Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Regional trains go to and from Peso da Régua (€2.75, 25 minutes, five daily), where you
can catch one to Porto.
DON'T MISS
SAN SALVADOR DEL MUNDO
San Salvador del Mundo makes for a stunning diversion between Pinhão and Foz Côa. Follow the signs to a short
series of stone turnouts with special hill, vineyard and river views. Some have stone slab tables and benches that
demand a picnic, surrounded by wildflowers and serenaded by birdsong. After lunch continue to the top of the
road and stroll to the chapel on the pinnacle. Spectacular.
Vila Nova de Foz Côa
POP 3200
In the heart of the Douro's
terra quente
(hot land), this once-remote, whitewashed town
has been on the map since the 1990s. That's when researchers - during an environmental
impact study for a proposed dam - stumbled across an astounding collection of Palaeolith-
ic art. These mysterious rock engravings, which number in the thousands, blanket the
nearby Rio Côa valley. Archaeologists brought the petroglyphs to the world's attention,
and the dam builders backed down when the whole valley was declared a Unesco World
Heritage site.
You may find the climate startlingly Mediterranean if you've just come from the moun-
tains. Summers here are infernally hot, with temperatures regularly exceeding 45°C. But if
you come in late March, you'll be treated to cooler climes, wildflowers and blooming al-
mond trees.
Long-distance coaches stop at the bus station about 150m north of the
turismo
at Av
Gago Coutinho. From here the town stretches eastward along Av Gago Coutinho, pedes-
trianised Rua Dr Juiz Moutinho de Andrade, Rua São Miguel and Rua Dr Júlio de Moura
to the old town's centre, Praça do Município.
There is usually plenty of free parking along Av Gago Coutinho between the
turismo
and the Parque Arqueológico do Vale do Côa headquarters.
Sights & Activities
Parque Arqueológico do
