Vila do Conde

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Coat of Arms

Vila do Conde and the Ave River.

The 16th century Socorro Chapel.

The well-preserved Rua da Igreja Street from the 1500s.

The Manueline style of the Matriz Church at Igreja Street.

Vila do Conde (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈvilɐ du ˈkõd(ɨ)]) is a city and parish in Portugal with a population of 25,731. Together with the urban parishes of Azurara and Arvore the urban area of the city has 32,094 in the estuary of the Ave river, in the north of Oporto metropolitan area in Portugal. This city and Póvoa de Varzim form a single urban conurbation area.

The municipality has 74,057 inhabitants in 30 parishes (freguesias). There are several beaches within the area and a bird sanctuary. It is well connected by routes, bus, train - subway to Porto and other cities in Greater Porto and Porto international airport (OPO). The harbour lies within the city limit Vila do Conde/Povoa de Varzim.

It is essentially a beach resort with a hi-tech industrial park in Mindelo with some semi-conductor industries. The downtown of the city of Vila do Conde includes historic monuments such as the Santa Clara Monastery (Convento de Santa Clara, originally built in the 14th century and restructured in the 18th century), ancient churches and the Alfândega.