castle
Castelo de Guimarães
A 10th-century castle associated with the founding of Portugal, beside the Paço dos Duques in UNESCO-listed Guimarães.
20 km · about 25 min drive
EuropePortugalBraga
Vila Nova de Famalicão
Braga, Portugal · Europe
About Vila Nova de Famalicão
Vila Nova de Famalicão works well as a base: 10 minutes from Nine, 29km from Circuito da Boavista.
Vila Nova de Famalicão is in Braga, Portugal, with about 9,500 people. You drive on the right here. The nearest town is Nine, about 6 km away.
Vila Nova de Famalicão (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈvilɐ ˈnɔvɐ ðɨ fɐmɐliˈkɐ̃w] ), also known as Famalicão, is a Portuguese town in the Braga District and the sub-region of Vale do Ave. The population of Vila Nova was created in 1205 with the charter given by the King Sancho I. The municipality was created in 1835 as aRead more
detachment from Barcelos and was elevated to the category of “Vila” with the charter given by the Queen D. Maria II. In 1985, approved by National Assembly, Vila Nova de Famalicão was elevated to the category of "city". The inhabitants of Famalicão are called Famalicenses.
The city is the south entrance of the Minho province and the last reference of the Minho province for whoever comes from the North of Portugal and the Spanish region of Galicia. Since ancestral times, its privileged location has been a motivation for the passage and fixation of other people who left marks of their ways and culture in the territory, still easily found nowadays. The municipality is bordered by Braga to the north, by Guimarães to the east, by Santo Tirso and Trofa to the south, by Vila do Conde and Póvoa de Varzim to the west and by Barcelos to the northwest. Due to its privileged location, Famalicão is currently served by a network of modern roads, with one of the most important motorway junctions of the country – A3 (Porto – Vigo) and A7 (Guimarães – Póvoa de Varzim), as well as a train service with direct connections to Braga, Guimarães, Porto, Vigo, Coimbra, Lisbon and Algarve.
Because of this strategic positioning, Famalicão is today mentioned as one of the main cultural, commercial and industrial centres of the country. The strength of its diverse industry and socio-economic dynamics are prominent features at national and international level. Vila Nova de Famalicão hosts the headquarters of some of the largest and best companies in the country in various industry sectors, with its maximum strength in the textile and clothing, automotive, agrofood and metal-mechanics sectors, giving it the 3rd place in the most exporting municipalities of the country and one of the major industrial economies in the North.
Land of the writer Camilo Castelo Branco, whose house-museum is part of a network of 13 museums, which includes the Portuguese Centre of Surrealism, the National Railway Museum – Lousado Museum Centre, and the Textile Industry Museum – Ave Basin.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is there to see near Vila Nova de Famalicão?
Within an hour or so of Vila Nova de Famalicão: Castelo de Guimarães (20 km), Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte (20 km), Circuito da Boavista (29 km), Livraria Lello (30 km).
Are there any good drives near Vila Nova de Famalicão?
The nearest famous roads are Circuito da Boavista, Estrada Nacional 222 (Peso da Régua–Pinhão) and EN222 Régua–Pinhão Road.
Where is Vila Nova de Famalicão?
Vila Nova de Famalicão is in Braga, Portugal, about 6 km from Nine.
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Quick Information
- Population
- 9,496
- Continent
- Europe
- Country
- Portugal
- Region
- Braga
- Timezone
- Europe/Lisbon
- Coordinates
- 41.4080, -8.5198
Tags
Worth the detour from Vila Nova de Famalicão
8 notable places within an hour's drive.
cathedral
Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte
Braga's UNESCO pilgrimage church crowning a 116-metre baroque zigzag stairway devoted to the five senses: climb it or ride the 1882 water-balance funicular, the oldest of its kind still running in the world.
20 km · about 25 min drive
famous road
Circuito da Boavista
A genuine city street circuit in Porto that ran Formula One in 1958 and 1960 and was revived for historic racing. Off-race weekends you simply drive or walk the seafront and boulevard sections as ordinary city streets.
29 km · about 35 min drive
landmark
Livraria Lello
A breathtakingly ornate neo-Gothic bookshop in Porto with a famous crimson staircase, often called the world's most beautiful bookstore.
30 km · about 35 min drive
landmark
Clerigos Tower, Porto
Porto's iconic Baroque bell tower offering panoramic views over the city's terracotta rooftops and the Douro River.
30 km · about 35 min drive
cafe
Café Majestic
Porto's Belle Époque showpiece on Rua de Santa Catarina, open since 1921: carved wood, leather benches, chandeliers and mirrored walls attended by white-jacketed waiters. Regularly listed among the most beautiful cafés in the world.
30 km · about 35 min drive
landmark
Dom Luis I Bridge
A striking double-deck iron bridge designed by a student of Gustave Eiffel, spanning the Douro gorge between Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia.
31 km · about 35 min drive
landmark
Porto Ribeira District
UNESCO-listed medieval riverside quarter in Porto with colourful facades, port wine cellars, and the iconic Dom Luís I Bridge.
31 km · about 35 min drive
Driving roads near Vila Nova de Famalicão
- 29 kmCircuito da BoavistaA genuine city street circuit in Porto that ran Formula One in 1958 and 1960 and was revived for historic racing. Off-race weekends you simply drive or walk the seafront and boulevard sections as ordinary city streets.
- 31 kmPonte Dom Luís I, PortoA double-deck wrought-iron arch bridge over the Douro completed in 1886, linking Porto with Vila Nova de Gaia.
- 52 kmMarão TunnelAt 5.7 km the longest road tunnel in the Iberian Peninsula, carrying the A4 under the Serra do Marão between Amarante and Vila Real: gateway to the Douro wine country.
- 57 kmArouca 516 & Paiva WalkwaysOne of the world's longest pedestrian suspension bridges, 516 metres of open mesh deck swaying 175 metres above the Paiva gorge: linked to 8 km of riverside boardwalks through the Arouca Geopark. Book a timed slot; not for vertigo sufferers.
- 67 kmDouro ValleyThe oldest demarcated wine region in the world, with terraced vineyards lining the dramatic slopes of the Douro River gorge.
- 70 kmEstrada Nacional 222 (Peso da Régua–Pinhão)A 27km stretch of the EN222 following the Douro river past terraced vineyards, frequently cited as one of Europe's best driving roads.
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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