Aerial Views of Portugal's Centro Region

AirVuz contributor CanariasDron brings us this stunning drone video of the legendary beach town of Nazaré on the central coast of Portugal.  Located less than a two hour drive north of Lisbon, the town is blessed with an underwater canyon just offshore which causes the waves of the Atlantic Ocean to break in a manner which has helped turn this small fishing village into one of the top surfing spots in Europe.  The video features some epic footage of Nazaré Light, a lighthouse built in the early 1900's atop a 16th century fortress.   

For cinematic drone footage of birds flying along a beautiful coastline, this video by contributor and drone pilot Skylight can't be beat.  He used a drone to capture a flock of seagulls on the coast of Portugal in the area of Alcobaca, which lies about midway down Portugal's Atlantic coastline in the Centro region of the country.  The video starts with an aerial shot of some spectacular rocks along the beach at sunset, and then picks up some stunning shots of the seagulls flying up the coast.

Contributor Tonycorreia created this award-winning drone video of the mountains of northern Portugal.  The Serra da Estrela mountain range runs across much of northeastern Portugal.  It's part of a larger system which runs into northern Spain.  The highest elevation point of the range is around 2.0k meters (about 6.5k ft.).  The bulk of the range is situated in the northern part of the country's Centro (Central) region, although the mountains stretches northward into the  country's Norte region as well.       

Contributor aeronauten-tv.de created this stunning drone video of the area around Cabo Mondego, a small peninsula in the middle of the Portuguese Atlantic Ocean coastline.  The nearest town is Figueira da Foz.  This area is part of the country's Centro region, and it's situated roughly halfway between Lisbon and Porto, the country's two largest cities.  The video captures the spectacular Atlantic coastline, as well as the amazing lighthouse, which helps to protect shipping in these often treacherous waters. 

Former Drone Video of the Week Winnr Migo-Studios brings us this outstanding drone video of a stunning scene in the mountains of Portugal.  The video was filmed over and around the village of Monsanto in the Castelo Branco District, which is part of the Central (Centro) region of the country.  The town and its namesake 12th century castle (featured prominently in the video) were filming locations for the HBO TV series House of the Dragon, the prequel to the phenomenally successful Game of Thrones series. 

Contributor rexfarucao created this stunning drone video of the Portuguese "castle town" of Óbidos.  The town is situated on a hilltop in Leira, one of the provinces which makes up the country's Centro region.  The town's main landmark is its namesake medieval castle, which was built on the site of an old Roman fortification.  Due to its strategic location, the town played a role in the various struggles by which the modern nation-state of Portugal emerged in the 15th century; it was later damaged in the great 1755 Lisbon Earthquake.

Explore the famous beach town of Nazaré, Portugal in this excellent drone video by AirVuz contributor Airviewstudio.  Nazaré is located in the heart of the Silver Coast, a stretch of Atlantic Ocean coastline roughly in the middle of the country.  The video opens with shots of the city's main beach, one of the most well-known surfing spots in all of Europe.  Much of the rest of the video was filmed around the Fort of São Miguel Arcanjo, a fortification just north of the city which dates to the 16th century 

Explore the coast of Portugal's Centro region in this terrific drone video by contributor Airviewstudio.  The video was filmed over and around the town of Aveiro and the nearby Costa Nova beach area, which lie in the northern part of the Centro Region, about an hour's drive south of the city of Porto.  The coastline here takes a complex shape as the convergence of several rivers created a series of coastal lagoons and inland waterways, and Aveiro is sometimes referred to as the Venice of Portugal due to its canals and other waterways.  

While most people associate the term "Portuguese Islands" with the Azores or Madeira, in this video contributor Wonderful World gives us an aerial view of an island much closer to the Portuguese mainland.  Berlengas Island is part of a group of small islands just a few km off the Portuguese Atlantic coast near the town of Peniche.  This area is part of the country's Centro region, roughly a quarter of the way between the capital city Lisbon and the main northern city of Porto if one is heading north.  

AirVuz contributor Rui Rios brings us this drone video of an important city in central Portugal virtually shut down during the Covid-19 pandemic in the Spring of 2020.  The town of Aveiro is the second-largest in the county's Centro region.  It lies along Portugal's Atlantic Ocean coastline, about 80 km (around 50 mi.) south of Porto.  As the western neighbor to Spain, one of the countries hardest-hit by the novel coronavirus, Portugal implemented strict social distancing measures to combat the deadly spread of the virus. 

Portugal's Almouro Castle sits in a strategically important spot on the Tagus River, just downstream from its confluence with the Zêzere.  The castle was built in the 12th century by the Knights Templar, an important Christian military order.  Almourol played a critical role during the Reconquista, the struggle between Moorish (Muslim) and Christian forces for control of the Iberian Peninsula.  One of the most important castles in the Centro region, you can see Almourol from above in this drone video by SJetMan.  

Foz do Arelho is a district of the city of Caldas da Rainha in Portugal's Centro region, roughly in the middle of Portugal's long Atlantic Ocean coastline.  Once a small fishing village, it's become known as one of the country's top spots for watersports.  Initially that meant surfing, then windsurfing.  In recent years, it's also become a popular spot for kiteboarding, a more extreme form of watersports.  In this drone video by flyingbydaniel, you'll get a bird's eye view of the kiteboarding scene at Foz do Arelho.  

Former Drone Video of the Week Winner ArturCarvalho brings us this fantastic drone video of the surfing scene in Nazaré, Portugal.  Located about 70 mi. (around 120 km) north of Lisbon in the Centro Region, Nazaré is the home of the Silver Coast, one of the top surfing spots in Europe.  Situated on the open Atlantic Ocean, Nazaré is known for some of the largest waves ever surfed: in early 2018, a Portuguese surfer caught a wave here thought to be as high as 35 meters (over 115 ft.), although that was unverified.  

Flybyzion created this excellent drone video of a well-known castle in central Portugal.  Belver Castle is situated in Portalegre, an inland district which forms part of the Centro region.  The castle was built in medieval times to defend access to the Tagus River, Portugal's most important waterways, at the mouth of which lies the capital city of Lisbon.  Belver was the most important castle associated with the Hospitallers, a knightly military order which played an important role in the Reconquesta struggle against Islam.  

Francisco Rodrigues combined drone and ground camera footage to make this video of a hike into the wilderness of Central Portugal.  The trek took the travelers through the Loriga Valley, a mountainous region of the Guarda District, near the northeastern corner of the country's Centro region.  The valley lies within the Serra da Estrela mountains, a chain which is home to Portugal's highest peak: Mt. Torre, which has a maximum elevation of just under 2k meters above sea level (around 6.5k ft.).  

Contributor and pilot Petrolftavares created this stunning drone video of an area along the middle of Portugal's long coastline on the Atlantic Ocean.  The video covers the region between the towns of Batalha and São Pedro de Moel in the Leiria district, which is part of the country's Centro region.  The video includes footage of the stunning coastline, as well as cultural sites like the Mosteira da Batalha, a well-known monastery which has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Enjoy these excellent drone views from the heart of Portugal, compliments of AirVuz contributor nunovalente.  The first part of the video was filmed over some more rural areas of the region, which covers most of the area (measured north to south) from Lisbon to Porto.  Highlights include the Vouga River, the small town of Sever do Vouga and the area around the town of Penacova.  The last part of the video features some great shots of Coimbra, the largest city of the Centro region and the fourth-largest in the country.

Check out these beautiful drone views from the Atlantic Ocean coastline of central Portugal, compliments of AirVuz contributor and pilot FalconFrame.  The area filmed is around the seaside town of Baleal, which is just west of the town of Óbidos in the southern part of the country's Centro Region.  Located about a 90 minute drive northwest of Lisbon, the Balaeal area forms the eastern end of a bay.  Just north of the more well-known Portuguese Riviera, the area holds many of the same charms.  

Most international visitors to Portugal spend their time on the coasts, whether it be in the big cities of Lisbon and Porto or the beaches of the Portuguese Riviera and Algarve.  Most never appreciate how mountainous much of the country is, with most of the interior of the Norte and Centro region covered by foothills and mountains.  In this excellent drone video by new contributor Raphael Rablat, you'll get a glimpse of this mountainous interior.  It was shot at a mountain called  Serra do Caramulo, which is due east of the town of Aveiro.  

Óbidos is one of the oldest towns in Portugal. It's situated about an hour's drive north of Lisbon and just a few mi/km inland from the Atlantic coastline, in the country's Centro region.  The town dates to Roman times, and it became a focal point in the struggle for control of the region between Muslim and Christian forces in the Middle Ages. Contributor FalconFrame created this excellent drone video of the town, including its most well-known landmark: the medieval Óbidos Castle.

Check out this drone video of a famous medieval Portuguese castle, compliments of contributor Porto4ever Filipe.  Penedono Castle is located in Viseu, a landlocked district of the Centro Region.  Originally a fortress dating to the 1th century AD and possibly earlier, the castle occupied an important strategic position on the border between Moorish (Muslim) and Christian Europe for a time.  Converted to a residence in the late 15th-early 16th centuries, it fell into a ruined state before being restored in the 20th century.

Contributor Flybyzion created this aerial view of an important castle in central Portugal.  The Castle of Sortelha lies in the municipality of Sabugal, a district in the eastern part of the Central region bordering Spain. The current structure dates to the 13th century.  It fell into disuse in the 16th century and was virtually abandoned.  During the 1940's, and continuing through the 20th century, the landmark was substantially restored.  It's one of about two dozen National Monuments in the Centro region.  

For a first upload to AirVuz, brand-new contributor Alex Filipe brings us this excellent drone video from a town in central Portugal.  The video was filmed on a foggy morning over Souto da Casa, which is part of the municipality of Fundão in the Castelo Branco District.  The mountains you'll see are part of the Gardunha, which lie close to the Spanish border and which have peaks of up to about 4k ft. above sea level (around 1.3k m).  The video was filmed with a DJI Mini 2 drone and a DJI Avata first person view (FPV) drone.   

Check out this beautiful drone video from the heart of the Portuguese mountains, compliments of contributor Francisco Rodriguez.  The Serra de Estrela is Portugal's primary mountain range.  It's about 100 km (60 mi.) long and runs primarily through the country's Centro region, with a portion also lying in the Norte region.  The area shown here is the Loriga Valley.  It's in the southern part of the Guarda District, which is split between the Norte and Centro regions on the eastern side of the country.   

Psantos02 created this beautiful drone video of Penedono Castle in Portugal.  It's situated in a municipality of the same name in the Viseu district, in the northern part of the country's Centro region.  The castle dates to the period of medieval history known as the Reconquista, when the Christians re-conquered the Iberian Peninsula from its Moorish (Muslim) occupiers in a long series of bloody battles.  After falling into a ruinous state for centuries, the castle was restored beginning in the 1940's.

Here's an amazing bird's eye view of a well known hydro-electric dam in Portugal, compliments of SJetMan. It's called the Castelo de Bode Dam, and it sits on the Zêzere River in the Santarém District, which is part of the Centro region of the country.  Completed in the early 1950's, the concrete arch-gravity dam stands 115 meters tall (about 375 ft.), making it one of the tallest structures in the country.  The Zêzere River is a tributary of the Tagus, Portugal's most important waterway. 

Here'e a beautiful aerial town of a town on Portugal's Silver Coast, compliments of AirVuz contributor Airviewstudio.  Peniche is located on a peninsula in the Leiria District, the souhernmost of the districts of the Centro region.  Like much of the Silver Coast defined loosely as the middle part of Portugal's Atlantic Ocean coasline, Peniche is home to some of Europe's best surfing due to the wave break patterns here.  The video concludes with some outstanding shots of the lighthouse of Cabo Carvoeiro.   

AirVuz contributor Timearth brings us this excellent drone video of Sortelha, Portugal, one of the country's oldest and best-preserved villages.  It's located just east of the mountains of Serra da Estrela in the east-central part of Portugal.  The video features excellent footage of the medieval castle which overlooks the village and which at one point represented an important strategic outpost on Portugal's eastern border prior to that border extending further to the east later in the Middle Ages.  

Check out this excellent drone views from a beautiful beach in Central Portugal, compliments of new AirVuz contributor and pilot FalconFrame.  It's called Praia do Baleal, and the beach is located just to the east of the town of Peniche. Peniche is located on a peninsula towards the southern end of the Centro region.  The area marks the spot where the Portuguese coast transitions from a north-south orientation south of the peninsula to a southwest-to-northeast orientation north of it. 

AirVuz contributor Nathanscemama brings us this excellent drone video from the Central Coast of Portugal.  The video was filmed on the beach near Aveiro, which is the second-largest city in the Centro region.  This area is the open Atlantic Ocean, and is home to some of the finest surfing conditions in Europe.  The video includes some great top-down shots of the incoming surf, with some nice time-reverse shots thrown into the mix as well.  At the :58 mark, there's a great shot of a flock of sea birds.   

Check out this beautiful drone video of a Portuguese seaside town called São Pedro de Moel, compliments of AirVuz contributor and pilot skylight.  It's located just to the west of Leiria in the city's namesake district, which is part of the Centro region.  Located under 20 km (around 12 mi.) north of the better-known town of Nazare, São Pedro de Moel is considered one of the most beautiful beaches in central Portugal.  In the video, you'll also get a glimpse of the Penedo da Saudade lighthouse to the north of the town.  

Check out this drone video of Portugal's Marialva Castle, compliments of AirVuz contributor and pilot Timearth.  Built on the site of an older hill fort, the structure dates to the 12th century and was constructed on the orders of King Afonso Henriques.  It's located in the municipality of Mêda in the Guarda District, which covers the northeastern part of the Centro Region.  This area is part of the foothills of the Serra da Estrela, the highest mountain range of mainland Portugal.  The castle is open to the public.   

Nazaré, Portugal is the home of the Silver Coast, one of the top surfing spots in Europe.  It's located in the Leira District of the Centro Region, which covers the mid-section of the country.  Situated on the open Atlantic Ocean, Nazaré is known for some of the largest waves ever surfed: in early 2018, a Portuguese surfer caught a wave here thought to be as high as 35 meters (over 115 ft.), although that was unverified.  Check out this legendary surfing scene from above in this drone video by AirVuz contributor fchulam.