Spain and Portugal Itinerary Help

I wouldn't reduce your time in Seville.

There are no trains from the Algarve to Spain. You can pick up a bus to Seville in Faro.

You wouldn't want to rent a car in Portugal and drop it off in Spain because of the horrendous international drop charge, but using a car for a couple of days between Seville and Granada would allow you to see a few of the white villages and Ronda without being limited by bus schedules. Trying to see the small places without a car means covering ground very slowly, and you don't have much time allotted to that part of Spain.

As of 2019 there was a company running one-day bus tours from Seville to Ronda and (I think) a couple of smaller towns. It didn't seem like a good idea to me--trying to cover too much, with not enough time for real sightseeing off the bus. I rejected that out of hand because I wanted more time in Ronda. I ended up spending a three nights in Ronda, using one day for a trip to Grazalema by public bus. From Seville (where I spent 6 nights) I did a day-trip by public bus to Arcos de la Frontera. You won't have time to deal with buses like I did.

You have shortchanged Porto. Your arrival day, most likely jet lagged, is all you give to Porto, a big mistake.

My response is coming from the perspective of a 50 year old woman. When I was in my early 30s I wouldn’t think twice about trying to cover 5 countries in 3 weeks. My travel style and budget are different now so that’s the perspective I bring to your draft itinerary.

We were in Portugal last month and I’ve been to Spain 4 times.

I agree that Porto is worth more time than you have planned. Portugal and Spain can be fairly hot in the summer so that might be worth keeping in mind- especially in the southern areas where you’re planning to be. It’s almost 4 hours by train from Porto to Lisbon so keep that in mind when thinking about how much time to give yourself in Lisbon. There are beaches near Lisbon and Porto so you could consider extending your time in either place to give you a beach day instead of spending time in transit to Lagos.

I think the decision that only you can make is how much time do you want to spend en route point to point and how much time do you want to give yourself in each place. There are many day trip options from Porto and Lisbon. When I read your itinerary I see it as a whirlwind tour of Spain and Portugal getting a very quick taste of many places. Is that what you’re aiming for? If so you have several wonderful places selected.

I recently returned from a cruise that included two ports in Spain and one in Portugal before I disembarked in Lisbon.

I will offer some thoughts.

Lisbon is incredible and beautiful and interesting. I stayed four nights which was not enough but I did go to Sintra which is well worth an entire day or at least several hours. I also would suggest Belem.

Between Lisbon and Sintra, you will see a lot of beautiful architectures, scenery, churches, sites, and museums.

I ported at Porto but chose an excursion to Braga (which has 80 churches)

In Spain I visited Bilbao and Santiago, not two cities that you asked about

But my point is that no matter where you choose to go, you are going to be seeing lots of everything that interests you. Every place was beautiful and interesting: lots of museums, churches, architecture, sites, walking, restaurants, history, culure etc

I was there mid to late October and most places were still very crowded and sometimes packed. Lisbon and Sintra were very crowded the end of October so I can not imagine what the crowds will be like in the summer.

Your itinerary does look to be a little bit hectic to me. I know that when we go places, sometimes we want to see everything but the reality is that we can not. Sometimes too much is just that, too much.

EDITED

I reread your itinerary and some more thoughts

Lisbon to Lagos is about four hours by train

You do not allow yourself time to find your hotels and check in on your itinerary

keep in mind the human condition -- that there will be times when you feel tired, even exhausted and maybe not feeling well such as when you first arrive by plane.

As someone else has said, it is probably going to be very hot.

But as I have previously said from what I have seen, heard or know, it is all going to be wonderful, beautiful and interesting.

My personal opinion is this itinerary has too much movement. Even in my early 30s, I did not like the idea of just dropping in and out of a place. I like to engage with a place even as a momentary passer-by. While some take pride and interest in being able to get to a place and tick it off their list, that kind of thing has never been an interest for me.

I would suggest at least one full day in Porto. Since you're not a beach person, why go to Algarve? Just skip it and spend more time in Lisbon / Porto / Douro Valley.

In sum, spend more time in fewer places.