Please sign in to post.

Need Intinery advice on 16 day visit to Portugal

My husband and I are in our early 70"s and this will be our first visit. Could use some advice. Here are our plans. We are flying out of Chicago.
Fly to Lisbon and stay 5 nights..day trip to Sintra, Estoril, and Cascais...can we visit all 3 in one day using the rail?
Day 6 pick up rental car and drive to Evora..2 nts with day trip to Alvas and maybe another town.
Day 8 drive to Nazare stopping in Obidos on way. 3 nts stay here with day trips to Alcobaca, Batalha. Fatima. We are not sure if this is the right town to stay in? Wanted somewhere easy because of rental car and somewhere restful? Any advice here?
Day 11 drive to Coimbra for 2 nts.
Day 13 drive to Porto turn in car and stay for 4 nights and catching flight home from Porto. Maybe do a day trip from here..any suggestions?

We like culture. museums, architecture, and scenic views..and wine, not port so much. Thank you for any suggestions. Karen

Posted by
395 posts

Porto - river trip or train trip up the Douro River

My personal feeling (We are 68/59 and planning a 22 day trip in September) is that you trying to cram in too much.

Posted by
1499 posts

We are also in our early 70's and have been to Portugal many times. We are also in our early 70s and have found that we just can't do what we used to do. It seems we walk more slowly and get tired more quickly. You didn't say if this is your normal traveling pace, but if not, you may have to adjust your itinerary to allow for more time at each sight. Just a few thoughts.

Lisbon: Regarding Sintra, Estoril, and Cascais: Depending on what you visit in Sintra it could take the better part of a day. You will have to take the train to Sintra, which takes about one hour, and then a bus or taxi to the Pena Palace, if you plan to see that sight. There are also other sights in Sintra which could fill your day. You can visit Estoril and Cascais in one day as they're just a short train ride from Lisbon and each other. They are similar towns and if you're short on time you can pick one.

Evora: With 2 nights in Evora you will have 1.5 days to explore that town. If you want to take one day away, a day trip to Elvas would be interesting. You might check Monsaraz for another day trip. About 5km south of Monsaraz you can see Xerez menhir and chromelech, a prehistoric stone circle. With so little time in Evora you really have time for one day trip if any at all.
Nazare: Obidos is interesting and cute but will not take more than a few hours at most to explore. We have stayed in Nazare many times and enjoyed the town very much. This would be a restful stay as it is on the sea with great sea views. With 3 nights you will have 2.5 days there, enough time to explore Nazare and Sitio, the town on the hill above, and also to take two day trips to see the three towns you plan to visit and still have peaceful walks along the promenade.

Coimbra: On your way there you might want to stop at Conimbriga the sight of Roman ruins almost 2,000 years old. You could probably see the site in a couple of hours or less.
Porto: You could take a day trip to Guimaraes. It takes less than 1 hr by car but 1.5 hrs by train, per google maps. We have never taken a Douro boat trip but many people enjoy them and that is another day trip option.

I hope this information is of some help. There is always so much more to see than we expect and it's difficult to choose. Have fun!

Posted by
1 posts

Hi Karen,

Having just returned from 2 weeks in Portugal, with time split between the Lisbon area and Lagos in Algarve, I may be able to offer some suggestions for these locations.

First of all, Lisbon itself, takes 2-3 days alone. Put on your walking shoes and head out and explore. I based in Chaido, right on the square, and then headed out in basically 2 directions. The three neighborhood walking tours in RS Portugal book was an excellent reference. I found that going high was a good way to start, working past the elevator and large square (name escapes me), and then heading up towards the castle. (PLEASE NOTE: pickpockets abound. I am now the owner of a new iPhone thanks to a clever individual who liberated the old one from my pocket.). From the top of the hill, it was wonderful to just head back down through one of the main neighborhoods. I went down through Alfama on the last day, and that is not to be missed, particularly if you take the small staircases, and end up is some very interesting places. Much fun! and at the bottom, a river walk is always delightful, ending up in the other big square right on the river.

While it does not seem to be covered much in the guide books, I found Cascais to be wonderful. I spent a week based there, really to much if you are in country to sight see. But I was there to check out potential living locations. Cascais is much more relaxed than is Lisbon, and really does not have a lot to see, but it makes for a nice day trip to take the train towards Lisbon a few stops, have a look at the neighborhoods, and then walk back to Cascais along the water. Mine was a relaxing trip, not one of seeing everything, so yours will be different I'm sure.

I took a bus from Lisbon to Algarve, although I was told that the train was also very nice as well. And I spent my time in Lagos while there. It is very different from the Lisbon area in that it was almost exclusively reliant on tourism. The food was good, and the sights OK, however I would not recommend spending a lot of time there. In my case, I may have stayed a day longer than was needed, but we did get a nice day of bike riding to the next town (Luz).

Other things that were seen around Lisbon/Cascais included renting a car and heading up the west coast for a bit. There was a stop in Sintra, along with a big rain storm. Not sure I could recommend driving to Sintra, in that the bus service there is very good, and parking is very hard. I also continued north up the coast to a town called Ericiera. This was an accident, but it turned out to be a wonderful accident. Very beautiful little town that appears to cater to surfers. An old guy in the park told me it used to be fishing, but no more. If you are planning to head up to Porto by car, worth the stop, if only for lunch.

Jim

Posted by
20 posts

Thank-you everyone for thoughts and suggestions! We may have to add a few days to our trip!