Universidade de Coimbra

Portugal's oldest university was founded in Lisbon in 1290 and moved here when it was built in 1634. It occupies most of the center of the old city overlooking the new and the Mondego river.

It has the clock and bell tower built in the 18th century, one of Coimbra's most famous landmark . Also one of the finest libraries in the world, Biblioteca Joanina.

If in Coimbra, you must visit.

The University of Coimbra is one of the oldest universities in continuous operation in the world, so there is more to see than the average university. Partly because it is a working university and partly because the sights are spread out, the visit was a bit disjointed.

The visit structure was a bit different from what I read online on their webpage. The full visit was 12,5€ (November 2021).

The palace was ok. The chapel was nice. I skipped the science museum. The botanical gardens were free and made for a pleasant walk.

The visit to the library, the best part of the visit, was by "tour" (really just a fixed entry timeslot where someone watched the group and provided no commentary - so it was a supervised visit with 10 minutes in the antechamber and 10 minutes in the library). The library itself was splendid. No photos were allowed sadly. They actually have bats in there which eat pests, but they sleep in the day.

Super old university. The oldest in Portugal. University of Coimbra look like the Hogwarts school of magic. Even the student just dress like it. They all have a cape. It is so cool. It is almost like in the movie set of the Harry Porter. Unfortunately the day we visited is close for visitors due to Coronavirus.

We have a chance to see the outside with different building. I was able to peek down to Sala dos Capelos. We actually looking forward for their Joanina Library. Unfortunately all close. We kind disappointed but we saw students dress with cape. It great tradition.

I went there to try to get my masters degree in a program with a description that did not match the actual content of the course. They say that they teach part in English and part in Portuguese, but this is not really true. It's not a problem that the programs are very much intended for native speakers of Portuguese, the issue is that they are not very accommodating to Portuguese learners. The university prides itself on its international student population but as an international student there who was not part of Erasmus, I felt more isolated than i ever have before. The academic services are not very helpful at all, and their online platforms UC student and inforestudante are not user friendly. They also have no online library database so you are left trying to find empirical information on Google scholar which is a personal turn off. If you are an international student looking to pursue a masters or a bachelors degree at this university, I would caution you. Phd students in psychology seem to come from various different countries to conduct laboratory research. They communicate with each other mostly in English and all of their projects are presented in English. If you can, you should check out the labs. That won't be the main focus of your time at the university however if you are not a phd student or research assistant.

This university is worth a visit because 1. Established in the 13th century, the University of Coimbra is Portugal's oldest university, and one of the oldest in Europe. Some of the structures date back to Roman times! 2. Harry Potter!! It's not urban legend, J.K. Rowling did spend a few years in Portugal and got some inspiration from the university. if you visit the university, you'll definitely experience some Hogwarts moment.

First, if you are lucky, you'll see the students walking around in black robes. As if they just walk off the film set. Next, visit the gorgeous library. You won't be surprised to see Hermione bent over some books scribbling with a quill.

Now, be warned that visit is not free. You can walk around the ground, but entrance to the library, tower, and other areas require tickets. There are several packages you can choose from, but at the minimal do the "Palace of Schools" which includes the Baroque Library. Also, be warned that there is limited admission to the library, when you buy your ticket they will tell what your time slot will be. They also have guided tours which I'd highly recommend you to reserve ahead of time, by phone or email.

It's ok, but I wouldn't make a special trip to see this. We were rushed through the library in what was basically a cattle call. We couldn't take pictures and there wasn't much room to move- let alone enjoy the place- and then we were rushed out. It wasn't really worth seeing (it's no Sintra palace, for example) and it's not peaceful, nor is there even that much to see. I'm sure it's got history- but so does everything else in Portugal. I thought I would like this place, but I didn't like the town or the university. I liked other smaller (cleaner) cities we went to much much better- and even just small places of interest (like Batalha monastery). Unless you have to go here, because it's on your tour, I wouldn't bother.

What a beautiful, historic campus. Tons of beautiful buildings everywhere you look, and even a big 60s era one. Fun to see the students all dressed in their uniforms, and just the ambiance of the city. What a romantic place to go to school--oldest in Portugal--how cool is that? I wonder how it impacts what and how you learn to be in such an historic and pretty surroundings? I just know you gotta be in good shape with all the climbing (mama mia!)