Sometimes referred to as town of wool and snow, Covilhã is one of the main urban centres of the historical Beira Interior region.

Covilhã's history dates back to the days when it was a pre-historical settlement, a shelter for Lusitanian shepherds, and a Roman fortress known as Cava Juliana or Silia Hermínia.

And, later, it was king Denis of Portugal who ordered the construction of the walls of the admirable medieval district of Portas do Sol.

It was already in the Middle Ages one of the main "villages of the kingdom", a situation later confirmed by the fact that great natives from the city or its surroundings became decisive in all the great Portuguese Discoveries of the 15th and 16th centuries: the advance in the Atlantic Ocean, the sea route to India, the discoveries of America and Brazil, the first circumnavigation of the Earth.

In full population expansion when the Renaissance appeared, the economic sector was particularly important in agriculture, pastoralism, fruit-growing, and forestry.

Covilhã personalities such as Frei Diogo Alves da Cunha, who is buried in the Church of Conceição, participated in the event.

The two streams that come down from the Serra da Estrela, Carpinteira and Degoldra, cross the urban center and were at the origin of the industrial development.

Along the two streams that cross the city there are still remains of the old textile factories, which bear witness to the unquestionable importance of this industry for Covilhã's economy, once known as the "Portuguese Manchester".

The Panasqueira mines in the municipality of Covilhã started production in 1898 and at the time of World War II, about 10,000 people worked in there.

During the 1960s, Covilhã's municipality surpassed 70,000 inhabitants, but the Portuguese Colonial War (1961–1974) and the generalized emigration phenomena of the 1960s to 1980s Portuguese society, its geographical location in the mountainous interior of central Portugal, increasing mechanization, and the stagnation of its textile industrial sector caused a period of decline of its population to nearly 50,000 in the 1990s.

The city is still expanding, mainly to the flat part of the valley, called Cova da Beira, where some important infrastructure, such as the central hospital and the highway, are located.

Covilhã is located in the Centro region, Cova da Beira subregion, in central Portugal; 300 km (186 mi) Northeast of Lisbon, Portugal's capital; 100 km (62 mi) East of Coimbra, the regional administrative centre; and at the bottom of the highest Portuguese mountain range, Serra da Estrela.

At 1,500 metres (4,821 ft) high, this village and winter resort is located within the Serra da Estrela Natural Park.

The Serra da Estrela Ski Resort, the only one in Portugal, lies about 20 km (12.4 mi) away from the city, already in the neighbouring municipality of Seia.

The cold increases according to altitude, varying from higher temperatures in the lower parts of the municipality, to colder temperatures with frequent and sometimes abundant snowfalls during the cold months in the higher areas, such as Penhas da Saúde, above 1,500 meters of altitude, 9 km away from the highest point of mainland Portugal, the Torre Plateau.

Major economic activities in the region include textiles, food production, agriculture, tourism and mining.

The Centro Hospitalar Universitário Cova da Beira at Covilhã, a state-run university hospital, plays a major role in the region.

The textile industry produces about 40,000 km of fabric per year, mainly through companies like Paulo de Oliveira,[8] Penteadora,[9] Tessimax[10] and A. Saraiva, which supply large worldwide textile and fashion brands such as Hugo Boss, Armani, Zegna, Marks & Spencer, Yves St. Laurent, Calvin Klein and Christian Dior.

Fruit production is important in the region of Cova da Beira, a subregion centered in Covilhã's municipality.

Hypermarkets and supermarkets located in the lower part of the town include Continente (inside Serra Shopping), Intermarché, Pingo Doce, and Lidl.

Covilhã hosts one of the biggest data centres in Europe, with the capacity to store 30 petabytes of information at onset.

The City Hall of Covilhã is responsible for the cultural programming of one of the movie theatres of the town which has a wide variety of activities throughout the year.

The theatre company GICC (Companhia de Teatro das Beiras), based in Travessa da Tapa, offers professional, high-quality performances.

a freshman reception week, organised by the students' union of the University of Beira Interior (Associação Académica da Universidade da Beira Interior), takes place usually in November and includes a parade through town called Latada and several concerts.

[16] The pastel de molho, a typical pastry of Covilhã made with a meat-based core and a saffron-based sauce, is regarded as the city’s gastronomic delicacy.

This scenic stretch of mountainous rural line provides the strategic last leg of the Beira Baixa Railway linking it to Guarda via Belmonte.