Convent of Christ Tour "Portugal in the Map" - Visit Tomar with a local guide!

Excellent Experience - highly recommended

This was a simply fantastic tour! Our guide did an excellent job helping the entire group navigate the ticketing and grounds. She gave a very insightful and knowledgeable presentation of the building, the Templar order and the history of the time. It was done in an understandable, humorous and every day style that made it both interesting and entertaining. It did not become dry or boring, as many of these experiences can. Would most definitely recommend. It made the visit so much more meaningful.

Great tour and guide

Sara, our guide was amazing. She provided the background and history with intelligence and humor. Her English was excellent and we didn't want the tour to end.

Wow

What an amazing place to see! Something you don’t want to miss . We did a private tour with Sarah's who is very knowledgeable and personable The time flew by. She injected just the right amount of humour into the trip to keep it lively and interesting. If you get a chance when booking ask for her, you won’t regret it! Thanks Sarah 😊

Educational and enjoyable

Sarah was a terrific guide. She was very knowledgeable and did a great job sharing the history of the castle/convent in a way that was engaging and personable. The pace was good. Tour could easily have been 3 hours and don't think we would have still seen the entire complex. Recommend walking the castle grounds and the wall as well.

Outstanding !

À great history lesson delivered by a very well informed tour guide ! The building, the detail in the construction and the stories about the occupants through its long history made for a fascinating and enjoyable experience. This is a must do for any visitors to the area !

Wonderful and educational tour!

Sarah was a wonderful guide! She was incredibly patient with our children and took the time to answer every single question they had. She also tailored the tour to content we were interested in. The whole family enjoyed his tour!!

Great tour

David was very knowledgeable and took his time answering all our questions. Meet us right at the location a few minutes early. Easy to findGreat tour.

Fascinating insights into the pivotal role this fortress played in the history of Portugal and surrounding region.

David was an incredible guide for our tour through the Convent of Christ. His command of history was impressive, and his dialogue well organized and chronological. We had no idea of the important role this castle/convent played in the history of not only Portugal, but in the tumultuous hostilities between European kingdoms, differing religions, and the 700 year occupation by Moors. The role played by the Knights Templar in several major periods of time was fascinating. Although we were somewhat cognizant of this organization, David led us through events in their history that brought it all together. As a side note, there was a key road closure on the morning of our tour, and David along with a colleague went above and beyond to help us get to the convent for the tour.

Great start and impact of the Knights Templar on the history of Portugal

This was the perfect start to our week. We set this up as short stop from Lisbon to Porto. David was our guide. He gave us a great tour and history of Portugal and the impact of the Knights Templar and evolution of the country and impact of the crusades. The convent of Christ and palace were awesome.

Don’t miss Convento de Cristo

David, our guide was excellent. He made the Convento come alive with his history. Fabulous photo opportunities Well, worth a visit

A beautiful afternoon, and a beautiful city

My wife and I had a wonderful time exploring the convent of the order of Christ. Our guide, Sarah was extremely well informed and gave us a very thorough background of our experience. Our guide was great, highly recommend the experience to others traveling again Portugal

Worthwhile tour in Tomar

Seeing how the building evolved over the centuries. David was very knowledgeable and did a great job.

App puzzle a waste of time

David Souza provided an excellent tour. The only glitch was the Viator app, which wouldn’t accept my positioning of the puzzle pieces. However , the Viator tickets weren’t necessary, so the puzzle was just a waste of time.

Outstanding tour of a magical place

Exceptional tour by OpenRoads Portugal! 🇵🇹 the friendly guide was a local historian and the tour was packed with interesting facts and information.

Excellent local guide David. 5 stars

David was an excellent guide, very knowledgeable and without having this insight and information I would’ve missed so much on my trip to Tomar

Tomar tour with local guide

David was a fantastic, local guide (actual Tomar resident) knowledgeable about the site and the community, very strong English, very small group.

Very impressive complex

A real experience. This massive complex was the HQ of the Portuguese Templars for many years and time and $$$ were lavished on it particularly in the 16thC. Currently being restored and almost devoid of any furnishings it is still a most impressive experience. An astonishing church, beautiful courtyards, cloisters, carvings. Take your time.

Great Tour

I definitely made a great decision selecting Open Roads Portugal. I strongly recommend this tour. Extremely professional and knowledgeable. Great communications skills. Thank you David.

Top notch tour in Tomar

David gave us an excellent tour of the Convent of Christ. His deep knowledge was on display as he provided great details about the key rooms at areas at the Convent of Christ. My son declared it his favorite tour of the vacation!

Quickly Learn Many Historical Facts about Templars in Tomar

Sara was an excellent tour guide for visiting the Convent of Christ. She covered a lot of history quickly but her explanations were easy to follow. Sara shared the history of the templars and some interesting stories about the people that passed through the Convent of Christ. I learned many new historical facts on this tour. It is a very interesting place to visit. I recommend this tour and learning from someone local.

This is a "don't miss" tour!

This was definitely a "don't miss" tour. Our guide, Sara, made the tour and the history SO INTERESTING and humorous as well. It was thoroughly enjoyable and we learned so much. I'd highly recommend taking this tour if you're ever fortunate to spend some time in lovely Tomar.

David was a 5 star guide and teacher!

David's tour was fantastic. He brought Portugal's history to life. Our group really enjoyed his tour. Highly recommended.

Very enjoyable and informative tour

Matthew did a great job! He’s from Tomar and his pride in his town and region is apparent in his tour! Great knowledge of the history, with extra stories, humour and able to answer all the questions that he got. Not scripted- from the heart! Thank you.

I learned so much. It was...

I learned so much. It was very memorable! It was conducted at the right pace. The guide was very informative.

Wonderful tour!

Wonderful tour with Sara. We loved hearing all the history and it made the experience much more memorable. Our guide was very fun and easy to talk to. Highly recommend!

Great visit

Great experience with David! He shared so much information about the convent, the temple, the history, and the art history.

One of our best days in Portugal

We had an amazing tour of the convent that lasted even longer than the advertised tour length. David, our tour guide, made it interesting and fun, and it was the most that we learned on our entire two weeks of our Portugal trip. Not only did David know about the convent, but he knew about the history of Tomar. It seemed like every question we asked he could answer.

Tomar templar history guided tour

Excellent guided tour of Tomar castle and convent by David of Open Roads Portugal. David had a wealth of knowledge about the site including the Templars and the Order of Christ. We really enjoyed our two hours with David. Highly recommend.

A fantastic tour

My sister and I did this tour in late October, along with the City Tour. Both were fantastic, our guide was not only knowledgeable but very thoughtful: the day of our tour there was a chance of downpour and he brought us spare umbrellas just in case. The tour itself was an incredible cross-section of history described with great care and detail...absolutely do the city tour if you're going to the Convent, the latter is enhanced by understanding the former! Having the whole history of Tomar and the Knights Templar laid out for you is fascinating, it had such an important role in European and world history. Our guide David explained in considerable detail the history, the economics, the politics, and the artistic culture of which Tomar was the fulcrum, as well as gracefully fielding a great many extraneous questions we posed. Open Roads was fantastic and I can't recommend them more, we learned a great deal and had a wonderful time.

Worth the price of admission!

If you love historic sites, if you have a special interest in the Templar knights and some of their later history, take your time and enjoy. We also found a hidden gem of a restaurant where the owner / cook characterizes Portugal like none I've ever seen or met. The history and the architecture are particularly interesting when you've got someone [in our case, Matthew was so knowledgeable about the site, that he easily transported us back in time with his vivid, pictorial trip through history]... when you have someone who is excitedly painting the pictures. Finally, we ate at the Canoe and met the flower of Portugal who, while we were paying the bill, she arranged 5 or 6 shots of a famous cherry infused brandy (Ginja). Just what the doctor ordered and on the house! Everything served was worth taking a picture of, but none of us could hold back and dove first into a hearty bowl of soup, followed by full avocado's stuffed with shrimp and other glorious fare. All in all, an absolute pearl of a day - would change nothing!

There is always a unique story to learn from a local guide

Helena is a great guide, very attentive to details while providing a larger historical context at the same time. We highly recommend this tour.

Visit the Covent of Christ to learn the 700 year history of Tomar.

My wife and I spent four hours today touring Tomar with David Sousa. His tour company is named Open Roads Portugal. Throughout the tour we received in-depth knowledge about the Castle of Tomar and the Convent of Christ, covering their 700 year history beginning with the Knights Templar. Afterwards we walked into town and learned the history of the important monuments in the City Center of Tomar. David was absolutely great, answering our many questions with clear and interesting information on history, art, religion and politics. We could not recommend this tour more.

Impressive, like a fortified city

We rented a car to drive to this place because it's over a hundred kilometers away from Lisbon. The trip was well worth it. It's a huge complex built as a stronghold by the Knight Templar. Both the exterior and interior are very impressive. These guys were richer than a country. Picture is worth a thousand words. I will let the pictures do the talking.

Convent of Christ Tour

If you’re planning a visit to Tomar you should definitely take David Sousa’s tour! He’s extremely knowledgeable about Portuguese history and art history and really made our visit special. Highly recommend!

Convent of Christ Tour

David was a knowledgeable guide, who is passionate about his town Tomar. Very glad we booked the tour, learning much more than walking through ourselves over several hours.

Convent of Christ

Tomar, a medieval town and once a walled city, is known for the beautiful Convent of Christ, 1164, which sits at the top of a hill overlooking the city.

CANCELLED ON US LAST-MINUTE

Cancelled on us last-minute. I appreciate that he offered us an alternative day/time, but it didn't fit our itinerary, which is the whole point of booking a set tour day/time in advance - because it's what fits your itinerary. We loved visiting the Convent of Christ (which we did anyway, on our own, despite the tour being cancelled), but we feel like we missed out on TONS of what we were supposed to be learning/seeing. The signage and posted information at the sight is non-existent, so you literally don't learn anything by walking around. So...after visiting the site, we are still left completely mystified and ignorant about the historical significance of the place. VERY, VERY, VERY disappointed that our tour got cancelled. I had booked it several months in advance.

Well worth several revisits.

I first visited this site ten years ago, and on this trip I visited it twice. With each visit I get to experience new insights and explore more history, architecture and religion. I am sure another visit would not be disappointing. I also recommend that if you want a more interesting walk, do so through the park and enter via the gardens and battlements. This walk is not recommended for children (buggies) or people with mobility issues.

A great experience not to miss

Very friendly guide with a lot of knowledge about the Convent of Christ in Tomar and of Portugal’s exciting history!

Unmissable tour

Our visit was guided by David and we had a wonderful tour. David's knowledge and passion for the convent and Tomar shone through. He really brought the place and history to life. Excellent English and communication skills, the whole tour was well paced, fascinating and interactive. I cannot recommend this tour enough. We were in Tomar for the day and most of the tours online seemed to be from Lisbon, so I'm glad we found David. Looking forward to coming back. Thank you David.

Opens the book on the Convent and it’s place at the center of Portuguese history

David is a great guy. Prompt, with great communication ahead of time. Soooo much knowledge and enthusiasm about Tomar and the Convent. Patient with all our questions, and excellent English. He went the extra mile in every way! Muito obrigado!

Tour Tomar

Great tour around Tomar. The guide knew a lot about Tomar's history, particularly about the Order of Christ.

A must in Tomar

This tour is an absolute must! Tomar is so charming. If you’re lucky enough to be there, sign up for this tour. David is a brilliant tour guide. So passionate and knowledgeable about his town and it’s history.

Amazing tour

I loved this tour company. Our guide was David. He was extremely knowledgeable of the location. He is from the area and has been to the site many times over the years. He is a very experienced tour guide. He answered all our questions and we learned more about the Templar Knights than we had ever known before. Our hotel was very close, so he came to our hotel to greet us and start the tour. He gave us a quick overview of the town square before hiking up the hill to the convent. This site is a true treasure not to be missed. David hit all the little details you might not get on a big tour. I highly recommend hiring this company for a tour. You will not be disappointed in the extreme love of history they have for this incredible history filled location.

Very informative

We enjoyed our guide so much that we came back with family. David is so knowledgeable that we learned a great deal about the convent and Templars. Even though he must do this tour often, he always seems as though he enjoys his job. We highly recommend.

Go to Tomar!

“Jon” was just wonderful. He was thoughtful & informative. He was excited to see additional rooms opening up, & is truly proud of this hometown jewel. You will be truly amazed by this massive convent! Home of the Templars, and ancient history. Solid two hour tour, and we all learned so much.

5 stars!

We absolutely loved this city! Can't wait to be back for round two. The guides were amazing too, really good value. Would recommend to anyone that is interested in a more personal approach to exploring the city.

Excelent and not to be missed!

It was an incredible experience to get to know the city of Tomar guided by these 2 young men, David and João. The amazing quality of this guided tour stems from the deep historical knowledge and love that these local guides have for their home town. It was a pleasure and i'll be sure to come back for the other tours and experiences that Open Roads Portugal has to offer.

Very knowledgable local tour guide

David took his time in explaining the history of the town and the convent, he was very knowledgable and passionate about it. We were glad to book this tour and not embarked alone, as the convent is rich in history that is as beautiful, if not more, than the magnificent structure itself. The place is massive and it would be best to have a guide to walk you through it.

David

David was so knowledgeable and pleasant! Thank you for all your time and effort. Simply great! Two tours in two days.