portugal itinerary

Your question is too general to answer in the 2000 character limit here. Start by looking at Rick Steves Portugal, and looking at his Portugal videos on Hulu or YouTube. Be aware that while Spain and Portugal are "right next to each other," the travel connections between them are often poor. This may dictate your itinerary more than it would elsewhere. Flights are often the best way to get between the two countries. The three airports in Portugal are Lisbon (central), Porto (north) and Faro (south). There's a pricey overnight train between Madrid and Lisbon, and there are buses, but these are limited and can leave at odd hours. And if you rent a car in one country and drop it in the other, prepare for very high drop off fees.

Thank you. The tips about transportation help. I haven't looked at Rick's video yet so will check that out.

We spent a week in Lisbon with a couple of side trips in June, 2011. We stayed in an apartment in the Alfama and walked or took public transportation almost everywhere. Perhaps we are easily entertained, but I love ceramic tile and Portugal is known for its tile work. So if you go, be sure to look down at the patterns under your feet and over at those on the building walls. We took the metro all over, just to see the amazing tile at the various stops. And we we went to the National Tile Museum, in a 16th century convent. Belem, with its pasteis, monastery, tower and Discoveries Monument is a not to be missed side trip. And then there is Fado. Just a couple of blocks from where we stayed is Sr. Fado. It's a very small place with room for 26 people. Dinner includes Fado on the right nights. They finish the meal service, close the doors, turn off the exterior lights and the music begins. One day we had lunch downtown at Martinho da Arcada. I had one of the best sweets ever, the Alentajano coffee cake made with pumpkin. Lisbon is the place for coffee and desserts and this was my favorite dessert that whole trip. Walking the very hilly city of Lisbon with its many staircases and viewpoints could count as hiking for anyone! Just search Google images for Lisbon and you will be amazed even without using any guidebooks at all. We did lots more than I listed, but these, along with a ride on Trolley #28, were some of our favorite things.

Where in Spain are you coming from? What city in Portugal are you going to? From which city in Portugal are you leaving? While Portugal is small it has a lot to offer. With 10 days you might see two or three areas but it's hard to recommend anything without knowing at least where you will start and where you're leaving from.

Thank you so much for the information. That is exactly what I was hoping to find out. We don't know yet where we're coming from (in Spain) or which cities in Portugal to do as we are just in the beginning stages of planning. That is why I wanted to know what people have really liked in Portugal so we can make a plan from there. We have been to Spain before so are familiar with it and know what we want to see I just haven't figured out how to do it all yet. It's good to know that you were able to get around good using public transportation. Thank you so much. Keep the info coming!

In 2011 we spent 7 weeks in Spain and Portugal ~ 5 of those weeks was on a driving tour. Last year we spent 5 further weeks in Spain... For us some of the highlights were... Obidos Tomar Lisbon Belem. This is the review on TA I did on "Inside Lisbon gourmet walking tour" We've done our fair share of walking tours over the years, a great way to get orientated when visiting a new town, we were so impressed with Inside Lisbons Gourmet Walking Tour, we booked The Original walking tour for the following day, but switched last minute to The Empire Lisbon walk (Belem) when we discovered that Paulo was leading it... The Gourmet Walking Tour with Paulo left us with a lasting memory of Lisbon, it was one of those evenings we'll remember years to come, not so much for the food but for the knowledge we gained thanks to Paulo and his infectious love of his country. Paulo enthusiastically shared his love of food and its history with us, we stopped at various shops & bars for samplings & tapa's while he explained why and how the flavours & foods we were eating came to be. 'mmmm the Ginjinha.. From the Voyages of discovery opening up new trading routes, to Monks, nuns, Port & Ginjinha, Paulo made it somehow come alive.... We learned about Ginjinha, port, wines, sampled Port and Marmalade the latter taken from the Portugese word and not 'English' we learned why the Portugese eat and love that weired looking dry cod. how their famous 'egg tarts' came to be, all the while munching and sipping our way around town. We couldn't have had a better informed guide, he was very generous with his time as well as knowledge... I can't speak highly enough of Paulo, we plan to return to Lisbon within the next few years, a Inside Lisbon tour will be top of our list of things to do..
Visited October 2011

I'm cheating tonight and posting reviews that I did on TA which will give you an idea of a few things to do.. we're up for another 5 week driving tour this Sept ~ only this time it's going to to be France so busy doing my own research tonight... Belem was amazing, some say touristy but such a walth of history and architecture and imo the ABSOLUTE BEST EGG CUSTARD ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD!! "Belem Bliss" Reviewed 5 November 2011 Pastéis de Belém ~ Wow we had read about them but never thought they would taste that good!! Top Tip... Don't queue in the long line .. most people mistake this as the entry, but this is to the shop, go through a door in the middle and you'll find a myriad of rooms to sit and savour..
Belem is alive with history, museums, architecture, palaces and the Cathedral.. You need at least a day to explore all that is on offer.. We were lucky enough to be there for the changing of the guard as well as their version of the musical ride.. Fantastic day.. Awesome memories.. Visited October 2011

Thank you Theresa! That is invaluable information, On your driving tour did you drive from Spain to Portugal? I can tell you really loved Lisbon. Thanks for the tip on the tours. It is really good to know which ones are worthwhile. What did you like about the other cities you mentioned in Portugal? I would love to hear about your France trip too. That is in our future as well!

Continued: To Seville Loved Seville, spent 3 nights here before heading to the Pueblo Blanco's, Arcos de la Fronterra & Ronda. Spent 2 nights in Ronda before heading to the Costa Del Sol. Puerto Banus (This was an itinerary change for us) My sister flew in from the UK & had got a train to Seville to see us, she's not into history, culture or architecture, she's more a beach & Sun Bear kinda girl,to accommodate her we spent 3 nights on the coast .(we had planned Jezez de la fronterra & Cordoba) Ronda and the Pueblo's Blanco's are on my list of must go back in 2014.. We ped my sister at Malaga Airport, went to the Picasso Museum there and headed for Granada where we spent 3 nights.. WOW ~ you don't need 3 nights but for us it was pefect as it gave us a chance to chill and hang out in Tapa's bars. Granada is the last bastion of free tapa's, it was an awesome experience. Alhambra was incredible.. Mirador de San Nicolas had the most amazing view and sunset over Alhambra and the mountains. We took public bus transport up there which was an adventure itself!
After Granada we drove to Toledo 2 nights and then back to Madrid where we spent a night before flying back to Canada. Visiting The Prado, seeing Hieronymus Bosch The Garden of Earthly delights & The Haywain triptych's as well as a visit to the Reina Sofia Museum to see Picasso's Guernica were highlights. Oh and San Miguel Market for tapa's expensive but fun! To Be continued..

Looks like my first part didn't post.. will try again.. Spain and Portugal 2011 Started with 9 nights in Mallorca before flying to Barcelona .. 3 nights (not long enough) We took the AVE train to Madrid. (We went back to Barcelona last year for a further 5 nights) We spent 3 nights in Madrid before hiring a car & heading to Segovia, stopped at The Valley of the Fallen (El Valle de los Caidos (Franco's Tomb) & El Escorial en –route. loved Segovia, would go back again. Found a great place with lots of energy & atmosphere for Tapas & suckling pig. Yumm! We made a short stop in Avilla en-route to Salamanca where we spent a couple of nights. We had great hotels & locations in both Salamanca and Segovia. We then headed to Coimbra 2 nights. We drove to Tomar (If I did this again we would stay here) we felt we didn't have enough time to discover the Town (we spent a long time at the Templar Castle) We sadly had to miss Porto as I was meeting my brother in the Algarve, & we still had Lisbon & other areas to discover. We spent a couple of hours visiting Fatima then headed to Nazare in retrospect should have spent at least 1 night in Nazare, but we wanted to spend time in Sintra (rather than doing it as a day trip from Lisbon) We like being in these places after the main tourists have left for the day.
After Sintra it was to Lisbon for 3 nights, would recommend 4 nights or spending a night in Belem. We then headed down the coast to Tavira where my brother now lives. 5 nights with him visiting the Algarve before driving back into Spain. To Seville !!

Spain and Portugal Adventure 2011 Re: Portugal Tomar was one of more spontaneous stops. We changed our planned route the night before after reading about it.. The Templar Castle although a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site seemed like time and people had forgotton about it. We only saw 4 other visitors the whole time we were there. I liked the not touristy in the least feel about it (well not when we were there in October). It was easy to let your imagination run !! The convent and Church within the castle were amazing, the Altar was designed (so I was told) in such a way that the Khights Templars could receive communion while on horseback.. Obidos Obidos is located on a hilltop, encircled by a fortified wall, it's certainly a well-preserved example of medieval architecture We stayed at Estalagem Do Convento which was a minutes walk outside the walled gates and was surprisingly easy to find once we left the highway. It was nice to spend the night here as we had the town more to ourselves in the evening and again in the morning before the coach loads of tourists arrived .. Coimbra was probably our least favourite place we visited, I don't think that it helped that it was around 38 degrees about 100F while we were there.
I was suprised that RS managed to make it seem so interesting, yes there were a few things to see but they could easily be managed in a day. Well it's back to my planning a 4-5 week road trip in France for Late Sept, if you want to know where we stayed in any town give me a shout. With few exceptions if we were to go again we would choose mostly the same accommodations.

Thank you so much, Theresa. I will definitely use this info when planning our trip. So helpful!

Theresa: We really like to stay in historical b&b's or small hotels. Did you find any places like that which stood out? I'm saving all your posts. So helpful.
Thanks!

Estalagem Do Convento in Obidos was certainly old, quirky, a nice place to stay, originally built as a convent by some wealthy person with a 'if I build it they will come' attitude it was never actually used as a convent. If you like local cuisine, you have to do the 'inside Lisbon' gourmet walking tour, this really set us up for our time in Lisbon. We had the Best Ice cream of our life there, our guide pointed out a little hole in the wall shop and said at night there is often a long line up as locals love to go there everything is freshly made on site. If you like historical sites you will love Tomar, the Castle is unspoilt and invokes a feeling of a place that time forgot. Segovia has a lot of nice old places to stay, we opted for Hotel Don Felipe which gets a 9 superb rating on Booking.com. We thought the location perfect near the main plaza yet a easy walk down to aquaduct. It's been modernized inside so maybe not to your taste, we enjoy old and quirky too but balance that with location and handy for what turned out to be our favourite Tapa's bar/restaurant in Spain!! Salamanca ~ Hotel Rua Salamanca location was again excellent, the breakfast was superb. our first choice had no availability sorry forgot the name of the hotel, a 'patina of a bygone era sort place' but at $50 more than the Hotel Rua I'm glad it wasn't available! Lisbon was a nightmare when it came to driving, despite a sat nav we still went round in circles for 30 minutes + always ending up back at the same point.. We were just a few streets away from our hotel ! After we read in the Lonely Planet ~ driving in Lisbon is a sure way to knock a few years off your life!! LOL.. It hasn't put us off ~ We do plan on returning either next year or 2015.

If you visit Evora Portugal stay at Albergaria do Calvario. We visited Portual 7 days - stayed in Cascais, Evora and Lisbon.