Guimarães Castle and Paço dos Duques

Guimarães calls itself the birthplace of Portugal, and this hilltop, known as the Colina Sagrada (sacred hill) or Monte Latito, is the reason. Three national monuments stand together in about 39,000 square metres of lawns and big old trees: Guimarães Castle, the small Romanesque church of São Miguel, and the Paço dos Duques de Bragança, the Palace of the Dukes of Braganza. A statue of Afonso Henriques, the first king of Portugal, by the sculptor Soares dos Reis, greets you at the main entrance by the palace.

It suits children because it has both halves of a good day: an outdoor castle to climb and an indoor palace for when legs or weather give out. Under-12s go free, which keeps it cheap.

Guimarães Castle is the kind of castle children draw, with a ring of stone walls, eight square towers (four of them guarding the two gates) and a tall keep in the middle. Countess Mumadona Dias founded it in the second half of the tenth century. In a parchment dated 968 she wrote that she built it to protect the monastery of Guimarães from attack by “gentios”, probably Viking raiders. That first castle was probably made of wood, and almost nothing of it survives.

It was rebuilt in stone over the next three centuries. Tradition says Afonso Henriques was born here in 1111, and after his victory at the nearby Battle of São Mamede in 1128 the county of Portucale went its own way. The eight towers and the keep were added in the second half of the 13th century, which gave the castle the shape you see today. Later it was besieged twice, in 1322 and in the crisis of 1383 to 1385, and once the border and the wars had moved far away it was used as a prison. It became a national monument in 1881 and was heavily restored between 1936 and 1940.

The adarve, the walkway along the top of the walls, reopened on 30 August 2024 after restoration work. Walking it is the highlight for most children. The keep was still closed when we checked, so don’t promise a climb to the top.

The castle rules are worth reading with older children before you go up. The wall-walk has a limit on how many people can be up at once, so staff may ask you to wait. There is a risk of falling, children must stay with an adult, and you must keep to the walkway. Wear comfortable, enclosed shoes: the rules warn against flip-flops and sandals. No filming, tripods or selfie sticks are allowed.

A short walk downhill is the Paço dos Duques. Afonso, eighth Count of Barcelos and later the first Duke of Braganza, built it between 1420 and 1433. He was an illegitimate son of King João I, travelled to England, Scotland, France and Italy, and fought at Ceuta, and the palace, with its four corner towers, looks a lot like the Palace of the Kings of Majorca in Perpignan, in France.

Children usually notice the chimneys first: tall and thin, rising from steep roofs. Inside are huge rooms with ceilings shaped like upturned boats, a chapel, and a museum of tapestries, furniture, weapons, ceramics and paintings, laid out to feel like a lord’s house.

The palace’s story is useful for older children who ask how old it all really is. By 1666 it was in ruins, and monks were allowed to take stone from it. It became a granary, then an army barracks in the 19th century, when the courtyard galleries were knocked down to make a parade ground. What you see now is largely a 20th-century rebuilding, carried out between 1937 and 1959. It reopened in 1959 and also became the President of Portugal’s official residence in the north.

The palace’s textiles are the most important part of its collection. The Pastrana tapestries are faithful copies of huge woven scenes showing the Portuguese conquest of Arzila and Tangier in North Africa in 1471. Other series show the Roman general Scipio meeting Hannibal and entering Carthage, and there are 17th-century hunting scenes with a boar hunt and a fox hunt, plus Persian carpets from the 16th century. Give each child one woven scene to “read” and tell back to you.

Between the castle and the palace is the Igreja de São Miguel do Castelo, a plain Romanesque church first mentioned in 1216. People long believed Afonso Henriques was baptised in its font. In 1664 a prior moved the font to another church in town, and in 1927 it was brought back for the same reason it had been taken away. Ten of the twelve consecration crosses are still visible inside, and old grave slabs cover the floor.

Children also like the local legend of Santa Margarida. Pregnant women used to run three times around the church, then throw three pebbles through a slit window: if the pebbles landed inside, the baby would be a boy.

When we checked in September 2026, the castle and the palace each cost €5, both together €8, and all three with the Museu de Alberto Sampaio in town €13. These were described as reduced prices while the palace is partly closed for works.

Children under 12 go free with an adult. Families with at least one adult and one child (parents or grandparents with their children or grandchildren) get 50% off adult tickets, as do visitors aged 13 to 24 and over-65s, with proof. Portugal residents can also use the Voucher52 scheme for free entry on 52 days a year. Buy tickets at the palace, which sells them for both monuments, or online.

Both monuments and the church open every day from 10:00 to 18:00, with last entry at 17:30. They close on 1 January, Easter Sunday, 1 May, 24 June (Guimarães’s municipal holiday) and 25 December.

The palace’s education service sells trail booklets in the shop for families: “Em Família… descobre o Paço dos Duques” and “…descobre o Castelo de Guimarães”, each a 45-minute route with observation and art games. Book in advance by email (se@pacoduques.pt) or phone; the cost is on request.

Homeschool groups big enough to book could look at the school programmes. “Encontro com D. Afonso Henriques” is a 45-minute session for primary-age groups of 10 to 50, where a staff member in costume plays the first king and talks about 12th-century clothes, fighting and food. A medieval day with the re-enactment group Milícia de Santa Maria, with archery, sword fights, music and a castle visit, costs €7 per child but needs at least 50 participants.

The castle is open to the sky, with uneven stone, steps and drops, so hold small hands on the walls. The palace is indoors, which makes it a useful half of the day if the weather turns. When we checked, some palace rooms were closed for rehabilitation work and the lift might be out of service, so ring ahead if you need step-free access.

The palace has a baby-changing room, accessible toilets, a rest room and ramps between rooms, and lends wheelchairs. No food, drink, flash, filming or touching is allowed in the exhibition, and pets aren’t allowed (assistance animals are). Allow two to three hours for both monuments, longer with a walk around the old town.

The hill sits at the top of Guimarães’s old centre, a UNESCO World Heritage Site of narrow streets and small squares, and a good place to walk down for lunch. For views, the Teleférico da Penha cable car climbs from the edge of the old town to Penha mountain, with caves and paths at the top. For a playground and a skate park, try Parque da Cidade de Guimarães. Braga’s Bom Jesus do Monte, with its water-powered funicular, is a short drive away in the same corner of the Minho.

Is Guimarães Castle free for children?

Yes. Children under 12 go free with an adult, and families with at least one adult and one child get half-price adult tickets.

Can you go up the castle keep?

Not when we checked. The keep was closed, but the wall-walk around the top of the walls reopened in August 2024.

Where do you buy Guimarães Castle tickets?

At the Paço dos Duques ticket office, which sells tickets for both monuments, or online. The castle has no ticket office of its own.

How long do you need?

Two to three hours covers the castle, the church and the palace at a child’s pace. Add time for lunch in the old town.

Is Guimarães Castle suitable for toddlers?

The lawns around the monuments are fine for toddlers, but the castle walls have drops and uneven steps, and the palace lift may be out of service during the works. Use a carrier rather than a buggy.