Hi all,
We are planning our first trip to Portugal next Spring. Do you have a weather preference between April or May? Is it too much to try and see Porto (other wine region), Lisbon and Lagos in 8-9 days? We are a group pf active 50-60 year olds. Any recommendations for guides or tours also appreciated. Anything we should not miss?
Thanks in advance.
Cristina Duarte (http://www.lisbonbeyond.pt/faqs.html) is a RS tour guide and is in very high demand as she leads many RS tours. She comes highly recommended. Her partner (Pedro Lourenco) is also excellent. Cristina appears in the most recent RS Lisbon program.
Here's a link to that: https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/video/tv-show/lisbon
Yes, Porto, Lisbon and Lagos are too much for 8-9 days.
I suggest cutting Lagos.
You don’t have time for all three, as it takes time to get around, so I would drop Lagos. April means school Easter holidays when places are busier and more expensive, thus I would travel in May, when the days are longer and the weather warmer.
How big is your group? Do you want to hire a bus or minibus and driver or are you doing it all using public transportation? If the latter, keep in mind that the group can only go as fast as the slowest person. Changing locations can be very time-consuming.
I will echo the suggestion to skip the Algarve. With only 8-9 days, covering two places will be much more enjoyable than three.
May is usually warmer and sunnier than April. But the weather this year has been so strange, predicting what’s typical is getting harder. Definitely avoid the week before and after Easter. A lot of Spanish travel to Portugal for their Easter break, making it more crowded.
In Porto - Taste Porto is a very good food tour, if your group is into that. You can also take a day trip to the Douro valley while there. There are many small group tours. CoolTour Oporto is a good company for both Porto and Lisbon.
So some research, including RS but not exclusively.
Thank you all. Right now, there are 4 in our group.
