Vila Vicosa’s famed royal palace could rival Versailles, albeit on a mini-Portuguese scale. The rest of the town holds little attraction save the museum inside the castle precinct and the elegantly formal double main street, lined with orange trees, that rises to a church.

Vila Vicosa wins hands down in the status stakes thanks to its aristocratic past. The fourth Duke of Braganca commissioned the Paco Ducal in 1501; the construction took more than a century, with further additions made once the Bragancas acceded to the Portuguese throne in 1640. the result is a megafacade 110 metres long, although it is surprisingly shallow. The 78 rooms once saw a stream of noble visitors, some coming to enjoy the hunting ground across the road, whole others watched bullfights on the huge square in front.

One of the more touching and revealing sections is the last addition made to the palace, the 1762 new wing of apartments. More intimately scaled, these rooms give a good idea of the monarchs’ personal interests, whether Dom Carlos’s wardrobe of uniforms or Queen Amelia’s own drawings of botany and architecture.