Portugal Itinerary 2.0

With respect to your lodging questions, my husband and I stayed at both Santiago de Alfama Boutique Hotel and Casa Balthazar in Lisbon 5 years ago. I liked the former, but I absolutely loved Casa Balthazar and would highly recommend it. The location in Chiado is also much more convenient and it has incredible views of the city.

We also spent 3 nights in Evora and stayed at the AdC as well. We loved it and did all those day trips which I’d also recommend. Also they have great restaurant recommendations for Evora, so definitely take them. They were also really helpful scheduling winery visits for us if that’s something that interests you.

Thanks for your response, ebennett2. I checked out Casa Balthazar and it does look very nice and convenient to many sites. I'll certainly keep that in mind. I also apprecciate your confirmation that my Evora lodging and side trips look very good as well.

I look forward to more feedback, especially on the post-Porto drive portion of the trip. Does driving from the Douro Valley and staying in Tomar 2-3 nights make sense for seeing Obidos, Nazare, and the monasteries before heading to Marvao? We usually rent a car for our entire trip but was advised to train from Lisbon to Coimbra to Porto and get a car afterwards.

Ebennet12, I took your recommendation and booked Casa Balthazar for our Lisbon stay. I really couldn't lose either way but I believe you are correct -- Casa Balthazar is much more convenient, especially for a first time visitor, and the place looks great!

From previous responses, here's what I've booked for May 2023:

Lisbon (5 nights) - Casa Balthazar - excursions to Sintra and, perhaps, Cascais
Coimbra (2 nights) - Hotel Vitoria - excursion to Conimbriga Roman Ruins
Porto (4 nights) - InPatio Guesthouse - excursion to Braga, Bom Jesus, Guimaraes
Pick up rental car in Porto and head to ...
Douro Valley (3 nights) - Casa do Romezal - visit Lamego, scenic drive to Sao Joao da Pesqueira
Tomar (2 nights) - Thomar Boutique Hotel - excursion to Batalha and Alcobaca Monasteries
Marvao (2 nights) - Dom Dinis - visit Castelo de Vide
Evora (3 nights) - Albergaria do Calvario - visit Elvas, Estremoz, and Monsaraz
Lagos (4 nights) - Hotel Marina Rio - excursion to Benagil Cave, visit Salema, Sagres

We're still undecided about the Algarve. It's not a must do, but we do have the time. I will let my husband decide if he thinks the drive to Lagos is worth it to him. It looks to be 3 hours from Evora which isn't bad, but I have read that it can be cool and windy in May so that's the bigger concern since it's supposed to be a restful 'post trip (ideally warm and sunny) beach vacation' before heading home. Meandering up the coast thru Aljezur, Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano, etc. to a hotel near the airport sounds like a good way to spend our last day in Portugal, too. If you have any thoughts on this I'd love to hear them. Thanks, again!!

Hi, mcalico, sorry for just now seeing this thread.

I stayed in Casa Balthazar in Lisbon in 2019. You will love it. If you were able to get one of the rooms with a terrace, even better. It's an oasis of calm right in the middle of the city.

If you're considering the Algarve, my partner and I spent three nights in Carvoeiro and had a delightful time. We stayed at O Castelo Guest House, which is on the cliff beach, and slept with the doors open so we could hear the ocean waves at night. We were a 90-second walk to the beach, our room had a huge terrace with two chairs and a table overlooking the beach, and as an added bonus, O Castelo was also the least expensive place we stayed in the entire country (but it is also a very small hotel, so it's best to book early). Carvoeiro is definitely a little bit touristy, but the beach is literally right there, and there are walking trails that connect you to other beaches nearby. Lots of great food options. Silves is about 20 minutes away and makes for a great day trip. We thought Carvoeiro was a perfect place to recharge in the middle of our trip. We had a car with us and there was no problem parking in front of the hotel, but you do not need one to get around to shops/restaurants. We walked everywhere.

For the Douro Valley, we had a great lunch at Quinta de la Rosa. Pinhao is a cute town that could be a fine home base in the Douro Valley, as well. We cashed out credit card points and splurged to stay at Six Senses Douro Valley, which is the nicest hotel I have ever stayed at. There are so many well regarded hotels/inns in Douro that I think it's probably hard to go wrong.

I'll follow this thread--we went on a two-week trip in May and it was amazing. You'll have a great time.

Thanks for your feedback on Casa Balthazar and the suggestion of O Castelo, blakewhitney82! I hadn't considered Carvoeiro and I'm checking it out. You get the idea....a recharge!! Our Douro Valley stay is supposed to be a recharge from our Lisbon > Coimbra > Porto city leg and the Algarve from our Tomar > Marvao > Evora leg...all with several side trips. I'll show my husband his options. :-) Thanks, again.

We have stayed at the Hotel da Baixa in Lisbon twice. We like the hotel and location. We also stayed at the Thomar Boutique in Tomar in Oct. 2019. We enjoyed that hotel and location as well. We went back to Tomar in Oct. 2021 and stayed at the Hotel Republica on the square and had an extremely disappointing experience. In Tomar, don't miss the quirky matchbook museum and tile workshop next door. If you have any interest in Roman ruins at all, visit Conimbriga. Bring a picnic lunch. There are lunch tables in the field at the entrance. In Evora, we recommend the ox tail stew at Cafe Alentejo. In Coimbra, if you like Italian food we recommend Il Tartufo (the owner is from Sardinia); António dos Leitoes for suckling pig sandwiches. We thought Monsaraz was lovely and worth a visit. We did not care for Obidos as it was too crowded and touristy.