Piódão

Known for:

Schist houses

Time needed:

1–2 hours

From Lisbon:

3.5 hours by car

From Porto:

2.5 hours by car

Fun fact(s):

Piódão has only around 100 residents

About

One of the 12 Historical Villages of Portugal, Piódão is a tiny remote schist village with a population of about 100 people. It's very well taken care of, with restored stone houses, bright blue windows and photographs of the locals who lived there in past decades. It also feels like one of the more tourist-oriented Historical Villages, with several restaurants and souvenir shops.

A 10 min drive away from Piódão is Foz d'Égua with its marvelous, fairytale-like stone bridges and natural pools. However, check most recent reviews on Google Maps before planning your trip, as the river beach there is not always functional due to a lack of water or for other reasons (e.g. the dam was broken at the end of august, so there was no standing water at all). The place is beautiful regardless, but definitely even more so with water.