District of Vila Real
Alto Douro Trás-os-Montes

Districts of Portugal

Guide to Portugal

Good Wines and Coooking

Douro, Alto Douro Trás-os-Montes

The County (State) of Vila Real, in central Portugal whose head office is located 397 km to the south of the city of Lisbon is one of the 18 counties (distritos) of Portugal.

Douro, Alto Douro Trás-os-Montes

North Region (Douro sub-region) - Capital of the municipality and the District of Vila Real, the city is also capital of the former province of Trás-Os-Montes and Alto Douro, located in the northeast of Portugal.

Vila Real - the Heart of the Douro and Port Wine - is the largest city in the north of Douro Vineyard (or Vineyard).
See Map of Douro Wine Region.

Location

Located on the banks of the Rio Corgo, a tributary of the right bank of the Rio Douro, the city is located at an altitude of 450 m. In Vila Real, the Cabril river flows into the Rio Corgo. These lands are in the designated area of ​​Baixo Corgo.

The Heart of the Douro

In the heart of the Douro, the municipality (municipality) is limited to the north by the municipalities of Ribeira de Pena and Vila Pouca de Aguiar, to the east by the municipality of Sabrosa, to the south by Peso da Régua, southwest by Santa Marta de Penaguião, to the west by Amarante and northwest by the municipality of Mondim de Basto.

Rich History

In 1096, the place received the designation of Constantim de Panóias by Count D. Henrique. But it was only in the 13th century that the locality received, in 1289, "by charter of D. Dinis (the first given by this monarch to Vila Real)" the authorization to found the "pobra de Vila Real de Panóias, which would become the city of today" (CM de Vila Real).

Many nobles settled in Vila Real in the 17th and 18th centuries, which is why it was called the "Corte de Trás-os-Montes", which can be seen by the numerous "stones-of-arms that attest to the titles of nobility"[CM Vila Real] in some dwellings.

Terra de Diogo Cão
"Great navigator who discovered the mouth of Zaire, in the 15th century. It is tradition that he was born in Vila Real, where there is still a beautiful medieval-style house that is said to belong to his family" (CM de Vila Real).

Parishes of Vila Real

The municipality (municipality) of Vila Real is divided into 20 parishes. View Parishes of Vila Real.

Counties of Vila Real District

The Vila Real district, in turn, is made up of 14 municipalities. See the Counties of District of Vila Real.