Idanha-a-Velha

Idanha-a-Velha was Igaeditania, a Roman city of some standing with a forum, walls, a bridge and an aqueduct, and it continued as a Visigothic episcopal seat - the chronicles claim Wamba, one of the last Visigothic kings, was born here. The extraordinary thing is what happened next: it never became a town again. What stands today is a village of a few dozen residents living among and inside the ancient fabric, with Roman walls still enclosing it, a Roman bridge over the Ponsul, columns and inscribed stones reused in houses and field boundaries, a Templar tower built on a Roman podium, and the cathedral - a basilica whose core is sixth-century Visigothic, one of the oldest churches in Portugal, holding a large collection of Roman epigraphy stacked inside it. It is one of the Aldeias Históricas, and it is very quiet.

What you actually see

• The cathedral - a basilica with a sixth-century Visigothic core, among Portugal's oldest.
• The reused stone - Roman columns and inscriptions built into houses and walls.
• The walls and bridge - Roman fabric still enclosing and serving the village.
• The Templar tower - a medieval tower raised on a Roman podium.

When to go

March to June and September to November; Beira Baixa summers are extremely hot. Two to three hours. Guided visits from the reception centre explain far more than the signage.

Honest expectations

Very hot and shadeless in summer. The village has almost no services - no shop, limited food. The cathedral's opening depends on the reception centre being staffed. Interpretation without a guide is thin.

Nearby

Monsanto is north; Castelo Branco is south-west.