Portugal for Spontaneous Travelers

Well, we really enjoyed two days in Coimbra. We even spent some time in the Busaco Forest. It's not a blockbuster-sight kind of place (do they even have those in Portugal?) but if you really have a whole month it might be worth a visit.

Nazare is a real winner, Rick is right about that. We drove up in mid-September and were able to get a room within earshot the the lapping waves for 30 Euros a night without a reservation. Rick only gives Lisbon two nights, but we spent five nights and four full days and left wishing we had had more time there. As far as art is concerned, the Gulbenkian is a wonderful collection. Sintra is a must for a couple of nights overnight. A day trip just does not do it justice. We also went to Tomar for the convent/castle. We stayed overnight but doing it as a stop on a day trip would be fine. The same for Marvao, high in the mountains with spectacular views into Spain. Although I would consider staying overnight in Marvao the next time we visit Portugal.

We loved everynight and every stop in our 8 nights in Portugal. As fellow wine lowers, highly recommend Porto and visting several port houses. We toured Grahams and Taylors and both had great tours. I'm in the wine business and learned so much about port and now am hooked on 20 year tawnys. We stayed at a quaint inn/hotel right on the plaza and could see everything from our window. If you are interested, I'll dig up the name. We only spent 1 night in Porto but easily could have done 2-3 nights. Also highly recommend a trip up the Douro. Since you have time, spend 2-3 nights at a Quinta and enjoy the surrounding vineyards and views. We stayed at Qunita Nova (also a winery), ate at the hotel both nights and spent a good part of one day wandering through the vineyards down to the river, and back up to the top of the vineyards. There's an amazing amount of history with vineyards and the port industry. We visited Foncesca's winery and Quinta de Crasto is another winery to visit. They receive good ratings in Wine Spectator. There was also a wonderful restaurant in a nice hotel in Pinhau. Our "find" was Alcacel de Sol, just south of Lisbon. We stayed at a Pousada there for two nights, solely because I wanted to stay in a castle. This town wasn't mentioned in any of the tourist books, but we throughly enjoyed our stay and walked everyplace. There is a plaza with alot of little restaurants along a river. This was the only place in Portugal where we came across people that didn't speak any English, so the RS translater book came in handy. Sagres is also a must see. In Lisbon we walked up to St Jorges castle which was awesome. Then, we visited the Port Institute for an afternoon glass of port. Enjoy Portugal! We want to go back, but other places keep calling our name. So this year it's Germany and Italy.

We travel in a similar style and over the years we've spent several months in Portugal and love it. Starting in the north, Porto, history, cathedrals. Guimaraes for a great castle and cathedral. It's also close to Citania de Briteiros, ruins of an iron age city. Braga is also a good place to visit. Douro Valley for the wines. In Sept 2010 we stayed in Pinhao at Hotel Douro and loved it; great dinners. You can also do a side trip to Coa Valley to see 15 - 30,000 yr old rock engravings, reservations needed as the engravings are fragile. Moving south, Tomar for it's monastery and you can also visit an abandoned castle in Ourem and Castel de Almoural a Roman fortress on an island. Coimbra for the university, history, and cathedrals. Nazare, check Adega Oceano right on the ocean, and you can do day trips to Alcobaca and Batalha and Porto de Mos, monastaries and castles. Obidos for a walled city. Mafra, another monastary and castle. Sintra for the castles. Move south towards the Algarve and there's Sagres, Quarteira (less crowded than other beach towns), Tavira and Faro. In the interior there is Serpa, Beja, and Evora, with Roman ruins. You could fly into Porto and out of Lisbon and save Lisbon for last as you won't need a car in the city. Another poster mentioned Ponte de Lima which was recommended to us on our last trip and is on our list for the next trip. Also, Alcacer do Sal which is an interesting castle and Pousada. Driving through Portugal you will see signs for many castles, some maintained and others not, and will be limited in what you see only by your time. Check out portugaltravelguide.com and discoverportugal2day.com for more ideas. Portugal has many UN World Heritage sights. Alghough it's a small country, you'll have a hard time narrowing the selections. Have a great time!

I am more of a nature/history/walking traveler, but my favorites in Portugal were Lisbon (funiculars, trams, just walking around, great viewpoints, easy public transportation), Sagres/Cape St. Vincent (amazing views), and Sintra (Moorish Castle). It's been almost 4 years since I've been to Portugal. Wish I could go back soon. Have a blast!

We really liked Ponte de Lima. It's a very pretty & interesting town, and seems relatively undiscovered. It's up in the northwest corner, north of Porto. There are some old manor homes there that also operate as B&B's. We stayed at one called the Quinta de Vermil. Also, it's only about a 1 1/2 hour drive from there to Santiago de Compostela, Spain, the great medieval pilgrimage destination. If you haven't been to Santiago, the cathedral alone is totally worth the trip.

Hello to everyone who replied to my Portugal inquiryThank you! Now I have a lot of ideas of where to go and what to see thanks to your information.