Conímbriga Roman ruins

Conímbriga was settled from the 9th century BC, before the Romans arrived. The Romans came around 139 BC; under Vespasian the town was given municipium status, and an estimated 10,600 people lived there. Suebian raids destroyed it between 465 and 468. It is regarded as one of the most important excavated Roman cities in Portugal; by 2005 only about 10 per cent had been uncovered. The town wall dates from the 3rd century, when invasions threatened. The Casa dos Repuxos (House of the Fountains) is a house with a peristyle whose water features partly flow again. The museum displays coins, surgical instruments and pottery, among other finds.

There is free parking right outside the entrance. Only a few buses run from Coimbra (about 16 km) to Condeixa-a-Nova, from where it is roughly 1 to 2 km on foot or by taxi. Allow two to three hours for the ruins and museum. One guidebook recommends the late afternoon, when it is quieter; shade is scarce and there is no food on site.