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Braga, Portugal

The church of Bom Jesus do Monte, on a hill above Braga.

Braga is the centre of Portugal’s third-largest urban area and the country’s most important religious centre. With almost four dozen places of worship, Braga is something of an ecclesiastical destination, particularly around Easter. However, a large student population also means that, despite the numerous churches, Braga is not just a historical or religious tourist site but a dynamic and eclectic city with a lot on offer. Braga offers a slice of authentic Portugal, set amongst hills within easy reach of the spectacular Peneda-Gerês National Park and just an hour from Porto. With a moderate climate all year round and unhurried pace of life, Braga offers the perfect environment to explore the city’s cultural offerings and culinary scene.

Small Group Tour

Discover Portugal

18-Day Tour · Lisbon to Porto · Small group, up to 16 travellers, solo travellers welcome

Braga is not on this itinerary, but Discover Portugal spends its last five days in and around Porto: Livraria Lello, the Ribeira and a port wine cellar tasting on Day 14, then a train into the Douro Valley and a river cruise from Pinhão on Day 16.

View the Tour

History of Braga

First founded by a Celtic tribe, Braga was refounded as Bracara Augusta by the Romans in about 16 BC, and it later became the capital of the Roman province of Gallaecia, which stretched all the way up into Spain. It developed greatly in the 1st century thanks to its location at the intersection of five Roman roads that were important for trade. However, in the 5th century the city fell to the Suebi, who made it their capital, before being taken by the Visigoths in 585. Periods of conquest and reconquest followed with the city being captured by the Moors in 716 and definitively retaken by Alfonso III of Asturias in 868. Between 1093 and 1147, Braga became the residential seat of the Portuguese court and in the early 12th century, Count Henry of Portugal and bishop Geraldo de Moissac reclaimed the archbishopric seat for Braga, with power over a large area in Iberia. Today, Braga is an archiepiscopal see, and its archbishop is the primate of Portugal.

As a centre of Christianity during the Reconquista, Braga played an important role in medieval politics but the following centuries saw Braga’s slow decline in its power and prestige and it continued to face periods of growth and decline throughout the 20th century. Today, the city’s industries include the manufacture of firearms, jewelry, cutlery, furniture, electronics, textiles, and hats and it is host to the oldest Portuguese archdiocese, the Archdiocese of Braga of the Catholic Church.

A procession during Holy Week in Braga

Braga hosts many religious festivals but none are as significant as Semana Santa or Holy Week. The Holy Week in Braga is the most imposing, attractive and famous among all in Portugal, as well as the most important tourist and religious event in the city of Braga. Around 100,000 people attend the major procession, which mixes elements of the liturgy with new and ancient traditions.

Sights to See

Braga Cathedral

The impressive Baroque organ in Braga Cathedral

Braga Cathedral, or Se, is the oldest Cathedral in Portugal (erected several decades before the founding of the country) and a must-see sight. A twin-towered cathedral, it was begun around 1070, after the Christian Reconquest, on the remains of earlier Roman and medieval buildings but only the original door of the main entrance remains of the original Romanesque structure. Today, the structure is a mix of different architectural styles with a Romanesque shape, a Manueline main chapel (the work of renowned architect João de Castilho), Gothic chapels and Baroque touches. As a testament to Braga’s importance in the Middle Ages, Henry of Burgundy, Count of Portugal and father of the country’s first king, Afonso Henriques, was buried in a chapel at the cathedral following his death in 1112. Connected to the cathedral is the impressive treasury museum, one of the richest in the country and replete with ecclesiastical riches. You can see a variety of chalices, crosses, goblets, coffers, vestments, sacred art and ceramics from across the centuries.

Biscainhos Museum

Museu dos Biscainhos or Biscainhos Museum

The Museum of Biscainhos is located in a 17th-century aristocrat’s palace, enlarged in the 18th century, and takes one on a journey through the daily life of a noble family in their palace. The palace itself is a sight to behold with beautiful 18th-century azulejos (tiles), incredible Baroque gardens and chestnut-panelled ceilings. Inside, you will find immaculate period furniture, a collection of Roman relics and 17th- to 19th-century pottery, paintings and furnishings. The most magnificent space is the ballroom where the family held their receptions. It has a vaulted ceiling with a painting by Manuel Furtado de Mendonça, completed in 1724. If the azulejo tiles interest you, you may want to check out the Centro Interpretativo das Memórias da Misericórdia de Braga (CIMMB Palacio do Raio) which has a wonderfully tiled facade in the Rococo style and features a collection of sacred art, textiles, paintings, sculptures, jewellery, pottery and old medical instruments.

Braga Castle

Braga Castle (Castelo de Braga) is a historical fortification and defensive line encircling the city. Today, no cohesive structure remains, just various gates and remnants along its perimeter apart from the main keep tower, which is the only surviving element of the medieval castle. This thirty-metre high granite structure gives an idea of the five towers that guarded over the medieval walls.

Escadaria do Bom Jesus do Monte

Baroque staircase leading to Bom Jesus do Monte in Braga

The Baroque staircase climbing to the church of Bom Jesus do Monte.

Bom Jesus do Monte is a historic pilgrimage site on a hill outside Braga, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019. Here, a plain neoclassical church stands on a wooded hill that one can reach by climbing a monumental Baroque staircase that zigzags 116 metres up to the church. On the landings of one flight, the Stairway of the Five Senses, you’ll find perpetually-flowing fountains, each dedicated to one of the senses (touch, smell, taste, sight, sound). You can walk the stairs (there are around 580 steps) or use a funicular to reach the top but however you get there you are sure to be rewarded by spectacular views, particularly at sunset. By tradition, pilgrims climbed the stairs on their knees.

Museu Dom Diogo de Sousa

Named after Archbishop Diogo de Sousa (1461-1532), this archaeological museum is home to a well-displayed collection of fragments from Braga’s earliest days. The collection comprises items from excavations that took place in Braga, featuring pieces from Paleolithic times, the Roman period, Visigothic rule up until the Middle Ages.

GNRation

GNRation is Braga’s arts and cultural centre, housed in the former headquarters of the GNR, Portugal’s National Republican Guard. Here you can enjoy galleries, concerts, film screenings, workshops and theatre performances and the space is designed to attract people, encourage creative thinking and provide ideas and businesses in the area. It was created as part of Braga’s year as European Youth Capital in 2012.

If this has sparked your interest in the unique city of Braga with its many museums, monuments of religious history, churches and relics of medieval times (as well as bars, cafes and quirky shops), then you may be interested in our Spain and Portugal small group tour, which spends two nights in Braga and visits the main sights of this lively city, as well as stopping at a local port lodge in Porto for a guided tour and tasting of port. It is also simple to visit independently. Braga is an easy day trip from Porto, taking roughly 40 minutes to an hour on the train, depending on the service, or about 35 minutes’ drive from Porto airport. Our guide to things to do in Porto covers the city most visitors use as their base for the north.