Obidos

Obidos folds a whole medieval town inside an unbroken wall circuit - from the 13th century the town was traditionally presented by Portuguese kings to their queens, and the royal favour shows in every restored lane: whitewashed houses trimmed in blue and yellow, bougainvillea over the doorways, and the castle at the top now serving as one of the country's historic pousada hotels. The ritual is settled: walk Rua Direita's gauntlet of shops, climb to the ramparts and circle the town on the wall-top path, then accept a ginjinha - the local sour-cherry liqueur - served in an edible chocolate cup. A UNESCO Creative City of Literature, Obidos has also filled old churches with bookshops, and its calendar runs from a medieval fair in summer to a chocolate festival and a December Christmas town.

History

The name derives from the Celtic Eburobrittium; the Roman town of that name was abandoned in the 5th century for the safer hilltop, where the Moors built a fortification some time after 713. Afonso Henriques took Óbidos in 1148, King Dinis remodelled the castle and walls, King Fernando added the keep in the 14th century, and on 15 August 1441 the young King Afonso V married his cousin Isabella in the Church of Santa Maria (Wikipedia, Óbidos, Portugal).

What's there

• The wall circuit - the complete rampart walk above the rooftops.
• Rua Direita - the main lane of shops, tiles and bougainvillea.
• The castle pousada - the medieval keep turned historic hotel.
• Ginjinha in chocolate - the cherry-liqueur ritual in an edible cup.

When to go

Spring and early autumn for soft light and manageable lanes; July's medieval fair and the festival calendar add colour and crowds in equal measure. Come early or stay to evening - day trips empty out by dusk.

Good to know

Midday brings coach-loads and Rua Direita clogs solid - the side lanes stay quiet a street away. The wall walk has no railings and drops on both sides, so it is not for vertigo or unsteady feet. Cobbles punish thin soles.

Nearby

Caldas da Rainha, Peniche's surf coast and Nazare up the road; Lisbon is an hour south.

Key facts