We (husband and I) picked Caldas because of its central location and a great looking Turismo rural/farmstay. We will have a rental car. Our list of possibles includes Tomar/Convento de Cristo; Batalha and/or Alcobaça; Obidos; and maybe Cascais? (We only have one night in Lisbon so aren't planning to do anything then besides Lisbon. I think many people visit Cascais while in Lisbon. We have 4 nights in the Algarve so if Cascais is just another nice beach, we don't really need to see it.)
It is our first trip to Portugal. We love history and culture, food and wine, natural beauty (but we are not sporty--a sedate walk or a tranquil viewpoint suits us fine). We also don't want to spend our time running hither and yon for the sake of a list. Tomar is so far top of my list because of the Knights Templar connection, and the antiquity of the original Templar church within the Convento complex. I'd also love to add something more experiential to those days, maybe a ginjinha tasting in Obidos, or a cooking class or a great market...
What are your thoughts about the possibilities in this area?
Editing to add, we will be there in about 3 weeks, early October.