The Comunidade Intermunicipal do Douro () is an administrative division in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of th ...

. It replaced the ''Comunidade Urbana do Douro'', created in 2004. It takes its name from the

Douro River The Douro (, , ; es, Duero ; la, Durius) is the highest-flow river of the Iberian Peninsula. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province, central Spain, meanders south briefly then flows generally west through the north-west part o ...

. The seat of the intermunicipal community is

Vila Real Vila Real () is the capital and largest city of the Vila Real District, in the North region. It is also the seat of the Douro intermunicipal community and of the Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro historical province. The Vila Real municipality cover ...

. Douro comprises parts of the former districts of Bragança, Guarda,

and

Viseu Viseu () is a city and municipality in the Centro Region of Portugal and the capital of the district of the same name, with a population of 100,000 inhabitants, and center of the Viseu Dão Lafões intermunipical community, with 267,633 inhabi ...

. The population in 2011 was 205,157,Instituto Nacional de Estatística
/ref> in an area of . Douro is also a

NUTS3 Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics or NUTS (french: Nomenclature des unités territoriales statistiques) is a geocode standard for referencing the subdivisions of countries for statistical purposes. The standard, adopted in 2003, ...

subregion of Norte Region. Since January 2015, the NUTS 3 subregion covers the same area as the intermunicipal community.Adequação dos indicadores à nova organização territorial NUTS III / Entidades Intermunicipais
Instituto Nacional de Estatística, 18 March 2015 Its economic activity is largely centered on the production of

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented grapes. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different ...

, particularly

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...

, and also non-

fortified A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere' ...

Douro wine from the

Douro DOC Douro is a Portuguese wine region centered on the Douro River in the Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro region. It is sometimes referred to as the ''Alto Douro'' (upper Douro), as it is located some distance upstream from Porto, sheltered by mountain r ...

wine region. The entire region is mountainous and crossed by steep valleys.

Municipalities

The CIM Douro is composed of 19 municipalities:

Geography

The main rivers are

Corgo River The Corgo River () is a river in northern Portugal which flows through the settlement of Covelo and the city of Vila Real. It flows southwards into the Douro River, merging near Granja. The Corgo River Viaduct carries the A4 motorway (Transmonta ...

Tua River Tua () is a river in northeastern Portugal, flowing by the border of Vila Real District and Bragança District. It is a tributary of the Douro River. The biggest and most important city it flows through is Mirandela. The Tua line The Tua ...

and Sabor River. There is an airport at Vila Real: Aerodromo de Vila Real/

Douro The Douro (, , ; es, Duero ; la, Durius) is the highest-flow river of the Iberian Peninsula. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province, central Spain, meanders south briefly then flows generally west through the north-west part o ...

RL The

Douro railway line Linha do Douro is a railway in northern Portugal. For much of its route the line runs close to the Douro River, offering very scenic views of the river and valley. Trains on the line are operated by Comboios de Portugal (CP). Constructio ...

was completed in 1887. The narrow gauge branch lines in the area (such as the Corgo line) are now all closed. The main monuments are the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

and Mateus Palace in Vila Real, and the Remedios and Sé/cathedral in Lamego. The Alto Douro Wine Region and the

Prehistoric Rock-Art Site of the Côa Valley Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

are both classified by UNESCO as heritage sites. DouroVallei105923 2012

The University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro is situated in Vila Real.

References

External links

Official website CIM Douro
{{Regions of Portugal Intermunicipal communities of Portugal Norte Region, Portugal