Hi-
My boyfriend and I are leaving for Portugal next week, eep! We have planned a stay in Guimaraes, and while we are there we would like to go to the Citânia de Briteiros archaeological site. According to the guidebook, it is about 15 km from Guimaraes, which seems too far to walk, alas. We'd prefer not to rent a car.
One guidebook mentioned a bus, but it didn't sound terribly convenient as it only operates 3 times per day and doesn't get you terribly close, but I am definitely willing to be persuaded otherwise.
Would a cab be crazy expensive? Are there reasonable tours? (I've seen a guide recommended, but 65E+ for a couple of hours seems rather steep). Is it possible to bike there, and, if so, can bikes be rented in Guimaraes?
Any information would be much appreciated, thank you!
Also, if we do need to rent a car, do Portugal rental agents require the International Driving Permit? I'd prefer not to sink two hours of my time into going to AAA to buy one if I don't have to.
Citânia de Briteiros from Guimaraes Without a Car?
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If nobody else comes by with a definite answer, you can double check on Tripadvisor, but I recently was in Portugal and found taxis very, very cheap. I took 15 km ride from the center of Porto to the airport, and it was 20 euros or so. Hard to imagine they are charging all that much more in Guimaraes (a very enjoyable place). But you would need to arrange with the driver a time to pick you up. That might cost you more. Can you arrange the trip so you take a bus back?
Don't know if you can rent bikes in Guimaraes, or if the road to the site is one you'll be happy to bicycle on.
By the way, I'm not sure how far you need to go to get to an AAA office, but once there, I've never spent more than a half hour max getting an IDP. I carry one routinely when I go to Europe, so I can't tell you specifically if Portugal requires them.
I cannot help with a definite answer on the IDP because I have always carried one on car trips in Europe, four of them in Portugal. We always rent a car and I want don't want to bother with the rules. Sorry.
I found this website www.info@guimaraesturismo.com
They list walking tours and Citania de Briteriros is one part of a tour they offer but no prices. They may be able to help you.
One problem with some of the sights in Portugal is getting to them without a car easily.
Good Luck.
I've been criticized for saying this in the past, and I want to stress that I consider myself a very law-abiding person, but I have never had an IDP in Portugal. I've lived there for two years, bought and insured (and then sold) two cars for each of the years, and rent a car there about twice a year when I go back. No one has ever asked me for it, and we have been stopped several times for routine checks of papers and identities in different parts of the country.
But the taxi option is a good one if your only need is Guimaraes to Citania dos Briteiros. My experience is that for out of town rides, you can generally count on about a euro a kilometer for a taxi fare. (Now, if your taxi ride takes you on the toll roads, the fare will have to be higher, because the toll alone in Portugal is about a euro a km, gasp). But from Guimaraes to Citania is all small roads luckily. It's defintely worth a visit, I know very little about history, but it was a pretty incredible site -- huge, lots of places to walk and enjoy, and all those prehistoric constructions!
The IDP is not required in Portugal, period!
Thank you for the input, everyone! Just to be on the very safe side, I went to AAA today and got the (@!*$&@) IDP. There are several car hire agents in Guimaraes, so I think if we find there are no other options we should be able to rent a car pretty easily.
Well, if you feel like driving to Spain, now you can, since you have an IDP. The cathedral in Tui is a marvel worth seeing.