Description Vouzela

Vouzela is a Portuguese village in the district of Viseu, located in the province of Beira Alta, Centro region (Beiras Region) and sub-region Viseu Dão-Lafões. It is 30 km from Viseu, 60 km from Aveiro, 2 km from Termas de São Pedro do Sul, just over an hour from Porto and approximately three hours from Lisbon.

It is the seat of a municipality with an area of ??193.69 km² and 10 564 inhabitants (2011), subdivided into 9 parishes. The municipality is limited to the north by the municipality of São Pedro do Sul, to the east by Viseu, to the south by Tondela and by the secondary portion of Oliveira de Frades, to the southwest by Águeda and to the northwest by the main portion of Oliveira de Frades.

It is easy to reach this municipality either via the A25 or through the National Roads N16, N228, N333 and N333-3.

Vouzela is a municipality that stands out for its heritage, especially rich in natural, gastronomic and historical values. It is also a territory that is distinguished by people with an authentic ancestral culture. Go on an adventure and discover the heart of the center!

The municipality originated in the former municipality of Lafões, of which it was one of the two headquarters, together with São Pedro do Sul. In 1836, Lafões was divided between Vouzela and São Pedro do Sul.

Located in the municipality of Vouzela, the Cambarinho Botanical Reserve is a place of great biodiversity, hosting numerous species of great conservation value. The particularity of this space is the presence of oleander, an endemic species of the Iberian Peninsula, which in May and June presents us with its magnificent flowering representing one of the natural ex-libris of this territory.

In order to understand the existence of so many emblazoned architectural buildings in this beautiful village, let us start by mentioning that Vouzela was a crossing point for several Roman roads, making it mandatory for the people who walked along them to pass through here. In the Middle Ages these roads were used by muleteers to carry out their business, Rua de S. Frei Gil, commonly known as Rua da Ponte, was called “the fish road”. With the evolution of the times, Vouzela was on the route of the courts of Lamego being a place of passage and mandatory stop on the trip to Lisbon. Throughout the centuries, this flow of people and the existence of some illustrious families native to this land, have left today traces of the grandeur of other times visible on the coats of manors, throughout the historic area.