I will have 9 days next May beginning in Lisbon and ending in Salamanca, Spain. I planned on 4 night (arrive late) with 3 full days Lisbon (1 day trip to Sintra), 1 night Obidos via bus, 3 nights Nazarre (with day trip to Alcobaca) via bus, 1 night Coimbra (with possible walk through Fatima??) and then take the night train to Salamanca. I will be traveling public transportation-- bus and trains. Too much? We travel light, "close to the ground" and are in good shape (50's). First trip to Portugal, do not speak any Portuguese, veteran travelers. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Posted by
Cary, NC
687 posts
Portugal is a great destination, and you don't need to speak the language. Coimbra really deserves more than one night - don't miss the Roman ruins at Conimbriga - and Nazare looked pretty touristy last time I saw it. I'm not sure you need an overnight in Obidos either, although it will be quieter when the day trippers have gone. You do realize that the "night" train to Salamanca gets in at half past midnight?
Posted by
OP
Tacoma, WA, USA
606 posts
Do you think it would be better to do Obidios on our way to Nazarre as a day stop not overnight? We picked Nazarre for just some down time on the beach and on our way to Coimbra. Any other suggestions? Would you recommend taking the night in Obidos and adding it to Coimbra?
And yes I realize that it puts us in our hotel about 1:30 am but I hated to burn day light hours on the bus (where I sometimes get car sick) and that is our only other option. There are two of us and we thought it would be safe if we took a taxi to our hotel (we usually walk) at that late hour. I sincerely appreciate your comments!
Posted by
Cary, NC
687 posts
@Renee - I would (and did) do Obidos as a day trip. It's super photogenic, but very touristy (see http://kwilhelm.smugmug.com/Travel/Round-the-World-2004-5/Obidos - password obidos). I really like Coimbra - try to stay up in the old town (there's an elevator now). If you want to see Alocbaca, Batalha and Fatima, I guess Nazare would be a good base. For info on some things to see in Lisbon you might like my trip report: http://tinyurl.com/yzzn33c It's a pity about the rail options between Spain and Portugal. Even though they're both in the EU, I think some of the old enmity remains.
Posted by
Bend, OR, United States
1167 posts
I would drop one the days in Lisbon or Nazarre and add a day in Porto. From there you can catch the same train that would from Coimbra or a bus that takes about 1.5 hr longer but gets you to Salamanca at a decent hour. You can get the bus schedule at www.mobelia.es As for language, I found Portugal to one of the most English language friendly countries.
Posted by
S.F. Bay Area, CA, United States
1878 posts
I am surprised at the diversity of opinion here.. based upon my experience on our 15 night 2008 trip: three full days in Lisbon is a bare minimum. We had four and could have used another day. An overnight in Sintra is highly recommended. As in we have been to Europe 11 times in 13 years and it's one of our most magical stops ever -- top five among small towns for certain. Porto is nice enough but with the time you have, I would not do it. Coimbra we had one night and it was enough -- nice town but not that much to see. O.k maybe two nights and one full day if you want to really relax. I would rather relax another day in wonderful Lisbon. Nazare is just magical, Rick is right about that. We had a car and went to Alcobaca too, and that was a very worthy destination as well. Portugal is worth two weeks by itself -- given your limited time, those are my two cents.