Viana do Castelo & the Minho, Portugal

In 60 seconds

Viana do Castelo & the Minho in 60 seconds

The Minho, in Portugal's green north-west corner, is a land of vineyards trained high on pergolas, granite villages and lively religious festivals, and Viana do Castelo is its handsome capital at the mouth of the River Lima. Ride the funicular up to the domed sanctuary of Santa Luzia for one of the great views in Portugal, over the town, the iron bridge by Eiffel's company and the Atlantic. Below, the old town of Renaissance houses gathers round the Praça da República, and the hospital ship Gil Eannes, which served the cod fleets off Newfoundland, is moored in the harbour. Every August the Romaria of Our Lady of Sorrows fills the streets with women in red-and-gold costumes and filigree jewellery. Up the river, Ponte de Lima has a medieval bridge and Portugal's oldest town charter. Two days.