Back in the day many Portuguese, and foreigners, took vacations there to relieve themselves from various illnesses and to breathe the pure air of the countryside. I guess you could call it the 1900's equivalent to a spa-vacation, or a retreat in a back then luxurious country side scenery. Pompous hotels were built in the village that was and still is easily accessed by the country's main roads and served by a train station.
A couple of weeks ago I finally surrendered to it's charms and took the kids there for a visit. To be honest I followed my cousin and her husband. We all loved it. We visited a park that is open to the general public for a small fee. The huge park was part of an old hotel and it many facilities. There's a café and you can rent paddle boats to take a quiet tour on the artificial lake (we had a race of course, ahahahah).
You can visit part of the hotel and take part of the expositions, the permanent and the temporary ones. The building is quite impressive and I loved the mixture of Art Nouveau and Deco in the building and the surroundings. Being abandoned for many years but still in good shape you can almost get a "Shinning" experience when you wonder around, the quiet piano almost played on itself when we passed by, the old bathrooms and heavy doors contrasting to the beauty of fine details on the stairs and chandeliers enhanced the Shinning-feeling. I loved it! Totally recommend a visit.
I know there are many options for those who want to stay and enjoy the place for a few or more days and do not want to check in at the still working neighboring grandiose hotel. Me, I just have the luxury of having Curia just over half an hour from my nest in Aveiro.
Here are some of mine impressions from Curia, hope you enjoy :-)
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