Serra da Estrela: Covilhã to Seia

About this drive

The Serra da Estrela is the highest mountain range in mainland Portugal, and the road between Covilhã on the eastern side and Seia on the western side crosses the range at Torre — at 1,993 metres, the highest point in Portugal accessible by paved road. The landscape above 1,500 metres is granite moorland — bare rock, slow-growing plants, and the specific quality of upland light that makes the high plateau feel larger than it is. The eastern approach from Covilhã climbs through the glacially carved valley of the Zêzere River, past the ski area at Torre and over the summit plateau. The descent to the west is faster, dropping through heath and pine to Seia in the Mondego valley. The sheep of the serra have traditionally produced a milk cheese — Queijo da Serra da Estrela — that is the most celebrated cheese in Portugal, worth buying from a local producer in Covilhã or Seia. The top of the range is cold and exposed year-round — snow falls in most winters and can close the summit road. Summer thunderstorms are common in the afternoon. The drive is at its clearest in autumn, when the mist that typically fills the Covilhã valley clears enough to give the full vertical rise of the range some perspective. The views from Torre on a clear day extend across most of central Portugal.