Hello fellow travelers. We are going to London for a week (for a work trip) in April and my husband has requested that we extend our stay for another week to see the sights of Portugal. So, I need your help. He really wants to visit the Algarve region and I would like to see Lisbon as well. We will have 7 days of sightseeing (including the day we fly in) and will fly out on the 8th day. I am just trying to figure out if it's better to fly to Lisbon and work our way south OR fly to Faro and then work our way north. We would probably rent a car for travel outside of Lisbon, unless you have other ideas that would work better. I also am sure it would be easier to fly out of Lisbon, but I could be wrong :) I am open to suggestions. I have done lots of travel in Europe, but first time going to Portugal, so any help/thoughts/suggestions/must sees/don't sees would be appreciated! Thanks in advance :)
Posted by
40 posts
Honestly, I'd run the flight prices and decide that way. The drive between Faro and Lisbon is not hard (just did it last month). You are smart to limit to 2 main areas with only 6 full days, though even this may feel rushed depending on what you want to do in each area. You should also look at which area of the coast he would like to see/experience. Faro airport is smaller than Lisbon, but there is a decent chance you would fly from there to Lisbon to transfer to your flight home.
Check out the trip reports section of the forum and search for Portugal--you'll get quite a few helpful threads.
Posted by
OP
USA
7 posts
Thanks @acher, I will continue to search on the forum. I also went and read your posts, thanks for all of the helpful info :)
Posted by
40 posts
You are quite welcome--hope you found some other good trip reports as well!
For Lisbon, I don't know if I regret not seeing Sintra. The stories about the daily crowds made it less appealing given our limited time. April crowds may be much better than July, though, if it is on your list! I would have taken some more time in Belem, but I was happy with what we did do.
You didn't mention in the original ask, but be sure and check your trip dates against Easter.
Posted by
436 posts
If it's available flying into one city and flying out from another will save you the time to backtrack, however most often Lisbon has more flight choice and better prices.
In Lisbon you can use public transit, the train and the subway are the most efficient.
Train site
https://www.cp.pt/passageiros/en
Metro site
https://www.metrolisboa.pt/en/travel/diagrams-and-maps/
You can travel from Lisbon to the Algarve by train or bus but once you're there a car is a big plus if you want to check out different towns, public transit is not as good in the Algarve ( with a few exceptions).
The Algarve is most known for golf, beaches and warmer weather plus a few natural areas.
Lisbon and surrounding areas are busy city areas with normal city life (restaurants, shows ,etc) ,monuments ( both inside and outside Lisbon), there are also beaches within 30 minutes of Lisbon towards Cascais.
Posted by
OP
USA
7 posts
@aulopone thank you, great advice!