Évora

Arriving in Évora

Évora is the historic capital of Portugal's Alentejo region. It is a city inside old walls, with whitewashed streets, Roman traces, churches, squares and plenty of corners that look great in photos. The historic center is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the whole city feels a bit like an open-air museum. That is great for people, but many of the interesting sights are monuments, churches or interiors where dogs can't go.

Public garden and the Chapel of Bones

Our walk starts in the public garden, the Jardim Público de Évora. There we saw the fake ruins. They are not ancient Roman ruins but a 19th-century romantic garden feature, built to make the park feel more atmospheric. One of us was very impressed by them and only learned later that they are basically decor. From there we went to the Chapel of Bones, one of the city's most famous and strangest places. The inscription over the entrance roughly says: we bones here are waiting for yours.

Praça do Giraldo, the Roman arch and the cathedral

Next we walked to Praça do Giraldo, the main square. It has a marble fountain with eight spouts, traditionally linked to the streets that lead into the square. Then we passed the Arco Romano Dona Isabel, one of the traces left of the old Roman city. From there we headed up to Évora Cathedral. It is a huge granite cathedral built between the 12th and 13th centuries, in a style between Romanesque and Gothic.

Roman temple and the viewpoint

After the cathedral comes the Roman temple. People still often call it the Temple of Diana, although it was probably connected to Emperor Augustus and the Roman forum. We finished our city walk at the Miradouro do Jardim de Diana. From there you look out over Évora's rooftops and the Alentejo landscape beyond.

What Évora is like for Aba

Évora is beautiful and absolutely worth visiting. For us it felt like a compact day-trip city, not a place to wander for several days. With a dog it is not the most dog-friendly city stop. The historic center only has very small parks, so there is little room to explore, run or cool off. Most of the time you walk on-leash on city streets. Many of the sights are monuments, churches or interiors where your dog can't come in.

The better news for dogs is outside the walls. There is a nice hiking route nearby. For birders, keep the big lens nearby. One of us saw plenty of kites around the area, and the Alentejo landscape around the city can be really good for birds of prey. Our short version: a beautiful small city and a great day trip, but inside the city it is more interesting for humans than exciting for dogs.