Azulejo itinerary

In no other country have ceramic tiles become a national art as they have in Portugal. Azulejos cover house fronts, church walls, convent cloisters, railway and metro stations, garden benches and even house numbers. They tell of battles, saints' lives, hunting scenes, landscapes and everyday life, or form simple geometric patterns that reflect the light and protect walls from damp. For five centuries they have been the way the Portuguese decorated, and told the story of, their world.

This six-day itinerary follows the blue-and-white thread of the azulejos from south to north: Lisbon, with the National Tile Museum, the Fronteira Palace and the façades of the historic quarters; Sintra, with the oldest tiles in the country; Aveiro and Ovar, towns of decorated façades and Art Nouveau; and Porto, with São Bento station and its blue-clad churches. Along the way you paint a tile with your own hands and visit a porcelain factory.

A short history of the azulejo

The word comes from the Arabic al-zulaij, "small polished stone". The first tiles reached Portugal at the end of the 15th century from Seville, with geometric designs in the Moorish tradition. In the 16th century craftsmen learned the maiolica technique from the Italians, which made it possible to paint directly onto the glazed tile, and began producing them in Lisbon. In the 17th and 18th centuries, influenced by Chinese porcelain and Dutch ceramics, the blue and white style took hold, with great figurative panels covering whole walls. After the 1755 earthquake, cheap mass-produced tiles were needed to rebuild Lisbon, and in the 19th century emigrants returning from Brazil brought the fashion for tiled façades, which protected houses from the rain. In the 20th century great artists decorated the metro stations. See azulejos.

Day 1: the National Tile Museum

Lisbon's National Tile Museum occupies the 16th-century Madre de Deus convent and is the best place to understand this art. The route runs from Moorish tiles to contemporary works, by way of Baroque panels and 19th-century façades. Its most famous piece is the great panorama of Lisbon, more than twenty metres long, showing the city from the river before the 1755 earthquake. The convent church, all gold and azulejos, is one of the jewels of Portuguese Baroque. In the afternoon stroll through the Alfama and Graça, seeking out the finest façades and the panels at the viewpoints, such as Santa Luzia. See Lisbon's museums.

Where to stay: in Lisbon, for three nights.

Day 2: the Fronteira Palace and Lisbon's façades

In the morning visit the Fronteira Palace, a 17th-century noble villa at the foot of Monsanto park, still lived in by the marquises' family. Its gardens are an explosion of azulejos: the Gallery of Kings, with busts of Portuguese monarchs above a long pool, benches, fountains and walls covered with knights, monkeys playing instruments and allegories. It is one of the most beautiful and least known places in Lisbon.

In the afternoon seek out the most famous façades in the centre: the Viúva Lamego on Largo do Intendente, the Ferreira das Tabuletas house in Chiado, and the metro stations decorated by modern artists, such as Parque. Visit an artisan tile workshop where you can paint your own tile, which is fired and sent home to you. See Baixa and Chiado.

Day 3: Sintra

In Sintra (about forty minutes by train) visit the National Palace, which holds Portugal's most important collection of Moorish azulejos, brought from Seville by King Manuel I in the early 16th century: the Arab Room, the Swan Room and the Hall of Arms, whose dome is painted with the coats of arms of noble families and whose walls are covered with blue panels of hunting scenes. Then climb to the Pena Palace, with its colourful façades and tiled terraces. Return to Lisbon in the evening. See Sintra.

Day 4: Aveiro and Ílhavo

The train takes you to Aveiro in about two and a quarter hours. The town, called "the Venice of Portugal" for its canals plied by moliceiros, the colourful boats of the seaweed gatherers, is one of the capitals of Portuguese Art Nouveau. The old railway station is decorated with large azulejo panels of local scenes, and in the centre many houses have Art Nouveau façades, documented in a small museum. In the afternoon go to Ílhavo (a quarter of an hour) to visit the museum of the Vista Alegre porcelain factory, founded in 1824, with its chapel and workers' village. Try ovos moles, Aveiro's egg sweet. At sunset go to Costa Nova, with its colourful striped beach houses. See Aveiro and Costa Nova.

Where to stay: in Aveiro.

Day 5: Ovar and Porto

Ovar (about half an hour) calls itself the "living museum town of the azulejo": in the centre hundreds of 19th- and early 20th-century houses have façades covered in colourful tiles, marked by a trail. Also visit the church and try pão-de-ló, the town's sponge cake.

In the afternoon reach Porto (about half an hour). Start at São Bento station, whose hall is covered with about twenty thousand azulejos painted by Jorge Colaço in the early 20th century, with scenes of battles, royal weddings and the history of transport. Then walk up rua de Santa Catarina to the Capela das Almas, a small church entirely clad in blue-and-white azulejos telling the stories of St Francis and St Catherine. See Porto.

Where to stay: in Porto.

Day 6: Porto's blue churches

In the morning visit the church of Santo Ildefonso, with its blue façade on Praça da Batalha, the cathedral, with its Gothic cloister lined with Baroque panels, and the Carmo church, with its great side panel depicting the founding of the Carmelite order. Then walk down to the Ribeira through central streets where colourful façades are reflected in the Douro. Fly home from Porto Airport. See what to see in Porto.

How much it costs

To save money: São Bento station, the Capela das Almas, Ovar's façades and Porto's churches are free to visit; the Lisboa Card covers the Tile Museum and public transport.

Practical information

• Fronteira Palace: visits are by guided tour only, at fixed times; the gardens open longer than the palace.
• Photos: the best light for façades is in the morning and late afternoon; tiles reflect strongly in the midday sun.
• Buying azulejos: be wary of antique tiles sold at flea markets; many are stolen from historic façades, and the trade is a serious problem. Buy modern copies from artisan workshops.
• Opening hours: many Lisbon museums close on Mondays.
• Documents: EU citizens only need a valid identity card. See getting to Portugal.

Variations

• Coimbra: the Sé Nova and the monastery of Santa Cruz, with Baroque panels; see Coimbra.
• Évora: the university, with classrooms lined with azulejos; see Évora.
• The Minho: the churches of Viana do Castelo and Braga; see Braga.
• Caldas da Rainha: Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro's ceramics shaped like cabbages and animals; see Caldas da Rainha.

What to read before you go

A good illustrated book on Portugal's azulejos and an architectural guide to Lisbon; for atmosphere, Antonio Tabucchi's Portuguese stories. See also Portuguese crafts and Portuguese architecture.

Final tips

• Pace: azulejos are everywhere; walk slowly and look up, as the finest panels are often above doors or under balconies.
• Combinations: it pairs well with the literary itinerary or the fado itinerary, which follow the same route from Lisbon to Porto.
• A tip: go to Porto's Capela das Almas at sunset, when the low sun lights up the whole side wall in blue: it is the finest photo in the city.

See also our other itineraries in Portugal.

Porto on the map

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