Showing 1-11 of 11 results
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Antigo Paço Episcopal
Facing the cathedral is the severe Antigo Paço Episcopal. Begun in the 14th century and enlarged in the 17th and 18th centuries, it's now home to university offices and the municipal library. A heavily carved, painted and gilded ceiling looks down on the library's computer room; this and the azulejos lining the main stairway are well worth a peek.
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Arco da Porta Nova
West of the old centre on Rua Dom Diogo de Sousa, the diminutive but elegant, 18th-century Arco da Porta Nova once served as the city's main gate. It bears the ostentatious coat of arms of the archbishop who commissioned it, Dom José de Bragança.
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Câmara Municipal
At the western end of neighbouring Praça do Município, Braga's Câmara Municipal sports one of Portugal's finest baroque façades, designed by André Soares da Silva. It's closed to the public, but worth seeing from the outside.
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Casa do Raio
The Casa do Raio is a more extrovert work by André Soares da Silva, with its rococo face covered in azulejos . Like the câmara municipal, it's closed to the public, but is still worth seeing from the outside.
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Cathedral
Braga's extraordinary Cathedral is the oldest in Portugal, begun when the archdiocese was restored in 1070 and completed in the following century. It's a rambling complex encompassing a jumble of architectural styles, and architectural buffs could spend half a day happily distinguishing the Romanesque bones from Manueline musculature and baroque frippery.
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Estádio Municipal de Braga
Now home to Braga's football team, Sporting Clube de Braga, the city's new 30,000-seat Estádio Municipal de Braga was built to host the European Football Championships (Euro2004). It's 2km north of the centre off the northbound EN 101; you can buy match tickets at the team shop in the Centro Comercial Galeries do Bingo on Avenida da Liberdade.
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Jardim de Santa Bárbara
Outside the spiky-topped, medieval north wing of the Archbishop's Palace is the 17th-century square known as Jardim de Santa Bárbara, with narrow paths picking their way through a sea of flowers and topiary. On sunny days, the adjacent pedestrianised streets Rua Justino Cruz and Rua Francisco Sanches fill with buskers and café tables.
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Museu Dom Diogo de Sousa
The Museu Dom Diogo de Sousa, a major new archaeological museum, houses exhibits from the whole of north Portugal, with a particular emphasis on the region around Braga. Free entry Sunday before 01:00. Check at the tourist office for details.
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Museu dos Biscaínhos
An 18th-century aristocrat's palace is now home to the enthusiastic Museu dos Biscaínhos, with a nice collection of Roman relics and 17th- to 19th-century pottery and furnishings. The palace itself is the reason to come, with its polychrome, chestnut-panelled ceilings and 18th-century azulejos depicting hunting scenes. The ground floor is paved with deeply ribbed flagstones on which carriages would have once rattled through to the stables. The mazelike gardens at the rear also deserve a visit.
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Praça da República
A wonderful spot for bench-sitting or coffee-drinking in the sun, the broad Praça da República is the ideal place to start or finish your day. An especially mellow atmosphere descends in the evening, when coloured lights spring up and people of all ages congregate to enjoy the night air.
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Torre de Menagem
The square, crenellated tower behind the cafés on the Praça da República is the walled up Torre de Menagem, which is all that survives of a fortified medieval palace.
Showing 1-11 of 11 results
