Santarém combines Gothic architecture and museum collections with a strong connection to the landscape. Set on a high plateau, the city offers privileged views of the Tagus and the flat Lezíria plains. This gives you distinct cultural and landscape highlights to consider when planning your trip.
Gothic buildings and their history
Santa Maria da Graça is the last major Gothic monastery monument still standing in Santarém. In the Chapel of São João Evangelista, the church houses the tomb of the navigator Pedro Álvares Cabral. The Igreja de Santa Clara, the largest Gothic religious building in Santarém’s historic centre, was built in 1259 under the patronage of King D. Afonso III. It is also home to the Gothic tomb of D. Leonor Afonso, a Poor Clare nun and the founder’s illegitimate daughter. Together, the two churches connect Gothic architectural history with distinct tombs whose occupants are specifically identified.
Another historical trace leads to the Igreja de Santa Maria de Marvila: it was probably created through the Christian refounding of an earlier mosque. In 1159, D. Afonso Henriques gave the church to the Knights Templar. At the church of the Convento de São Francisco, the layout stands out: it has three naves and five stepped chapels. The Igreja de Santa Iria offers a different architectural accent. The building is Baroque but retains Gothic and Renaissance elements. The church also houses the Cristo de Mont’Iraz, a Gothic sculpture from a French workshop, dating from the late 13th or early 14th century.
Museums: religious art and everyday life
The Museu Diocesano de Santarém is located in the north wing of the former Jesuit college, built over the ruins of the former Royal Palace. Its religious art collection includes paintings, sculptures and other objects from the 13th to the 19th century. The Museu Etnográfico Ribeira de Santarém offers a different perspective: it displays objects documenting the everyday lives of people who worked in the fields of the Ribatejo and along the Tagus. This lets you distinguish between sacred art spanning several centuries and documented working life in the region.
Views of the Tagus and routes through the landscape
Jardim das Portas do Sol, inside Santarém Castle, is a viewpoint overlooking the Tagus and the surrounding flat Lezíria plains. The nature trail at Algar do Pena offers a different landscape experience. The circular route is 9 km long and moderately difficult; it starts and ends at the underground interpretation centre of the Algar do Pena cave. Its final section passes through karst landscapes with limestone pavements and sinkholes, particularly near Covão dos Porcos.
The Via Santiago can also be viewed in landscape terms: on its way to Santarém, it passes through farmland, vineyards and rural estates. The views of the Tagus, the karst formations described above and the landscape along the Via Santiago therefore represent different geographical perspectives, not one continuous route.
Cuisine and the regional picture
Among the river-fish dishes highlighted in the region are fried or stewed eels. Sopa da pedra and migas ribatejanas are cited as Ribatejo specialities. The culinary highlights therefore range from two ways of preparing eel to other regional dishes.
Beyond Santarém, the Tejo Wine Route 118 offers a regional perspective: it is about 150 km long and connects seven municipalities in the Vinhos do Tejo wine region—Abrantes, Constância, Chamusca, Alpiarça, Almeirim, Salvaterra de Magos and Benavente. This route offers a perspective on the wider region.
Getting there and getting around
Santarém railway station is about 2 km from the historic city centre. Scalabus and Ribatejana buses are also relevant for getting around locally: they are equipped with access ramps, reserved spaces for people with reduced mobility, and audible and visual stop announcements. Check operational details before travelling so you can plan your arrival and routes according to the conditions that matter to you.
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