Discover Why Is Evora Definitely Worth Visiting: Our Travel Guide

Evora is often mentioned in Portuguese travel guides as one of the best options for a day trip from Lisbon. In this post, you will understand why so many websites and travelers recommend visiting Evora, along with a list of what to see in the city. Find below a list of the best attractions, followed by the best tips to organise your trip. By the end of this guide, we are sure we will be able to convince you that Evora is definitely worth visiting, whether for a day trip or an overnight stay.

Why is Evora worth visiting?

Let’s get started by addressing the elephant in the room – here are the main reasons why we think Evora is definitely worth visiting and should be on your itinerary when traveling to Portugal:

• The historic center of Evora is considered a World Heritage by UNESCO, which only highlights the importance of this city to history and how well everything is preserved.
• Evora is basically an open-sky museum, with several historical buildings dating back to Roman times, all easily accessible for the public.
• The city center is quite small, which means you can visit most places within one day.
• Evora has incredible restaurants and very reasonable prices.
• Evora is surrounded by some of the most amazing wine cellars and producers in Portugal. If you won’t be able to visit the wineries, you can for sure try some of the local Alentejo wine in the restaurants of Evora.
• What can we say? The city is simply lovely and definitely deserves a visit! You just need to go and see it for yourself.

What to see and do in Evora

To help you plan your trip, here is our collection of the best things to see and do in Evora. We have organized this Evora travel guide in a way that makes sense for visitors exploring the city on foot for one day, but feel free to change the order of the attractions in whichever way suits you best.

Visit the Bone Chapel – or Capela dos Ossos

We recommend starting your day by visiting the most iconic spot of Evora – the Bone Chapel (called Capela dos Ossos in Portuguese). The main reason for starting the tour here is that this is the busiest location in the city, so by arriving early you will avoid the crowds and long lines – especially if traveling during the summer.

The Bone Chapel has this name for a reason – it is literally built with bones. This chapel is incredibly unique, morbid, and one of the most impressive places we have ever visited. It was built in the 17th century with the goal to make visitors reflect on the mortality and fragility of human life. The message is beautiful but conveyed in a peculiar way. The walls of the chapel are ornated with over 5000 human skulls and numerous other bones, carefully put together. According to the stories, all of the bones and skeletons come from the convent church and other cemeteries in Evora.

In fact, the entire theme of the chapel is related to death, not only the bones per se. Right at the entrance, you will see a phrase that translates as “We the bones that are here, for yours we wait.” Slightly creepy, but worth the visit.

• Ticket: 6 € per person, with discounts available for students, seniors, or families. The ticket includes a visit to the Bone Chapel, the collection of cribs, and the little museum. Tickets can be purchased right on the spot.
• Opening hours: During the summer, the Bone Chapel is open from 9-18:30, and during the winter, from 9-17h.

Go inside to admire the St Francis Church (Igreja de São Francisco)

The Bone Chapel is actually part of the St Francisco Church, whose entrance is located right on the side of the chapel’s entrance. We recommend taking a couple of minutes to go inside and admire the beautiful altar and ornaments. The entrance is entirely free and the visit will take only a couple of minutes.

We also recommend going for a little walk around the Public Gardens of Evora, located right outside the square. It is a beautiful and quiet location. If you are up for a morning coffee or snack, take a break at the municipal market, located right in front of St. Francis Church.

Visit the Cathedral of Evora

The next stop on the itinerary is the Cathedral of Evora, one of the most impressive buildings in the city, built in the 13th century. The cathedral is located only a short 8min walk away from the previous attraction. However, we also recommend arriving early if you intend on going in or climbing up to the tower because this is also a busy location that often gathers a line of tourists waiting to go in.

The Cathedral of Evora is the largest medieval cathedral in Portugal and is one of the biggest reasons why Evora is definitely worth visiting – especially for travelers passionate about history and architecture. The building is special and impressive. Make sure to climb to the top to see the panoramic view.

• Tickets: the complete visit costs 4,50€ and includes the visit to the cathedral, the panoramic view, the museum, and the cloister. There are also cheaper alternatives with different combinations of these options.
• Opening hours: from 9-17h, closed only on holidays.

Evora Roman Temple

The next stop is located just around the corner from the cathedral, only 220 meters away. Evora’s Roman Temple is also known as Templo de Diana and is located in the center of the city. It was built during the Roman Empire, approximately 2000 years ago. Even though it clearly shows signs of destruction and damage due to conflicts and usage during the years, it still has a lot of the original structure in great shape. You will see that most of the base and fourteen original columns are still standing.

During the years, Evora’s Roman Temple was used for multiple purposes, including a marketplace. Nowadays, the visit is entirely free as it is located outdoors, where everyone can see. Don’t forget to also walk to the edge of the square in front of the temple to appreciate one of the best views of Evora. On clear days, you can see many kilometers ahead, spotting a few wineries and luxury accommodations located around the city.

Make your way to the main square, Praça do Giraldo

By this time, you will probably be getting hungry and looking for a place to cool down from the intense summer heat from the Alentejo region. We recommend visiting the main square called Praça do Giraldo and walking around some of the small alleys that surround this region. Being the most central location, you will find quite a few options of restaurants and snack places around the main streets. If you will be sleeping in Evora, this is definitely the most lively part of town for an afternoon drink also.

In Evora, they have a saying that “all roads lead to Praça do Giraldo”, and if you take a look around you will see that is sort of true. The Praça do Giraldo was built around 500 years ago in honor of the Portuguese warrior called Geraldo Geraldes, known as The Fearless. He was famous for overthrowing the Moors in 1167. Geraldo Geraldes is also the figure you see in Evora’s coat of arms, mounted on his horse with a sword up. In the middle of the square, you will find a beautiful marble fountain with eight jets of water, each representing one of the main streets that lead to Praça do Giraldo.

Pro tip: Even though the fountain has drinkable water, most people advise not to drink from it because the pigeons have usually taken over the spot for their refreshment during the summer heat.

Check out the remains of the Agua de Prata Aqueduct

Our last recommendation for the day is to visit the remains of the Agua de Prata Aqueduct, located 10 minutes by foot from the main square. The aqueduct is an impressive architectural and engineering monument, built around 500 years ago to connect the center of Evora to the nearest source of water, located over 16 km away.

Visiting such well-maintained historical monuments is what makes Evora really worth visiting. If you will take this opportunity to visit other important cities in Portugal, you will see other monuments designed by the same Portuguese artist responsible for this aqueduct: Francisco de Arruda. He was also the creator of Belem Tower in Lisbon, for instance.

How long do you need to visit Evora?

Evora’s city center is very small and can be easily explored throughout one single day. This is the main reason why Evora is often named as the best day trip from Lisbon.

Most people choose between spending the day in Evora or staying overnight. Both options are good enough to see the best attractions in Evora, we recommend choosing the one that suits your travel style the most. If you will have many days to spend in Lisbon, going on a day trip may be a great solution for exploring nearby cities like Evora using the train. However, if you will be renting a car to travel through Portugal, we recommend staying overnight and considering visiting one of the wineries in the surroundings of Evora.

If you would like to book a day trip from Lisbon to Evora, check this option on Get Your Guide:

How to get to Evora

Evora is located in the region called Alentejo and is very easily accessible from Lisbon, either by car or public transport. Here are the main options for how you can get to Evora:

By car

Driving from Lisbon to Evora will take you around 1h40min through the highway. The road is basically a straight line, very easy to follow. However, remember this is a toll road – if you want to avoid paying the tolls, you can drive through the local roads but it will take you a bit longer to get to Evora.

Do you need to rent a car for your trip?

We always use DiscoverCars to rent our car. So far it has proved to be not only the cheapest option but also the most reliable one. We used DiscoverCars to rent our car for our trips through Slovenia, Montenegro, Serbia, Italy, and so many other countries, and we never had any issues. We even convinced all of our friends and family to use it. So that’s why we are also recommending it to you!

Get a quote here

By train

Evora only has one train station, located just a bit outside of the city walls. There is a direct train line to Lisbon leaving a few times a day. The train ride from Lisbon to Evora will take a little under 2h. The one-way ticket costs € 16,55 but you can get cheaper prices if you book in advance. Check the official website of the Portuguese Trains to see the timetable and purchase your ticket.

How to move around in Evora?

The best way to move around in Evora is on foot. You will not require a car to move between the attractions in Evora as every site is located very close to each other. In fact, driving in Evora can quickly become a bit of a nightmare. The streets in the city center are extremely narrow; I do not recommend driving through the alleys if you don’t know where you are going.

Most of the accommodations located inside the city walls do not offer parking included, and the reason for that is obvious: finding parking is a huge challenge. Most of the larger parking places are located outside of the city walls.

To move around Evora, you can also use taxis or Uber. The best place to get a taxi is in the main square – Praça do Giraldo – or by calling the taxi or Uber directly.

Where to stay in Evora

If you will be visiting Evora using public transport, we recommend finding accommodation inside the city walls so you have more comfort to explore the city. However, if you will be coming by car for an overnight stay in Evora, we strongly recommend getting a place with parking included or at least a parking lot nearby. See below our top picks for accommodation in Evora.

High-end accommodation options in Evora:

• Evora Olive Hotel – Very well evaluated hotel located within the city walls, offering comfort and great facilities. It is a quite new hotel in town.
• M’AR De AR Aqueduto – This five-star hotel is one of the best accommodation options in Evora, located close to the historic aqueduct and only a 5-minute walk away from the old city center.

Budget-friendly accommodation options in Evora:

• Stay Hotel Évora Centro – The best thing about this hotel is its location, right in the corner of the main square. The hotel is very easily accessible and offers standard simple rooms.
• Hotel ibis Evora – Located right outside the city walls, this is a good accommodation alternative in Evora for travelers coming with a car, but who still want to be located close to the center.

By this point, we hope to have convinced you why Evora is definitely worth visiting. If you have any more questions when planning your trip to Evora, feel free to reach out to us!

Enjoy your trip,

Fê & Edo