O penhasco está perto; contudo, o percurso é seguro.

In Portuguese, estar is normally used for location or state, so está perto means is near / is nearby.

• O penhasco está perto = The cliff is nearby
• É would not sound natural here.

A useful rule:

• ser = identity, permanent characteristics, definition
• estar = location, condition, situation

So for physical location, estar is the normal choice.

Portuguese uses the definite article much more often than English.

Here:

• o penhasco = the cliff
• o percurso = the route / the path / the course

Even when English might sometimes omit the, Portuguese often keeps it. In this sentence, both nouns are presented as specific things in the situation being discussed, so o is natural.

Also, both nouns are masculine singular, which is why the article is o.

Contudo means however / nevertheless / even so. It introduces a contrast:

• the cliff is near
• contudo, the route is safe

It is correct and natural, but it sounds a bit more formal or written than mas.

For comparison:

• ..., contudo, ... = ..., however, ...
• ..., mas ... = ..., but ...

So this sentence has a slightly more formal or polished tone because of contudo.

Yes, absolutely.

A more everyday version would be:

O penhasco está perto, mas o percurso é seguro.

That sounds very natural in spoken Portuguese.
Using contudo is still correct, but it feels a little more formal or literary.

The semicolon separates two closely connected independent clauses:

• O penhasco está perto
• contudo, o percurso é seguro

This punctuation helps show a strong contrast in a more formal written style.

Other possibilities are also possible:

• O penhasco está perto. Contudo, o percurso é seguro.
• O penhasco está perto, contudo, o percurso é seguro.

The semicolon just gives it a slightly more careful, formal written feel.

Percurso usually means route, course, path, or itinerary, depending on context. In this sentence, it suggests the route you take is safe.

It is similar to caminho, but not always identical:

• caminho = path, way, road, route; often more general and very common
• percurso = route/course taken, often a bit more specific or formal

So:

• o caminho é seguro = the path/way is safe
• o percurso é seguro = the route/course is safe

Both can work, but percurso sounds a bit more like the route itself.

Because seguro agrees with o percurso, which is a masculine singular noun.

Agreement in Portuguese:

• masculine singular: seguro
• feminine singular: segura
• masculine plural: seguros
• feminine plural: seguras

Examples:

• o percurso é seguro
• a estrada é segura

So the adjective changes to match the noun it describes.

It can mean both in different contexts, but here it clearly means safe.

Examples:

• É seguro caminhar aqui. = It is safe to walk here.
• Estou seguro de que... = I am sure that...

In your sentence, because it describes o percurso, the meaning is safe.

Because here perto is being used absolutely, meaning simply nearby.

• O penhasco está perto. = The cliff is nearby.

When you say what something is near to, you normally use perto de:

• O penhasco está perto do caminho. = The cliff is near the path.
• Está perto da praia. = It is near the beach.

So:

• perto alone = nearby
• perto de
  • noun = near something

Yes. That is very natural.

For example:

• Contudo, o percurso é seguro.

If the previous sentence already mentioned the cliff, starting with Contudo works very well. Portuguese is flexible here.

You could also say:

• O penhasco está perto. Contudo, o percurso é seguro.

That may even sound a bit cleaner in many contexts.

Yes, it can be natural, especially when the context is clear.

It means the cliff is close by relative to the speaker, the route, or the place being discussed.

For example, if people are talking about a hiking trail, O penhasco está perto makes sense as:

• the cliff is close to where you are
• or close to the route under discussion

If you wanted to be more explicit, you could say:

• O penhasco está perto do trilho. = The cliff is near the trail.

A rough guide in European Portuguese:

• O often sounds like u in unstressed position
• está sounds roughly like shtá
• perto sounds roughly like PEHR-tu
• contudo often sounds like kun-TOO-du
• percurso sounds roughly like per-KUR-su
• seguro sounds roughly like suh-GOO-ru

A few European Portuguese features to notice:

• unstressed vowels are often reduced
• s before t in está gives a sh-like sound
• final unstressed vowels are less open and less fully pronounced than in many other varieties

Yes, slightly.

The main reasons are:

• contudo is more formal than mas
• the semicolon gives it a careful written style
• percurso can sound a bit more formal or technical than caminho

A more everyday spoken version might be:

O penhasco está perto, mas o caminho é seguro.

Your original sentence is still perfectly correct and natural, especially in written Portuguese.

Yes, depending on the exact meaning you want.

Some related words:

• penhasco = cliff, crag
• falésia = cliff, especially a coastal cliff
• precipício = precipice, very steep drop, often with a stronger sense of danger

So:

• penhasco is a good general choice
• falésia is common for seaside cliffs
• precipício sounds more dramatic or dangerous

That means the exact noun can slightly change the tone of the sentence.