Hello wonderful advisors!
We are coming from Australia and having a week in Portugal. We are flying into Porto from Amsterdam on Oct 27 (as early in the day as we can), and will leave from Lisbon by train into Spain on Nov 3. We will travel from Porto to Lisbon by train.
We are not sure whether to have 3 nights Porto, 4 nights Lisbon or vice versa. What would you all recommend?
I am leaning towards 4 nights in Porto as we'd like to include a trip to the Douro Valley. However, then there is a daytrip to Sintra out of Lisbon! Given the time of year, would Sintra be worth going to? We're not particularly looking for a beach vibe, especially in November, but do enjoy scenery. We are more wandering the city streets kind of people, bars, restaurants - we usually do a couple of touristy things such as HOHO bus, river cruises along with whatever interesting things we come across.
What is the weather likely to be at that time of year?
Posted by
431 posts
Check your itinerary from Lisbon to Spain by train - no direct train is available.
Where's your destination in Spain - that will make a difference on the mode of transportation and departure city.
October November use to be the start of the rainy season but now December seem to be the start.
It's possible you might see some rain but most likely it will of a short duration.
The North has more rain and more frequently, I would check the weather forecast to determine which to visit first , Porto or Lisbon.
Posted by
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
5267 posts
Aulopone beat me to it, a train from Lisbon to Spain will be challenging. Last Fall we used EasyJet from Porto to Barcelona and Barcelona to Lisbon, it's easy and cheap.
As for how many days in each, toss a coin. We enjoyed Porto more but Lisbon was also very good. Our favourite day in Lisbon was a daytrip to Sintra. We were in Portugal late September/early October and had a couple of rainy days in Lisbon. It was sunny and warm in Porto. Here's a link to my Trip Report if you think it will be helpful. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-part-1-hills-and-castles-portugal
Posted by
OP
Geelong, Victoria, Australia
3 posts
Thank-you both very much! Especially for the tip on training it from Lisbon to Spain.
We have only two weeks in Spain - so realised we needed to choose between the south and the north. Our plan was to go from Lisbon to the south - Seville, or maybe Cadiz - we haven't sorted that itinerary out yet, but we would have a week in the south, then to Madrid by train for 3 or 4 nights, then to Barcelona for 3 or 4 nights (same dilemma as Porto/Lisbon - which one to give the extra night to!). We fly out of Barcelona on Monday Nov 17, so need to finish there.
I will look at flights instead of the train out of Lisbon to Seville.
Thank-you!