Trás-os-Montes: a travel guide to Portugal's north-east, from the caretos to the Wine of the Dead

By Luís Serra, co-founder of Ra-Ro · View profile

About a 6 minute read

Trás-os-Montes is Portugal's north-east, the districts of Bragança and Vila Real: high plateaus, mountains and granite and schist villages that keep traditions long gone elsewhere. To see, there is Bragança and its citadel, Montesinho Natural Park, Miranda do Douro and the cliffs of the International Douro, Chaves and the Barroso. To bring home, smoked meats, chestnuts, Bisalhães black pottery and the Vinho dos Mortos (Wine of the Dead) from Boticas.

Trás-os-Montes in short

• Where it is: in the north-east of the country, along the Spanish border, between the Minho, the Beiras and the Douro valley.
• What to see: Bragança, Montesinho and Rio de Onor, Miranda do Douro, Chaves and the Barroso highlands.
• Traditions: the caretos of Podence (UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2019), the pauliteiros stick dancers and the Mirandese language.
• Flavours: smoked meats, alheira sausage, chestnuts and the Wine of the Dead, a wine that is buried.
• Crafts: Bisalhães black pottery, careto masks and the Mirandese capa de honra cloak.
• At Ra-Ro: the Vinho dos Mortos from Boticas.

What to see in Trás-os-Montes

• Bragança: the castle and the walled citadel, still lived in, and the Domus Municipalis, a rare Romanesque civic building.
• Montesinho and Rio de Onor: the natural park brings together mountains, oak woods and schist villages. Rio de Onor sits right on the border, partly in Portugal and partly in Spain, and is known for the communal way of life that organised the village for centuries.
• Miranda do Douro: the town looks over the cliffs of the International Douro. People here speak Mirandese, recognised by law in 1999 as the language of the area, and dance the pauliteiros, with sticks beating the rhythm.
• Chaves: the Roman bridge over the Tâmega, the spa and the pastel de Chaves, a flaky pastry filled with meat.
• Barroso: Montalegre and Boticas, a land of meadows, cattle and communal villages. In 2018 the FAO recognised the Barroso as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System.
• Vila Real and the Douro: the village of Bisalhães, where black pottery is made, and to the south the terraced slopes of the Alto Douro Wine Region.

Caretos and winter festivals

In Podence, in the municipality of Macedo de Cavaleiros, the caretos take to the streets at Carnival: suits of colourful wool fringes, painted tin or leather masks and cowbells at the waist, running through the village and startling passers by. In 2019 UNESCO inscribed these winter festivities on the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. In other villages of the Bragança district, between Christmas and Epiphany, the Festas dos Rapazes bring out other masked figures, rooted in old winter rites of passage.

If you like this masked, slightly devilish side of folk culture, you will enjoy Devils, Sarroncos and Mafarricos: the dark side of Portuguese clay figures.

Smoked meats and flavours of the north-east

In Trás-os-Montes winter is still measured by the pig slaughter and the smokehouse: alheiras (those from Mirandela are the best known), salpicões, chouriças and the butelo of Bragança, cured over the smoke of the hearth. The smoked meat fairs of Vinhais and Montalegre, held in winter, are the best time to taste and buy. What fumeiro is and how it is made is explained in the glossary.

In autumn chestnuts take over: the Terra Fria of Trás-os-Montes is one of the great chestnut regions of the country, and the magusto chestnut feast is held in almost every village (read about it in Magusto: what it is). At the table, posta mirandesa beef and the folar of Valpaços complete the trip.

The Wine of the Dead from Boticas

When Napoleon's troops reached Boticas during the French invasions of the early nineteenth century, the villagers buried their wine to hide it. Tradition says that when they dug it up months later, they found it better than before. The custom stuck: in Boticas bottles are still buried for months before they reach the table. At Ra-Ro you will find the Vinho dos Mortos (€24.40). The full story is in Wine of the Dead and a short summary in the glossary.

Which crafts to bring home from Trás-os-Montes

• Bisalhães black pottery: earthenware from Vila Real that turns black in a smothered firing. In 2016 UNESCO inscribed its making on the list of heritage in need of urgent safeguarding, because few potters remain. Note: the black pottery of Gondar comes from Amarante, not from Trás-os-Montes.
• Careto masks: made by local craftspeople in tin, wood or leather, they are the most north-eastern souvenir you can hang on a wall.
• Mirandese capa de honra: the burel cloak with hood and cut-out details, worn at ceremonies. To understand the cloth, read Burel.
• Smoked meats, chestnuts and wine: the souvenirs you eat and drink, and the ones that disappear fastest.

To be honest: for now, the only piece from Trás-os-Montes at Ra-Ro is the Vinho dos Mortos. Makers from the other regions are on the Regions page.

When to visit Trás-os-Montes

In winter, for the caretos, the Festas dos Rapazes and the smoked meat fairs, with real cold. At the end of winter, for the almond blossom of the Douro Superior. In autumn, for chestnuts and magustos. In summer the days are hot and the nights cool, good for Montesinho and the river cliffs.

Frequently asked questions

What to visit in Trás-os-Montes?

Bragança and its citadel, Montesinho Natural Park and Rio de Onor, Miranda do Douro and the International Douro cliffs, Chaves and the Barroso villages in Montalegre and Boticas.

What are the caretos of Podence?

Masked figures of the Podence Carnival, in Macedo de Cavaleiros, wearing suits of colourful wool fringes, masks and cowbells. UNESCO inscribed the festivities as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2019.

What is Vinho dos Mortos?

A wine from Boticas that is buried for months before it is drunk. The tradition goes back to the French invasions, when villagers hid their wine underground.

What crafts are typical of Trás-os-Montes?

Bisalhães black pottery from Vila Real, careto masks and the Mirandese capa de honra in burel. Smoked meats and chestnuts are the most sought after food souvenirs.

When is the best time to visit Trás-os-Montes?

Winter for the caretos and smoked meat fairs, autumn for chestnuts, and the end of winter for the almond blossom of the Douro Superior.

Where to buy Vinho dos Mortos online?

At Ra-Ro, which sells the Vinho dos Mortos from Boticas in its online shop and ships to Portugal, Europe, the United States, Canada and Brazil.