The beautiful hilltop castle that dominates the skyline has been home to parliament and royalty, but now serves as a viewpoint across Portugal’s largest pine forest.

Planted by King Dinis, it proved a vital shipbuilding resource in the country’s great age of discovery.

A pleasant destination in its own right, visitors to Leiria have a choice of other places to discover.

The clifftop town of Sao Pedro de Mel with its white sand beaches, and the Catholic pilgrimage site of Fatima are both nearby.