Tomar travel guide
Templar convent, a grid-plan old town and the Nabão river
Tomar is a small town in central Portugal built by the Knights Templar, whose castle and Convento de Cristo are a UNESCO site. Come from April to June or in September and October, when the uphill walk to the convent is comfortable. One night is enough for the town; a second lets you add Almourol castle or the Castelo de Bode lake. Costs are moderate.
Templar knights founded Tomar in the late 12th century on a hill above the Nabão river in central Portugal, about two hours by train from Lisbon. Their castle and the Convento de Cristo that grew inside it form a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and that is why most people come. Below the walls sits a small whitewashed town that goes quiet once the day-trippers leave.
Give the convent a full morning. The Charola (the round Templar church at its core) is painted and gilded right up into the dome. Outside the chapter house, the Manueline window on the west front is carved with ropes, coral and knotted roots. Several cloisters follow from different centuries; the two-storey Renaissance cloister built under João III is the calmest place to sit.
Henry the Navigator ran the Order of Christ, the Templars' Portuguese successor, from here in the 15th century. He also had the lower town laid out on a grid, rare for a medieval place, and the plan later served as a model when Lisbon's Baixa was rebuilt after the 1755 earthquake. Walk Rua Serpa Pinto, the main street, from Praça da República down to the old bridge and the pattern is plain to see.
Smaller sights fill an afternoon. The 15th-century synagogue, one of the oldest still standing in Portugal, now holds a small Jewish museum. Across the river, Santa Maria do Olival was the Templars' burial church, and Gualdim Pais lies there. The Mouchão park occupies an island in the Nabão with a big wooden water wheel, while the arches of the Pegões aqueduct, built to supply the convent, cross a valley on the edge of town.
Pastry shops sell Fatias de Tomar, dense slices of egg yolk cooked in a special pot, and the egg sweet called beija-me depressa (kiss me quickly). Every four years in early July the Festa dos Tabuleiros takes over the streets as women parade with towers of bread and paper flowers balanced on their heads. The next one is due in 2027; rooms go months in advance.
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A Templar convent on the hill, a Renaissance grid of streets below and a river park in the middle.
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Best time to visit Tomar
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Mild days for the climb to the convent and evenings outside on the main square.
Inland heat builds by midday, so see the convent at opening time and spend the afternoon by the river.
Cool and damp with few visitors; the convent is quiet and restaurants keep shorter hours.
The Festa dos Tabuleiros returns in early July 2027; the town fills completely, so book rooms well ahead or plan to come in by train from Lisbon for the parade day.
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Getting there
Direct trains from Lisbon
Tomar is the end of a short branch off Portugal's main north to south railway, and the train is the natural way in. Direct services leave Lisbon roughly every hour from Santa Apolónia and Oriente and take about two hours. Flying in, ride the metro's red line from the airport to Oriente, a few stops away, and board there. From Porto there are several trains a day, about three and a half hours, usually changing at Entroncamento, though some routings change at Lamarosa or Coimbra-B. The station sits at the southern edge of the grid, a ten-minute walk up to Praça da República, and coaches from Rede Expressos and Rodoviária do Tejo stop close by. Drivers take the A1 north and turn east onto the A23 for the Tomar exits, about an hour and a half from Lisbon.
- Lisbon airport (LIS)
- Metro red line to Oriente, then the direct train
- Train from Lisbon
- Roughly hourly from Santa Apolónia and Oriente, about 2 hours
- Train from Porto
- Several a day, about 3.5 hours with a change at Entroncamento
- Coach
- Rede Expressos and Rodoviária do Tejo
- Day-trippers should pick a train that reaches Tomar before 10:00 to get up the hill ahead of the coach tours.
Where to stay
The grid, the river or the reservoir
Stay in the grid of Tomar's lower town, where everything is walkable and the convent is a steady climb above; small guesthouses line Rua Serpa Pinto near the cafés and square. The old bridge area has river views and quieter nights, the station area suits early trains, and Castelo de Bode lake has rural stays for drivers.
- Rua Serpa Pinto and the grid
- Small guesthouses on the main street, close to cafés and the square
- By the old bridge
- River views over the Mouchão and quieter nights
- Near the station
- Handy for early or late trains, a short walk to the centre
- Castelo de Bode lake
- Rural stays and water sports on the reservoir, car needed
Getting around
Grid streets, castle path and town buses
The lower town is flat and compact. From the station, Rua Serpa Pinto runs straight through the grid to Praça da República, with the synagogue a block away and the old bridge and Mouchão park at the far end, all within about fifteen minutes on foot. The one real climb is to the castle and Convento de Cristo: a steep cobbled path leads up from the old town through trees to the castle gate in roughly 15 to 20 minutes. Drivers can follow the road round to the car park by the entrance, and a taxi up saves your legs for the convent's long corridors. Across the river, Santa Maria do Olival is about ten minutes' walk from the bridge. Two town bus lines circle Tomar, though most visitors never need them. For the Pegões aqueduct, Almourol castle or the Castelo de Bode reservoir, hire a car or arrange a taxi.
- On foot
- Square, synagogue and river all within a few minutes of each other
- Castle hill
- Steep footpath from the old town to the convent gate, 15 to 20 minutes
- Town bus
- Two lines around the town
- Car
- Needed for the Pegões aqueduct, Almourol and the lake
- Walk up to the convent and take the easier downhill path back; the cobbles are slippery after rain.
Know before you go
The Templar convent is the reason to come.
Why travelers love it
- The Charola, the round Templar church inside the convent, painted and gilded from floor to dome.
- The chapter house window, the most elaborate piece of Manueline carving in the country.
- The old synagogue, a plain 15th-century room that survived when so much of Jewish Portugal did not.
- Coffee at Café Paraíso, the town's oldest café on Rua Serpa Pinto.
- The Pegões aqueduct, tall arches marching across farmland outside town.
Good to know
- Start at opening time at the convent; tour coaches from Lisbon arrive late morning.
- Many restaurants close on Mondays, so plan a Monday dinner in advance.
- Wear proper shoes for the cobbled path up to the castle walls.
- Some older guesthouses take cash only; check when you book.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Tomar, month by month
Month-by-month climate figures for Tomar are being researched.
A day under the Templar dome in Tomar
Arrive early and Tomar fits into one day. Walk up to the Convento de Cristo as it opens and spend about three hours in the Charola, the cloisters and the terrace by the Manueline window. After lunch on Praça da República, visit the synagogue, cross to the Mouchão water wheel and finish at Santa Maria do Olival.
Morning. Catch an early train from Lisbon Oriente and walk straight up the castle hill so you reach the convent as it opens. Go to the Charola first, before it fills, and stand under the painted dome for a few minutes. Then work through the cloisters, the long dormitory corridors and the terrace beside the chapter house, where the great Manueline window is best seen. Three hours is not too long.
Lunch. Walk down into the grid and eat near Praça da República, where the statue of Gualdim Pais faces the church of São João Baptista.
Afternoon. Look into the synagogue, a plain vaulted room with a small museum, then follow Rua Serpa Pinto to the old bridge. Cross to the Mouchão and its wooden water wheel, and continue to Santa Maria do Olival to see where the Templar masters were buried.
Before the train. Finish with Fatias de Tomar and a coffee at Café Paraíso on Rua Serpa Pinto, then stroll back to the station.
Fatias de Tomar, convent egg sweets and where to eat
Tomar's sweets come from the Portuguese convent tradition. Try Fatias de Tomar, egg yolks slow-cooked in a tin pot and soaked in syrup, and beija-me depressa from the Estrelas confectionery, with strong coffee at Café Paraíso. For meals, Cervejaria do Fernando and Taverna Antiqua close on Mondays, and Castelo de Bode restaurants grill fish in summer.
Tomar's pastry counters belong to the old Portuguese convent tradition, where egg yolks went into sweets. Fatias de Tomar are the local speciality: yolks beaten for a long time, cooked slowly in a special tin pot set in water, then sliced and soaked in syrup. They are dense and very sweet, best with a strong coffee. Beija-me depressa (kiss me quickly) is a smaller egg sweet made by the Estrelas confectionery.
Bread matters here too. The towers carried in the Festa dos Tabuleiros are built from loaves, and the festival grew out of the medieval custom of sharing bread with the poor.
For meals, Cervejaria do Fernando on Rua da Silva Magalhães serves everyday Portuguese plates, and Taverna Antiqua on Praça da República leans into the Templar theme with a medieval-style menu. Both close on Mondays. In summer, the restaurants by the Castelo de Bode reservoir grill fish on terraces above the water, a good reason to drive out for lunch.
Almourol, Pegões and the Zêzere reservoir from Tomar
With a car, Tomar is a base for the Ribatejo. Almourol, a castle on a Tagus island reached by boat, is a short drive south, the double-tiered Pegões aqueduct lies just north-west, and the Castelo de Bode reservoir on the Zêzere suits summer swimming. The Festa dos Tabuleiros is expected in early July 2027.
With a car, Tomar is the obvious base for this part of the Ribatejo. Almourol, a castle on a rocky island in the Tagus, is a short drive south and is reached by a little boat; go in the morning when the river is calm and the light hits the walls. Fátima, the pilgrimage town, lies to the west and is busiest around the big May and October pilgrimages.
Closer in, the Pegões aqueduct is a short drive north-west of the centre. Its double tier of arches, built to bring water to the convent, is best seen in late afternoon light, and you can walk along the base. On hot days head for the Castelo de Bode reservoir on the Zêzere, where locals swim, kayak and eat grilled fish by the water.
Plan around the Festa dos Tabuleiros if your dates fall in early July 2027. The town fills for the procession, roads close and rooms sell out months ahead, so stay elsewhere and come in by train on the day.
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How we research our Tomar travel guide
Tomar's Convento de Cristo hours and Festa dos Tabuleiros dates come from cm-tomar.pt, and train times from Lisbon from the rail operator. Visit Portugal and IPMA, the Portuguese weather service, fill in the rest.
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Checked against trusted sources:
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Tomar questions about the convent, the train from Lisbon and the festival.
General
Yes. Board one at Oriente or Santa Apolónia; there is about one an hour and the ride lasts around two hours. Drivers need about an hour and a half on the A1 and A23.
Staying lets you reach the convent at opening time before the coach tours and walk the old town in the quiet evening.
Both are egg-yolk sweets from the town's convent tradition: Fatias de Tomar are slices of slow-cooked yolk soaked in syrup, and beija-me depressa is a small sweet made by the Estrelas confectionery.
A steep cobbled footpath climbs from the old town to the castle gate in 15 to 20 minutes. A taxi or car can use the road to the car park by the entrance.
The round Templar church at the core of the convent, built in the 12th century and later painted and gilded up into the dome.
April to June and September to October, when the climb to the convent is comfortable. July and August are hot inland.
The lower town is flat and compact. From the station, Rua Serpa Pinto runs straight through the grid to Praça da República, with the synagogue a block away and the old bridge and Mouchão park at the far end, all within about fifteen minutes on foot. The one real climb is to the castle and Convento de Cristo: a steep cobbled path leads up from the old town through trees to the castle gate in roughly 15 to 20 minutes.
Tomar is best known for:
- The Charola, the round Templar church inside the convent, painted and gilded from floor to dome
- The chapter house window, the most elaborate piece of Manueline carving in the country
- The old synagogue, a plain 15th-century room that survived when so much of Jewish Portugal did not
- Coffee at Café Paraíso, the town's oldest café on Rua Serpa Pinto
- The Pegões aqueduct, tall arches marching across farmland outside town
Timing & weather
Allow at least three hours. The complex is much bigger than it looks from the town, with the Charola, several cloisters and long dormitory corridors.
It is held every four years in early July. The next edition is expected in 2027.
Yes. The 15th-century synagogue in the lower town is one of the oldest surviving in Portugal and houses a small Jewish museum.
The best time to visit Tomar is Apr to Jun, Sep to Oct. Warm enough for river terraces, without the inland heat of July and August.
- Best overall: April - June, September - October (Mild days for the climb to the convent and evenings outside on the main square)
- Summer: July - August (Inland heat builds by midday, so see the convent at opening time and spend the afternoon by the river)
- Winter: November - March (Cool and damp with few visitors; the convent is quiet and restaurants keep shorter hours)
Getting there
Drive a short way south to the riverbank opposite the island, where a small boat crosses the Tagus to the castle.
Visa & documents
Portugal's entry rules are the Schengen area's. Citizens of the EU and of many other countries, including the US, UK, Canada and Australia, can visit visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; other nationalities need a Schengen visa. The EU's Entry/Exit System (EES) records non-EU travelers' fingerprints and a photo at the border.
Health & safety
Portugal is one of Europe's safest countries, and pickpocketing on Lisbon's tram 28 and in crowded tourist areas such as Baixa is the main risk. Strong Atlantic waves and currents make lifeguarded beaches the safe choice, and wildfires are a summer risk inland. Call 112 for police, fire or ambulance.
