Flying into Lisbon and spending five nights there, then spending two nights in Porto. Heading to The Algarve from there but looking for a place to stay for one night or is it better to take the train straight to The Algarve? Thanks for any suggestions.
Posted by
11156 posts
The more you visit between Porto and the Algarve the better. Coimbra is very intersting as is Evora. Why not spend a night in each of these?
Posted by
Cascais, Portugal
1669 posts
With only 12 nights, I would skip the Algarve. There are beaches close to Lisbon and a lot to see between Porto and Lisbon that are much more authentic Portugal than the Algarve. Evora in the Alentejo is also pretty amazing. You can easily see quite a bit in 12 days that will give you a much better feel for the country than spending the extra time it takes to go all the way to the Algarve.
Posted by
88 posts
What time of year?
The Serra da Estrela mountain area is beautiful. Look up the historic villages of the area, like Monsanto. We just returned 2 weeks ago, and I'm so happy we spent 3 nights in Belmonte as a base, and did day tours. The Zezere glacial valley was very impressive.
Also spent 3 nights in Sintra, which is long but also to get over jet-lag. The gardens are amazing. Public transportation is great in Lisbon, you can split time in Sintra or do it as a day trip. It's 45 minutes from the Oriente train/metro station, which is only 3 stops from the airport.
A day tram pass was about 6.50E, and covered subways, buses, funiculars and elevators.
Porto and the Douro Valley will have to wait until next time for us. And you may have a next time, as Portugal was inexpensive (especially away from Sintra), and the people very friendly, good food, coffee, Ginja liquor...yeah you'll have a good time.
Posted by
Tunbridge Wells
6113 posts
I would consider beaches closer to Lisbon (Foz do Arelho or Nazare) rather than wasting a day travelling from Porto to the Algarve. Do you then need to spend another half day getting back to Lisbon?
Five nights means 4 days and if your first day is lost to jet lag, then you are short changing Lisbon. Allowing half a day door to door to Porto, you could add another night there if you want to see the Douro.