Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Vale do Côa
(
www.arte-coa.pt
; Av Gago Coutinho 19 A, Foz Côa; park €10, museum €5 [on Sun afternoons €1], park & museum
€12; museum 10am-1.30pm & 2-5.30pm Tue-Sun, park 9am-12.30pm & 2-5.30pm Tue-Sun)
Most visitors to
Vila Nova de Foz Côa come for one reason: to see its world-famous gallery of rock art.
Although the park is currently an active research zone, three sites are open to the public:
Canada do Inferno
, with departures at around 9.30am from the park museum in Vila Nova de
Foz Côa;
Ribeira de Piscos
, with departures at around 9.30am from the Muxagata visitor
centre on the western side of the valley; and
Penascosa
, with departures from the Castelo
Melhor visitor centre on the eastern side, which also offers night tours (€17).
While Castelo Melhor has some of the most significant etchings, Canada do Inferno -
which sits by the half-constructed dam - is the ideal place to understand just how close
these aeons-old drawings came to disappearing.
Because the entire valley is a working archaeological site, all visitors must enter with a
guided tour. Visitors gather at the various visitor centres, where they're taken, eight at a
time, in the park's own 4WDs, for a guided tour of one of the sites (two hours at Canada
do Inferno, which includes 1km of walking; one hour at Penascosa; 2½ hours at Ribeira
de Piscos, with 2km of walking). You can take in two sites in one day - one in the morn-
ing and one in the afternoon. Visitors with mountain bikes may go on guided bike tours
(bring your own bike) in similar-sized groups.
Visitor numbers are strictly regulated, so from July to September book a tour well in
advance or you may miss out; reservations are accepted from Tuesday to Friday. You must
book at least a few weeks ahead for bicycle trips at any time. You can make bookings
through the park office.
Make sure you bring comfortable shoes and a hat, sunblock and water in summer
months, as it gets boiling hot in the valley.
ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE
NEIGHBOURHOOD
Old Town
The sleepy old quarter makes for a pleasant stroll in the early evening. Highlights are the
Praça do Município, with its impressive granite
pelourinho,
and the elaborately carved
portal of the Manueline-style parish church. Just east off the square is the tiny Capela de
Santa Quitéria, once the town's synagogue.
Museu da Casa Grande
(adult/student €2/1; 9am-noon & 2-6pm Tue-Sun)
Archaeological finds from the Stone Age to the
18th century have been uncovered in the region around Freixo de Numão, 12km west of
MUSEUM
