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10 Specialty Museums in Central Portugal That You Shouldn't Miss
1. LOAD ZX Spectrum Museum
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 17 reviews
The LOAD ZX SPECTRUM is the World's first museum dedicated to the ZX Spectrum and everything related to it. The ZX Spectrum was the first personal computer of so many Portuguese, Spanish, English and many others around the world. The ZX Spectrum played a significant role in the technological revolution and has a close connection to Portugal were many were assembled and even some models developed.
Reviewed By 117carlosn
A real "must do"! A real "must visit"!! A peace of history for multiple generations! Spend some time visiting something that will give a true meaning for some "natural" acts of today's life... Very well done!!!
2. Museu Nacional dos Coches
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,588 reviews
Located in an 18th-century riding academy attached to the royal palace, the museum features coaches and carriages dating back to the seventeenth century.
Reviewed By JLW1789
National Coach Museum is really a one of kind place. I have always wanted to go was the coach museum in Lisbon. This place did not disappoint! My favorite coaches were the The Ocean Coach, The Processional Coach, The Mail Coach. The Ocean coach was made to represent the power of Portugal in the discovery of new lands and its empire. Fun fact the Mail coach made the run from Lisbon to Porto do you know how long that took? 34 HOURS! Now we have 2 ½ hours by train. The Processional Coach was used on religious feast days and they would take sacred relics that belonged to saint being celebrated through streets of Lisbon. A great place to go to see a part of history that is not looked at very often.
3. National Museum of Ancient Art
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,254 reviews
Considered to house the best collection of Portuguese and European art, this museum features works by Gonclaves, Bosch, Raphael and more.
Reviewed By yonas249
This small museum houses many important Portuguese furniture, and European art like Hieronimous Bosch, 9 beautiful paintings by Zurbaran, Raphael, Piero de la Franchesca and others. There is an interesting exhibition of portraits and forbidden art. It is a worthwhile visit for art lovers. Yona Y.
4. Museu Nacional do Azulejo
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 4,198 reviews
A must-see for people interested in the history and design of ceramic tiles, this specialty museum houses a splendid collection of decorative tiles dating from the 15th century to the present.
Reviewed By sharonhW264WM - Las Vegas, United States
The amazing museum is located in the former Convent of Madre de Deus (founded in 1509) so the building (the cloister, vestry, upper choir, and St. Anthony’s Chapel) and its original tile work are spectacular examples of 1500’s art and architecture in themselves. In Portugal glazed tiles have been used since the 13th century. Initially tiles displayed plain colors and geometric shapes, but by the 16th century more decorative patterns, based on Hispanic, Moorish, and Islamic knot work and geometric patterns, emerged. These were gradually replaced by European motifs with plant and animal patterns, as well as gothic and romantic motifs. The museum’s collection traces tile development from the second half of the 15th century to present day. It was wonderful to wander from room to room and watch the stylistic changes in the tiles as time progressed. We saw everything from giant religious wall presentations and altarpieces, to fully-tiled rooms and stairwells, to hunting scenes and flowers, to fairytales and legends retold in tiles, to colorful tiled maps of Lisbon. St. Anthony’s Chapel was especially impressive—beautiful barrel-vaulted ceiling with a huge dome, blue and white tiled scenes along the back and side walls, and baroque gilding throughout. This museum is truly one of a kind—a Lisbon must see.
5. Museu da Fundacao do Coa
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 436 reviews
The final seventeen kilometres of the Coa valley contain hundreds of Palaeolithic engravings along the river’s banks, extending all the way to the River Douro. This zone has been made into Portugal’s first Archaeological Park. This Park was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on 2 December 1998. This entire open-air art collection, which buries the old myth of rock art only existing in caves, is exhibited in the Museum through original pieces of movable art, replicas of “rock panels” and interactive zones that use modern digital technology. The art can also be viewed in loco on organised visits to the valley with specialised guides (advance booking required). Visit also (no advance booking required) the Museum which provides an overview of the Ice Age Coa Valley rock-art, its archaeological context as well as magnificent views over the Coa and Douro rivers. Museum opening times: High season: 09:00 AM - 06:00 PM; Closes at lunchtime (01:00 PM - 02-00 PM) in low season from the 20th of October until the last day of February. Closed on Mondays, 1st of January, 1st of May and 25th of December.
Reviewed By LORIT123 - Vienna, Austria
architecture 1a, location/view 1a, content 1a, kitchen/restaurant 1a, guides 1a, its an outstanding place, beautiful, educational, full of sensuality and experience, adventure even... if you can, book the night tour to the rock art places. fairy tale!!!
6. Museu Colecao Berardo
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,458 reviews
Located in Belém, the Museu Coleção Berardo is The Most Visited Museum in Portugal and is the Main Modern and Contemporary Art Museum in Lisbon, with 6 Major Exhibitions on view. Open every day, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. (last entrance: 6:30 p.m.) Admission Ticket (adult): 5€, discounts available. Free on Saturdays, all day. Houses the Berardo Collection of Modern and Contemporary Art, together with temporary exhibits. The permanent collection of the museum presents the major art movements of the 20th century - Cubism, Dadaism, Constructivism, De Stijl, Surrealism, Post-war Figuration, CoBrA, Abstract Expressionism, Kinetic and Op Art, Nouveau Réalisme, British Pop Art, American Pop Art, among others, presenting works from artists like Mondrian, Picasso, Duchamp, Andy Warhol, Jackson Polock, Louise Bourgeois, Alexander Calder, Salvador Dalí, Francis Bacon, Balthus, Lucio Fontana, Yves Klein, Pistoletto, Bill Viola, Andreas Gursky, Frank Stella, among others. A must-see in Lisbon!
Reviewed By jr87traveller - Prague, Czech Republic
Was kind of a spontaneous stop at this museum and we were really happy we entered this place... very interesting expositions and some world famous items from artists such as Andy Warhol or Picasso..
7. Museu Condes de Castro
8. Museu Nacional de Machado de Castro
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 654 reviews
Reviewed By DutchBrother - Boston, United States
This is such an amazing museum one wonders why it is not better known. It is a very odd mixture of art, architecture and history. The bottom two floors are an excavated, Roman forum from 2000 years ago. The museum is built on top on the Roman forum because it is housed in a palace that was built on the Roman ruins. I have no idea how they were able to excavate the Roman ruins with a building on top of it, but it is amazing. The forum has two levels of similar sized rooms, at least 20 or 30 rooms plus long halls. It is like a maze. The main museum is three floors above the Roman ruins. It has an excellent collection of sculptures over many centuries, with excellent collections from the 15th and 16th centuries. There is a sublime collection of medieval and more recent metal work. There are some very fine religious paintings and some decorative arts including tapestries. Much of the art was not familiar to me. We were entranced. There is also a nice cafe with seating on the outdoor terrace. It mainly has drinks and snacks. It has great views over the city. We spent two hours here and felt like we could have spent more. It's that good.
9. Museu Jose Malhoa
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 150 reviews
10. Museu do Ar
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 174 reviews
Air Museum. Our purpose is to tell the story of the Portuguese aviation through its people and collections.
Reviewed By hans-jaguar - Santa Comba Dao, Portugal
The Air Museum is a museum of aeronautical material of the Portuguese Air Force, based at Air Base No. 1 (Sintra), the museum has two visitable poles one at the Aerodromo de Manobra nº 1 (Ovar), and a second at the Military Complex of Alverca (Alverca do Ribatejo). It has been created on February 21, 1968 and opened on Air Force Day (July 1), 1971, the Air Museum is under the responsibility of the Chief of Staff of the Air Force and aims at the conservation, safety and exhibition of objects of historical, artistic and documentary value, airplanes and miniatures of the same that it is possible to gather and preserve, as they constitute a valuable contribution to the history of national aviation. You can see all kind of airplanes, helicopters etc. it is very nice to visit, we anyhow enjoyed our visit, and are already thinking to visit the second one very soon.
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