city has a great diversity of spaces and multiple activities, with a close and familiar environment, where the mountains and the city come together. Castelo Branco is a very good foundation from which to explore the border region of central Portugal.

Beja is located in the southern region of continental Portugal and is believed to have been founded around 400 b.c. by an ancient cell of celts that occupied most territories south of the Tagus river, such as the Alentejo and Setúbal regions. After being a part of the Roman Empire for 600 years and a part of the Arabic Caliphate for 400 years until 1162, the year in which the Christians took the city from Muslim occupation, Beja is now the county’s capital.  The city remained small for the next centuries, although heavily destroyed by the Napoleonic invasions. From the 20th century onwards, some economic development was put in place with the building of new schools, judicial and commercial installations, including the new Beja International Airport in 2011.

Rich in history, right in the centre of Portugal’s Capital City of Lisbon, one can find this park in the Arroios parish over a hill that’s between the valleys that correspond to Avenida da Liberdade and Avenida Almirante Reis. This park inherits its name of Campo dos Mártires da Pátria (Homeland Martyrs’ Field) in memoriam of Portuguese General Gomes Freire de Andrade and eleven of his companions, sentenced to be hanged in a staged trial, accused of revolting and fighting against the British Military General and Portuguese Army Marshal, Lord Beresford, regent ruler of Portugal instead of king D. João VI, who was living in Brazil at the time.  Gomes Freire de Andrade was a powerful Portuguese Mason, accused by Lord Beresford of conspiring to diminish his power of rule in Portugal, in the Portuguese king’s absence. After executing Gomes Freire de Andrade and his companions, Lord Beresford then travelled to Brazil to ask king João VI for more powers, which were granted.  However, General Gomes Freire de Andrade’s execution by Lord Beresford’s sentence ignited a revolt against the British ruler’s regency, led to protests in the North of Portugal and intensified an anti-British feeling, which ignited the Portuguese Liberal Revolution and to the fall of Lord Beresford, that was stopped from disembarking in Lisbon after returning from Brazil.

Few people know this, but Alcácer do Sal is one of the oldest cities in Europe. It was founded over a thousand years B.C. Laid out over the right bank of the Sado river, it is a historic area in Portugal, best known for its rice fields. Alcácer do Sal is the second-largest municipality in the country, located in the northern part of Alentejo, very close to the Atlantic. For a long time, salt was the main reason for the settlement of peoples in this region. From the Phoenicians' times, through the Roman empire, until the 18th century, salt was transported by galleons from dozens of salt flats. Eventually, salt flats were converted into rice paddies, which started using a network of channels supplied by the Pego do Altar and Santa Susana dams. Today there is still one salt flat operating, the “Salina da Batalha”, which is open for guided tours. Over the Sado valley, on the hilltop, a Moorish castle was built in the 12th century. It was later conquered by King Afonso II, passing into the Portuguese domain. Álcacer is also home to one the most beautiful “Pousadas de Portugal”, has beautiful beaches just a few kilometres away and offers the best wild boar steak in the country, as well as delicious seafood from the Sado river.