Parques do Rio Ave

The PR 8 STS forms a circular route, connecting all the urban parks in the city of Santo Tirso, with the Ave River serving as its defining feature.

Every two years, Santo Tirso hosts five renowned sculptors for the International Sculpture Symposium, who create works of art for the municipality that will join those already in place, located in various parts of the city.

Crafted from a wide variety of materials—such as granite, typical of the region, or steel, marble, or iron —the sculptures are part of a permanent outdoor exhibition that, by 2009, will feature 50 previously unseen works of art, allowing the public to enjoy these pieces, which transform the green public spaces of Santo Tirso into gathering places for interaction, where a special and intimate relationship is established between the sculpture, its surroundings, and its audience. This could be the starting point for a tour of contemporary Santo Tirso, organized by the Santo Tirso City Council, under the artistic direction of Alberto Carneiro (national) and Gérard Xuriguera (international),

D. Maria II Park and the Adjacent Gardens—Largo Abade Pedrosa and Ribeiro de Miranda Gardens— together constitute key public green spaces in the city of Santo Tirso.

The purpose of this space would be to improve communications with the municipality’s central administrative bodies and facilitate at the Santo Tirso market, as well as to take advantage of the landscape’s potential.

This space features a tea house, a lake, and a bandstand.

With a naturalistic layout and lush tree cover, D. Maria II Park is a special place for daily enjoyment.

Rabada Urban Park covers an area of 96,274 m². It is set within a forest of oak and cork oak trees, overlooking the Ave River.

The main objective is to enhance the existing natural features by creating infrastructure and facilities that allow for the enjoyment of a public green space integrated into the Urban Green Structure of the city of Santo Tirso and the plan for the Restoration of the Ave River Banks.

The program is based on revitalizing the space through the creation of walking paths, rest areas, and recreational areas.