Câmara Municipal de Tavira

Câmara Municipal de Tavira is the town hall of the municipality of Tavira in the Algarve, Portugal. The Paços do Concelho building faces Praça da República, the town's main square beside the Gilão river, and makes an easy first stop on a walk through the historic centre.

What is the Câmara Municipal de Tavira?

It is the seat of local government. In earlier times the council met inside the town walls, then near the top of Rua da Liberdade. The present site on the square was settled around the middle of the 17th century, about 1645, and local power has been based here ever since. The building was reconstructed in the mid-20th century, with the façade keeping its earlier volume and character.

What can you see?

The two-storey front has arcades and Renaissance-flavoured details. It carries the town's coat of arms, and in the right-hand corner sits a carved face that tradition links to Paio Peres Correia, the knight remembered for taking Tavira back from the Moors in the 13th century. Inside, paintings, portraits, busts and other objects tell the story of the town. Because it is a working office, most visitors admire it from outside and see the interior only during municipal events.

How can you visit?

Tavira's Municipal Museum runs guided walks with a historian under its "Passeios na História de Tavira" programme, including one on the history and heritage of this very building. Dates are announced on cm-tavira.pt. On your own, 15 minutes is plenty: look at the façade, the arms and the carved face, then cross the square to the riverside.

How do you get there?

The building stands in the pedestrian centre, so walking from anywhere in the old town is easiest. It is a few minutes from the bridge over the Gilão. Leave the car in a car park on the edge of the centre.

What else is nearby?

Tavira Castle, the Igreja da Misericórdia, the church of Santa Maria do Castelo and the Roman-style bridge over the river are all within a few hundred metres, so the town hall works well as the start of a town walk.

Frequently asked questions

Can I go inside?

It is a working municipal office, so access is limited to official business and organised visits. The façade can be viewed freely at any time.

Is there an entrance fee?

Viewing from outside is free. Terms for the historian-led walks are announced by the Municipal Museum.

How long do I need?

Fifteen to twenty minutes for the building, about an hour together with the square and riverfront.

What is the face on the façade?

By tradition it depicts Paio Peres Correia, associated with the 13th-century recapture of Tavira.