One Day in Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

Portugal’s former capital, Coimbra, has a small treasure trove of things to see. If you plan wisely, you can catch most of the highlights in one day, either as a day trip or as a stop in between other cities, like Lisbon and Porto.

Assuming you’re not making an overnight stop in Coimbra, you’ll find it easily accessible as a round trip or stop over by train from Lisbon, about 2:2:30 hours, and Porto, about 1-1:30. There are two regional train stations, Coimbra and Coimbra-B. You’ll want to arrive at the former, which is in the heart of the city.

The city is walkable and fairly small, but you can comfortably enjoy some of Coimbra’s most popular attractions in about 6-8 hours.

Few places boast a university as the number one thing to do, but when your university is built on the site of a former palace, it’s well worth the trip. Of all the city’s sights, the University of Coimbra is likeliest to be a bit crowded. There are two kinds of tickets, depending on what you want to see. The full-price ticket includes everything: the Royal Palace, the Chapel of St. Michael, the College of Jesus, and the Baroque Library for 12€. If you want to add the tower to your ticket, it’s an extra euro. This ticket also gives you access to the science museum, though you can pay for that separately. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).