Luso & Mata Nacional do Buçaco

A retreat from the world for almost 2000 years, the Mata Nacional do Buçaco (National Forest of Buçaco or Bussaco) sits on the slopes of the Serra do Buçaco, some 30km north of Coimbra. The forest, which is now a walled 105-hectare reserve, harbours an astounding 700 plant species, from huge Mexican cedars to tree-sized ferns, as well as its own fairy-tale royal palace. A network of paths criss-crosses the woodland, whose beauty has inspired reams of poetry over the ages. Generations of writers have enshrined the forest in the national imagination with breathless hymns to its natural and spiritual beauty.