Gouveia is a town in the District of Guarda, located in the province of Beira Alta, on the slopes of Serra da Estrela, about 700m high.
It is the seat of a municipality with an area of 300.61 km² and 12,222 inhabitants (2021), subdivided into 16 parishes. The municipality is bordered to the north by Fornos de Algodres, to the northeast by Celorico da Beira, to the east by Guarda, to the southeast by Manteigas, to the southwest by Seia and to the northwest by Mangualde.
In Gouveia there are archaeological remains of the Castrejo, Roman and Muslim civilisations. It was the stage of fights between Christians and Muslims, which devastated it.
The city has a vast built heritage which you can appreciate: the Casa da Torre, a 16th century building classified as a National Monument since 1928; the Paços do Concelho, the former Colégio dos Jesuítas; the Solar dos Condes de Vinhó e Almedina, today the Abel Manta Modern Art Museum; the Solar dos Serpa-Pimentel, nowadays the Vergílio Ferreira Municipal Library; the S. Pedro Church, the S. Julio Church and the S. Pedro Church. Pedro Church, S. Julião Church, Misericórdia Church, as well as the chapels of Santa Cruz, S. Miguel and Senhor do Calvário.
Gouveia also offers to its visitors and inhabitants a natural heritage worth mentioning, either for its green and leisure spaces, or for the routes and trails that you can follow to get to know all the wonders that the municipality has to offer.
The municipality is served by motorways that guarantee easy access and connection to the north and south of the country, and has essential infrastructures and services for the well being of the population and visitors.
The gastronomy of the county of Gouveia is varied and deserves the attention of those who pass through here. Try local and regional delicacies such as chestnut soup, míscaro stew, kid, beans "à pastor", wild boar stew, carqueja rice, curd cheese with pumpkin jam, rice pudding and custard milk, not forgetting the Serra cheese, one of the greatest ex-libris of Gouveia's gastronomy and of the Serra da Estrela region. Accompany it with the regional wine.
Source: Câmara Municipal de Gouveia