Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Monte de Santa Luzia
There are two good reasons to visit Viana's 228m, eucalyptus-clad hill. One is the won-
drous view down the coast and up the Lima valley. The other is the fabulously over-the-
top, 20th-century, neo-Byzantine
Templo do Sagrado Coração de Jesus
(Temple of the Sacred Heart of Je-
sus; 11am-1pm & 3-8pm)
. You can get a little closer to heaven on its graffiti-covered
roof, via a lift, followed by an elbow-scraping stairway (€0.80) - take the museum en-
trance on the ground floor.
Behind the Pousada do Monte de Santa Luzia is another attraction, the
Ruinas da Cidade
Velha
(admission €3; 9am-noon & 2-6pm)
, ruins of a Celtiberian
citânia
from around the 4th
century BC. You'll see the stones peeking above the wind-blown savannah. Most of the
site is accessible via a boardwalk.
You can get up the mountain by the restored
funicular
(one way/return €2/3; 9am-8pm Jun-Sep,
8am-6pm Oct-May)
, which departs from near the train station every 15 minutes. You can also
drive or take a taxi (3.5km) to the top, or hike 2km of steps (only for the fit and/or penit-
ent). The road starts by the hospital, and the steps begin about 200m up the road.
HILL
Gil Eannes
( 258 809 710;
www.fundacaogileannes.pt
; Doca Comercial; admission €2; 9am-7pm )
Demanding at-
tention on the waterfront near Largo 5 de Outubro is a pioneering naval hospital ship, the
Gil Eannes (zheel yan-
ish
)
. Now restored, the ship once provided on-the-job care for
those fishing off the coast of Newfoundland. Visitors can clamber around the steep decks
and cabins, though a scattering of old clinical equipment may make your hair stand on
end.
LANDMARK
River Trips
(
www.passeiofluvial.com
;
May-Sep)
If there are enough passengers, boats run up and down the
Rio Lima daily in summer, from the pier south of Largo 5 de Outubro (the same dock
where ferries depart to Praia do Cabedelo). The most common trip takes 40 minutes
(adult/child €7.50/4). Longer excursions (adult/child €12/6.50) take in the old shipyards;
these must be booked at least a day ahead.
BOAT TRIPS
Serra d'Arga
( 969 220 704;
www.serradearga.com
)
Don't miss a trip to this nearby mountain, just a
25-minute drive away, with its eight scenic villages and protected nature that includes di-
GUIDED TOUR
