We are flying into Portugal and out of Madrid 13 days later. I thought 4 nights in Lisbon with a day trip (by tranin) to Sintra. Rent a car on day 5 and head to the Algarve for 2 nights. Then I am lost how do I get into Spain, take the car or return it where? Should the next stop be Sevilla or Granda, or both? We want a few day at the end for Madrid as we will fly home on day 13 from there. Is this too much, can I fit in more places? Anyone do this type of loop vacation?
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA ☔️
6790 posts
A frequent question here. Southern Portugal to southern Spain isn't as simple as most expect. You'll pay a stunning "drop-off" fee if you rent a car in one country and return in another. To beat that, drop your Portugal car as close to the Spanish border as possible (Faro works), take a bus or other public trans to the next town in Spain (Huelva worked for us), then pick up your Spain car and drive on from there (assuming you need a car for that portion - a car is needed for the Pueblos Blancos, but if you're skipping those - you could just take a bus to Sevilla, which is well connected to the rest of Spain by rail). On a trip the length of yours, I'd probably cut Lisbon down to 2-3 days (plus the side trip to Sintra) and spend those days in southern Spain. We did the White Hill towns, then dropped our car in Granada. From there we took trains to Sevilla, Cordoba (a 1/2 day stop on the way to...) Madrid. Lots of good additional choices around Madrid (Toledo, Segovia, etc.). You'll get lots of advice on that. Your challenge is going to be that you don't have enough days to hit all the 5-star spots, so you'll have to pick some and leave others for another trip. Start by being honest with yourself - how many full days do you have - not counting your arrival or departure days? This is a wonderful corner of Europe and you'll have a great trip, even if you can't see it all this time. Have fun.
Posted by
Portland
3643 posts
The previous reply alerting you to drop-off charges, etc. is the best advice you can get.
As far as cutting out something to leave time for Sevilla, Granada, and Madrid . . . When people mention the Algarve, I suggest they envision a Miami Beach type place. Lots of highrise hotels, mediocre restaurants, and sunburned tourists from northern Europe. In other words, a waste of time when you have not even two weeks.
Posted by
XXX
1170 posts
Rosalyn and David, I read your posts with interest because we want to visit Portugal and Spain next year. I will have to remember you all for my questions when am ready :-) Diane, I'd love to read about your trip when you get back. Enjoy.
Posted by
Whittington
984 posts
As the aboves - drop the car in Portugal and make your way to Seville using this - http://www.algarvebus.info/001.htm And yes, you are trying to do too much - dump the Algarve. Have you not seen a beach?