castle
Castelo de Almourol
A Templar castle on a rocky island in the Tagus river, reached by short ferry from a riverside car park.
16 km · about 30 min drive
EuropePortugalSantarém
Tomar
Santarém, Portugal · Europe
About Tomar
Tomar is worth a stop: 10 minutes from Madalena, 57km from Nazare.
Tomar is in Santarém, Portugal, with about 19,000 people. You drive on the right here. The nearest town is Madalena, about 5 km away.
Tomar (Portuguese pronunciation: [tuˈmaɾ] ), also known in English as Thomar, is a Portuguese city and a municipality in the historical Ribatejo Portuguese province, and in Santarém district. The town proper has a population of about 20,000. The municipality population in 2011 was 40,677, in an area of 351.20 km2Read more
(135.60 sq mi).
The town of Tomar was created inside the walls of the Convento de Cristo, constructed under the orders of Gualdim de Pais, the fourth Grand Master of the Knights Templar in Portugal in the late 12th century.
Tomar was the last Templar town to be commissioned for construction and one of Portugal's historical jewels. The town was especially important in the 15th century when it was a center of Portuguese overseas expansion under Henry the Navigator, the Grand Master of the Order of Christ, successor organization to the Knights Templar in Portugal.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is there to see near Tomar?
Within an hour or so of Tomar: Castelo de Almourol (16 km), Sanctuary of Fátima (23 km), Batalha Monastery (36 km), N2: Portugal's Route 66 (38 km).
Are there any good drives near Tomar?
The nearest famous roads are N2: Portugal's Route 66, N339 Serra da Estrela and Torre Summit Road (N339), Serra da Estrela.
Where is Tomar?
Tomar is in Santarém, Portugal, about 5 km from Madalena.
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Quick Information
- Population
- 19,168
- Continent
- Europe
- Country
- Portugal
- Region
- Santarém
- Timezone
- Europe/Lisbon
- Coordinates
- 39.6020, -8.4092
Tags
Worth the detour from Tomar
7 notable places within an hour's drive.
cathedral
Sanctuary of Fátima
One of Catholicism's great modern pilgrimage sites, built where three shepherd children reported Marian apparitions in 1917: a vast esplanade twice the size of St Peter's Square links the 1953 basilica and the 9,000-seat Holy Trinity church.
23 km · about 25 min drive
landmark
Batalha Monastery
A Gothic and Manueline masterpiece built to commemorate the 1385 Battle of Aljubarrota, with its famous Unfinished Chapels.
36 km · about 40 min drive
historic highway
N2: Portugal's Route 66
Portugal's longest road runs 738 kilometers from Chaves to Faro through the country's rural heartland and Alentejo plains.
38 km · about 45 min drive
cathedral
Alcobaça Monastery
Portugal's largest church, a UNESCO Cistercian abbey founded in 1153, holding the facing carved tombs of King Pedro I and his murdered lover Inês de Castro: placed foot-to-foot so they rise facing each other at judgement.
49 km · about 55 min drive
natural wonder
Nazare
A fishing town famous for producing the world's largest surfed waves, with 30-meter swells breaking at the Praia do Norte canyon.
57 km · about 65 min drive
beach
Praia do Norte, Nazaré
The beach where a submarine canyon generates record-breaking waves, overlooked by the Forte de São Miguel Arcanjo.
58 km · about 65 min drive
Driving roads near Tomar
10 named roads, passes and coastal drives within 150km.
- 38 kmN2: Portugal's Route 66Portugal's longest road runs 738 kilometers from Chaves to Faro through the country's rural heartland and Alentejo plains.
Driving in Portugal
- Drives on
- the right
- Petrol
- ~€1.78/litre
- Motorway tolls
- ~€9.00/100km
When to drive here
April to October
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