Bussaco Forest ways

We'll start our journey by entering through the São João Gate to follow the trails of this forest characterized by its rare and sometimes primitive vegetation, thanks to its very particular microclimate that favours the occurrence of high biodiversity.

We'll pass through the arboretum, the fruit of the work of the Carmelite monks, where in addition to the native species of oak, holm oak and laurel, we'll find many imported species, such as cedars, sequoias and its most famous tree, the Buçaco cedar.

As soon as we reach the Queen Gate, or Coimbra Gate, we head towards the Convent of Santa Cruz, built between 1628 and 1630 and annexed to the Buçaco Palace, now a National Monument.

After a stroll around the garden of this architectural masterpiece, we'll begin our ascent along the via-sacra path that will take us to the highest point in the forest, the Cruz Alta viewpoint, from where we can see the whole region.

After contemplating the view, we'll descend through the part of the forest known as the Relic Forest, a climax vegetation formation of native plants where the adernal stands out.

Before finishing, we will also visit the Fern Valley and the Great Lake.