Renovation project - Coimbra, Portugal

Renovation project - Coimbra, Portugal

We have a 3 nights planned in Coimbra, in Central Portugal. Coimbra was once the Portuguese capital and is now the fourth largest city.

We have a room booked in NS Hostal and Suites,(click for link) located near the republic square and the mermaid gardens. The hotel is stunning and we have a balcony overlooking the gardens. This is not a luxury hotel but it is traditional, we have a private bathroom, but this consists of a shower cubicle in the actual bedroom! The toilet is in a separate room. But this is a small price to pay to be able to sit out on our private balcony.

Breakfast was included in the price and the cost or 3 nights was 144 Euros. The staff are pleasant and friendly and all speak different languages.

There is free parking on the road but this is very limited, the main road has paid parking but this is time limited, however we never struggled to park.

There is so much to see and do in Coimbra and the food is amazing. Where the hotel was located seemed to be more of the student area with mass gatherings each evening with entertainment. The cafes and bars were all busy but extremely inexpensive 2 beers cost only 2 Euros, the selection of food in just this area was very impressive and again very inexpensive, tapas from 1 euro, pizza slices to take away at 2 Euros and a sit down meal from 5 Euros.

We explored the city by foot as it is not the largest city centre but there are some hills, but with squares full of cafes there is always somewhere to take a break.

The university is the oldest in the Portuguese speaking world and has students from all around the world.

We think we may have just found one of our favourite cities; it is friendly, beautiful, full of fantastic architecture and very inexpensive.