Mealhada is a city and municipality of about 20,000 people in Beira Litoral, Portugal. It's in the subregion of Bairrada, an agro-viticulture zone of central Portugal.

Understand

Palace Hotel do Bussaco

Mealhada (mee-uh-LYAH-duh, /mi.ɐ.ˈʎa.dɐ/) municipality has 19,358 residents (2021 preliminary). The municipality includes the towns of Luso and Pampilhosa.

Get in

By car

A1 motorway exit: Mealhada.

By train

Trains between Aveiro & Coimbra.

The principal stations in the area are: Linha do Norte: Pampilhosa, Mealhada, Mogofores, O.Bairro, Oia, Paraimo/Sangalhos, Curia, Aguim.

Linha da Beira Alta: Pampilhosa, Luso/Bussaco, Quinta do Valongo/Vacarica, Trezoi.

Ramal da Figueira/Cantanhede: Pampilhosa, Mala.

Get around

walk

See

Grande Hotel Luso

• 1 Miradouro da Cruz Alta, Luso. Viewpoint at the highest point of Serra do Buçaco at 547 m (1,795 ft). There's a tall cross in dense wooded forest. (updated Jun 2021)
• 2 Parque da Cidade de Mealhada (Mealhada's City Park). 14 hectares (35 acres) for leisure-time enjoyment, including sports and recreation. There's an Environmental Interpretation Center to inform about ecological issues. (updated Jun 2021)

Do

Central Mealhada/jardim/cafes.

Carnaval da Bairrada/Mealhada

Eat

• 1 Rei dos Leitões, Av. Restauração 17 (N1 road), ☏ +351 231 202 093. €40. 
• 2 Restaurante Pedro dos Leitões, Rua Álvaro Pedro 1 (N1 road), ☏ +351 231 209 950. €40. 

Drink

Regional spumantes (wines/vinho espumante da Bairrada).

Sleep

• 1 Bussaco Palace Hotel, Mata do Buçaco, Luso, ☏ +351 231 937 970, bussaco@almeidahotels.pt. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 12:00. Five-star, 64-room hotel in an old royal palace. There is an onsite restaurant, Mesa Real. €92-148.  

Go next

Coimbra, a university town with several monuments, city museums, parks.

• Aveiro, the Venice of Portugal, a city with canals.
• Beaches: Mira, Figueira da Foz, Serras do Bucaco & Caramulo..
• The bucolic town of Luso, the villages of Bucaco (Bussaco Palace hotel), Forest/Mata do Bussaco, Cruz Alta.

Also: Curia (spa/garden and lagoon).

• Aveiro/Barra/Costa Nova/Ilhavo (Vista Alegre/ceramics)/Ria de Aveiro/Sao Jacinto peninsula.
• Coimbra, hub city, university & other monuments in the capital of central Portugal.
• Mira/Praia de Mira (beach).
• Agueda/Fermentelos (lagoon).
• Figueira da Foz, a panoramic city at the mouth of Mongedo; beach/Costa de Prata, casino.
• Porto, monumental city (cidade Invicta), capital of Norte.
• Viseu, historic city,museum.
• Penacova, a town by the Mondego river.
• Lousa, a lovely mountain town.

Plus:

• Pinhel, castle and Coa valley.
• Guarda, cathedral/Se and Serra da Estrela.
• Tomar, Templar city.
• Leiria, castle and Pinhal de Leiria(pinewood).
• Espinho, beach casino/Costa Verde.

Routes through Mealhada

Porto ← Aveiro ←

N  S

→ Coimbra