Moimenta da Beira

It has a Mediterranean climate with a continental feel, cold winters and hot, dry summers, and is located between the Douro Valley and the highlands of Beira Alta. To the north it is bordered by the municipalities of Tabuaço and Armamar; to the west by Tarouca; to the southwest by Vila Nova de Paiva; to the east by Sernancelhe; and to the south by Sátão. Geographically, it is located in the north of the Viseu district.

It covers around 200 km2 and has around 10,000 inhabitants divided into 16 parishes and 4 parish unions. From its morphology, the highest areas are the Serra de Leomil (1009 m), where the Paiva river rises, one of the least polluted watercourses in the world.

Europe, and Santo Antão (841 m).

There are plenty of prehistoric remains in the mountains around Leomil, such as the dolmens on the Nave plateau and several hillforts, including Caria (which has disappeared), the Lusitanian-Roman Sanfins (Passô), the walled Peravelha hillfort and some important menhirs.

In terms of historical and architectural heritage, we would like to highlight the Nª Srª da Purificação Benedictine Convent, founded in 1594, which has a 17th century polychrome tile plinth and the tomb of its founder. In the surrounding area, the noble emblazoned houses of the Guedes, Carvalhos and Almeidas stand out. In the municipality, attention is drawn to the pillories. The one in Vila da Rua is charming and one of the most beautiful in the country. It is classified as a ‘National Monument’ and is a point of interest

It’s a very popular tourist destination, as are the ancient handicrafts, ranging from baskets to burel cloaks and capes, wool socks, patchwork blankets, mountain clogs and linen.

The reservoir of the Barragem de Vilar, a few kilometers from the county seat, is another place of significant tourist interest. The waters are very popular, and in the immediate vicinity there is a camping and caravanning site, an extreme sports park, a restaurant with signature cuisine and a bar with a terrace on the banks of the reservoir, next to the grove beyond. In addition, the municipality also has other bathing areas, such as Segões, a small paradise where the dark color of the waters of the River Paiva, which form a beautiful mirror of water, which surprises even the most inattentive, as the result of the presence of mineral salts, much sought after as a treatment for skin diseases. The area is endowed with extraordinary aquatic and terrestrial biodiversity, and in the surrounding area you can find a nature tourist welcome center.

Back in the high mountains of Leomil, to see two of the dozens of wind towers that support the urban artworks by Joana Vasconcelos and Vhils. They are the largest urban artworks in the world, at around 100 meters high. The two Portuguese artists projected elements of the region’s collective memory, culture and natural wealth onto these towers.

Moimenta da Beira is also the land of the apple, the best apple in the world, which inspires Expodemo, a huge festive event that takes place every year in mid-September. It’s also home to the Terras do Demo sparkling wines, produced here by the Cooperativa Agrícola do Távora.

And it is a territory of culture, of famous writers such as Aquilino Ribeiro, António de Sèves, the poet Luís Veiga Leitão, the pioneering short story writer of neorealism in Portugal Afonso Ribeiro, the editor and poet Eduardo Salgueiro.