Centuries of history and millions of people who have gone through some of them. Worthy of a visit, discover my TOP pick of the 7 most beautiful Train Stations in Portugal.
The company Comboios de Portugal was created on May 11, 1860 by the Spanish businessman José de Salamanca y Mayol, under the name Companhia Real dos Caminhos de Ferro Portugueses, to build the railway lines that linked the city of Lisbon to Porto and to the border with Spain in Badajoz. And since then, train stations have been built that are authentic architectural gems.
“They are considered the most beautiful in Portugal and more than train stations, they are authentic monuments that are well worth visiting!!!”
My TOP pick of the 7 Most Beautiful Train Stations in Portugal:
1. São Bento Station
Together with Rossio Station, in Lisbon — and we will get there —, São Bento Station, in Porto, is among the 10 most beautiful train stations in the world. Contributing to that title are the large tile panels that fill the main atrium.
When entering this station, the most common thing is to see groups of tourists with their heads in the air enjoying the approximately 20 thousand tiles by Jorge Colaço.
Many of them depict scenes from the history of Portugal, such as the wedding of D. João I or the conquest of Ceuta. An essential place in any itinerary through Baixa da Invicta.
2. Pinhão Station
The Pinhão Railway Station is a mandatory stop on the Douro Line. Built in the century. From the 19th century, the stop is well known for the 24 tile panels that adorn the walls.
Designed by the painter and ceramist J. Oliveira, they portray the life of the Douro Wine Region, from the landscapes, to the harvest and to the treading of the grapes. You can get there by car or, in the summer, combine business with pleasure and travel aboard the Douro Historic Train.
3. Old Aveiro Station
The tiles that cover the facade of the old Aveiro Railway Station immediately attract the attention of those who arrive at the place. They date from 1916 and come from Fábrica da Fonte Nova, reproducing regional motifs in a style called Casa Portuguesa.
From the regional landscapes, to the estuary or to the fishermen, the richness reigns in those tile works spread across the central part of three floors and along the sides of the gare.
4. Vilar Formoso Station
Inaugurated in 1882, the Vilar Formoso Railway Station enters the list of the most beautiful in Portugal also for its tile exterior.
The decoration came from the art of João Alves de Sá, the same author of panels that can be found in other stations, such as the one in Rio Tinto and Estremoz.
Produced at Fábrica Viúva Lamego and placed at the beginning of the 20th century. In the 20th century, the tiles at the Vilar Formoso station go beyond local references, reproducing monuments that, until today, have always stood out on the national scene, such as the Batalha Monastery, the Belém Tower or the Guimarães Castle, among others.
5. Coimbra Station
The Coimbra Railway Station, also known as Coimbra-A or Estação Nova, was inaugurated in 1885, the result of a project by the architects Cotinelli Telmo and Luís Cunha.
Unlike most stations that make up this list, at the Coimbra station the tiles have given way to stone and straight and triangular lines.
The inspiration of iron prevails even on the façade of this station, namely on the large flaps that cover the entrance or on the pillars of the train access area.
6. Rossio Station
It is another of the most beautiful stations in the world, classified as a Property of Public Interest. The Rossio Railway Station has long been part of Lisbon's main tourist guides.
The project by the architect José Luís Monteiro led to the construction of a neo-Manueline style building that uses iron in an architectural language inserted in the late Portuguese romanticism.
The double arch of the entrance, in the shape of a horseshoe, welcomes visitors, from those who leave on a trip to those who go there just to appreciate the railway structure.
The details on the façade, with its spiers, balustrade and windows crowned by armillary spheres, make the structure even richer and highlight it as one of the city's attractions.
7. Gare do Oriente
As part of the set of infrastructures created for Expo’98, Gare do Oriente is today one of the most modern stations in the country.
In addition to the objective of serving all visitors who traveled there at the time of the world exhibition, the station quickly became one of the main points of public transport (train, bus and metro) in Lisbon.
The result of a project led by Santiago Calatrava and Andrés Caride, the railway station is located on a platform 19 meters above street level, in the form of a reinforced concrete bridge.
The eight train lines that it houses are covered by a modular metallic structure that resembles four rows of trees. A construction that came to mark in a contemporary and permanent way the eastern part of the city.
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