I’ve always wondered what it must be like to live in a town overrun by tourists, especially given that I live in Lawrence, Kansas, where the biggest draw is its university. But I’ve written about plenty of destinations packed with visitors, from Salzburg to Shirakawago, so I know that for most of them, tourism is their lifeblood. Obidos is Portugal’s prettiest walled village, which brings an avalanche of tour buses and day trippers.
But there’s an easy way to get around the crowds in small destinations: Spend the night. Not only do most tourists consider an hour or so adequate for a village before rushing off to the next place on their bucket list, but small places by the very nature of their size can accommodate only a limited number of overnight guests. That means you can often have the town to yourself in the evening and early morning before restaurants and shops open for business. Even during the day, tour groups are given time to see only Obidos’ main street of Rua Direita with its souvenir shops, while you have the leisure of exploring the village’s nooks and crannies.
What makes Obidos Portugal’s Prettiest Walled Village
ITS HISTORY. Obidos’ defensible hilltop location has made this an attractive place to settle for almost 2,000 years. Celts, Romans, Visigoths and Moors called it home before Afonso Henriques, the first king of Portugal, claimed it in 1148. In 1210, Afonso II considered Obidos so charming that he gave it to his wife as a wedding gift, a practice that continued with each successive royal couple until 1834. Many queens spent their time and wealth improving their diminutive kingdom, including Queen Isabel, who in 1309 ordered the construction of a chapel and houses for sufferers of leprosy; Queen Leonor, who founded an almshouse in 1498; and Queen Catarina, who oversaw the construction of an aqueduct and fountains in 1573 that still stand today.
ITS HISTORIC SIGHTS. Obidos’ most dominant landmark is its castle, which dates back to the Romans, was fortified by the Moors and enlarged by successive Portuguese kings. Today it houses the Postado do Castelo, Portugal’s first state-run pousada (inn) located in an historic building. At the opposite end of town, only a 10-minute walk away, is the town gate. Encircling the village are stone ramparts, which provide views over rooftops and the countryside.
Churches, too, are plentiful in Obidos, including Santa Maria, where 10-year-old King Afonso V married his 8-year-old cousin Isabel. Some historic buildings now serve as bookstores, earning Obidos in 2015 the designation as a UNESCO Creative City of Literature.
ITS ATMOSPHERE. But mostly, Obidos is simply a pleasure to roam, with mazes of hilly cobbled streets leading past whitewashed homes adorned with flowering bougainvillea and private gardens. What a shame it would be to rush through in an hour, with only hurried photos to remind yourself you were there. But spend the night and let Obidos’ storied past speak to you as you wander, and Portugal’s prettiest walled village will come to you in dreams, and daydreams, for many years to come.
For more on Obidos, see my full-length article in gonomad.com, Portugal: The Joys of Obidos.
Other articles I’ve written on Portugal are Sintra’s Quinta da Regaleira Invites Exploration in gardendestinations.com and
