Santa Maria da Feira is not very large and easily reachable from Porto by a daily bus service that offers several trips per day.
Its strategic location identifies the city as a convenient place to stay and move around the surroundings. Besides being close to Porto, Feira is only a ten-minute drive from the beach of Espinho, a tourist destination for surf lovers. To reach the ocean, there is also a train or bus that takes about 30 minutes to bring you to the Portuguese beaches.
Castle of Santa Maria da Feira
The city is particularly known for its main monument, the “Castle of Santa Maria da Feira”. The Castle of Feira is indeed considered one of the most imposing constructions of all medieval military architecture in the entire Portugal.
The castle rises on a hill surrounded by greenery and reachable on foot from the city center. The main architectural construction style is Gothic, but over time the building has undergone various influences. Today the structure is still very well maintained and almost completely intact. It is possible to take a tour inside the walls by paying a ticket of only 3 euros. Upon entering, you face a square that leads to the castle’s main entrance.
Very fascinating is the wall protecting the entire construction. Also, from the walls, you can admire part of the town of Feira and the surrounding valley. From the main entrance, you reach a large hall where a screen shows the history of the castle. Moving towards the left side of the hall, there is an exit that, besides leading outside to the right side of the castle, offers two other possibilities: going down to a kind of basement or going up to the upper rooms of the structure.
In the basement there is a cistern for collecting rainwater. Going up the stairs, you reach the upper room, the main one, very large and characterized by three large fireplaces and a wood oven. From the main room, you can climb to the mezzanine where, at the sides, there are marble benches to sit and admire glimpses of the outside of the castle through stone “windows”. From the mezzanine, it is possible to exit to the terrace where there are several stations for military sentinels. Outside the castle, more precisely on the side opposite the entrance, there is a small lawn where two medieval war tools are present.
Medieval Journey in the land of Santa Maria
But the medieval spirit of Feira is not due only to the presence of the Castle; in fact, in August there is a unique event much awaited by the citizens of Feira and beyond. Named “Medieval Journey in the land of Santa Maria,” the event lasts ten days, during which the entire population participates in costume to help revive the medieval era. The event is divided into thematic places and areas, below are those of the 2014 event:
- Knight’s Inn
- The King’s Archer
- Saint George’s Baths
- The King’s Castle
- Falconry
- Convent
- Stables
- Market
- Gardens of the medieval journey
- Lake of spells
- Liça
- Forest Magic
- Paper Mill
- Military order
- Moments of medieval life
- Little artists
- Little warriors
- City
- Elvas Square
- Camera Square
- Warrior’s Path
- Merlature climb
- Shuk
- Squires’ training
- Castle route
- Music in the chapel
- Castle village
- Exhibition: Images of the journey
In each of these places the atmosphere of the medieval period is recreated with games, competitions, and shows that evoke the specific historical context.
The event is organized down to the smallest detail, and the website is very well maintained. Indeed, inside it is possible to obtain all information regarding the event, accommodation options, and tickets. Only by participating in the event can one fully understand the medieval atmosphere.
Among other things, we recommend visiting the Europarque of Santa Maria da Feira, a park immersed in greenery just four kilometers from the city center.
The Portuguese nightlife
Regarding nightlife, the city offers a good “movida” on weekends, with several small but nice venues offering music of various genres, all reachable on foot from the historic center. We suggest going there in August during the “Medieval Journey” period so that you can enjoy warm weather, ideal for going to the sea and trying the surfing experience.
