PORTUGAL EXPERTS: Where to after Porto?

My vote would be for Santiago de Compostela. It sounds like you'd enjoy it based on your description of what you want to see. Maybe not so many Roman ruins but great architecture for sure. The food is excellent (lots of seafood) and the city is small enough to walk everywhere. I'm not sure about public transportation from Porto, but hopefully someone else will know.

Evora. It is really a hidden jewel that has what you are looking for. We were there 2 years ago, stayed in the heart of town, used the RS book for accommodations, dinners, and walking tours. Outside of Lisbon, probably our most enjoyable stay.

My vote is with Sharon. With your interest in stone building sculpture, you'd be hard-pressed to match the huge and magnificent cathedral of St. James in Santiago de Compostela. The city is one of the great historic destinations in Spain.

I had to look to see what the tour covered and Evora was on it. I agree with Jerry, you need more time in that area and the little hill towns between there and Elvas - - or more accurately to the north of Elvas. Exactly how you'd pull it off with public transportation I have no idea, but I've seen buses that didn't appear to be associated with tours - - maybe day excursions? The RS tour will probably also miss the double stone circles at Almendres, just to the east of Evora. The stretch from Lisbon to Porto is a bit sterile except for some beach resort type places - - even the fishing villages have been vaporized somehow. Santiago is quite a hike for a half-day project, but if you're just looking for a place to kill time that's easy to get to . . . . Transportation is going to be the stinking problem. As far as trains go, there's essentially just the main north-south line on the western edge and a bunch of dead-ends heading to the interior. The rest will have to be done by bus somehow. Portugal is a car place. Maybe somebody will have some better ideas. As far as airports go, who cares?

You can get from Porto to Santiago by train but it's a drag. At least going the other way you can't buy tickets in advance, the train times either require you to get up before dawn or arrive after dark, and you have to change trains on the way. You could stay in Porto and visit Braga, and Viana do Castelo, and perhaps spend more time in the Duoro valley but I think you may get better flights out of Lisbon. If it were me I'd go back to Lisbon - it's one of my favorite cities.

Thanks for your help. After Porto, I have decided to go to Santiago de Compestela. After I made that decision, I also decided that another trip to Portugal is necessary so that I can see the places ya'll told me about. Thank you again.

Hi Denise, We really liked Hotel Costa Vella in Santiago is you're looking for a place to stay. It's a little hard to find but really wonderful and within walking distance to the main part of town. http://www.costavella.com/