25 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in Portugal

#1 - Quinta da Regaleira

Eccentrically decorated palace and gardens replete with grottoes, fountains, underground tunnels, caves, and numerous statues.

#2- Livraria Lello

One of the most beautiful bookstores in the world hides an Neo-Gothic interior behind a Art-Nouveau facade.

#3 - The Village of Monsanto

Houses are tucked between, on, and underneath giant boulders.

#4- Portugal's Chapel of Bones

A 16th century chapel decorated with bones, skulls, and entire bodies hanging from the wall.

#5 - Pena National Palace

This unreal Portuguese palace looks as though it's made from a pile of different castles.

#6 - Drowned Village of Vilarinho da Furna

A submerged village appears when dam levels drop.

#7- Carmo Convent Ruins

Legacy of the earthquake that nearly wiped Lisbon off the face of the Earth.

Walls built of femurs

#8- Capela de Ossos Bone Chapel

This small chapel is built of human bones and decorated with a golden skeleton.

#9 - Livraria Bertrand

The world's oldest bookshop still in operation.

#10- Boca do Inferno

A unique seaside cave where Aleister Crowley faked his own death.

#11 - Convento de Cristo

The medieval castle built as headquarters for the Pope's secretive Knights Templar.

#12 - Belem Tower Rhinoceros 

A king's pet, a pope's gift, an artist's inspiration, and a tragic shipwreck.

#13 - Castelo dos Mouros (Castle of the Moors)

An ancient and majestic fortress that played an integral role in Portugal's road to independence.

#14 - Capela do Senhor da Pedra

Picturesque intersection of witchcraft and ancient Christianity.

#15 - Chapel of Nossa Senhora das Vitórias

This fairy-tale, neo-Gothic church in the Azores is a world of magical realism.

#16- Igreja de São Francisco

The stunning interior of this Gothic church is covered in ornate gold details.

#17 - Stone House

A small Portuguese cottage formed between boulders in the countryside.

#18 - Santa Justa Lift

This Industrial Age architectural and engineering gem helps visitors and residents alike traverse Lisbon, “The City of Seven Hills.”

#19 - Jerónimos Monastery

Elaborately carved to showcase the glorious wealth that the age of exploration brought to the Portuguese empire.

#20 - Bom Jesus do Monte

A stunning 18th-century site where pilgrims ascend by a series of punishing stairs only to return via funicular.

#21 - Fort of Graça

This star-shaped military outpost is now simply trying to protect itself from neglect.

#22 - Mina de São Domingos (Sao Domingos Mines)

An abandoned mine now resembles a post-apocalyptic landscape of derelict buildings and blood-red pools of water.

#23 - Bordallo Pinheiro Garden

A garden in Lisbon filled with giant porcelain creations.

#24 - Ponte da Misarela (Misalera Bridge)

Local lore says the devil built this beautiful medieval bridge to help a fleeing bandit.

Montemor-o-Novo Castle

#25 - Montemor-o-Novo Castle

This crumbling Portuguese ruin overlooks the populace it once ruled.

Source: Atlas Obscura | See more hidden things to do in Portugal here.