John

We're spending 3 weeks in Spain and Portural in April 2003(arrival and departure Madrid). We are trying to avoid driving in the "big" cities. Arriving from Seville via Evora (possibly a 1 night stay), we plan to spend 3-4 days in Lisbon. Would we be better off staying in Sinatra and taking the train back and forth to Lisbon to see the sights or biting the bullet and driving into Lisbon and staying at the Lisboa Tejo, Metropole, or Mundial. Are Sundays a better day for driving in Lisbon? Thank You!

www.tourist-in-portugal.web.pt

Hello john.<BR>There is a good train connection from Sintra to Lisbon. In Lisbon, you have in the Baixa disctrict, the Rossio station, and from there to Sintra a train takes aprox 50 minutes, though in the rush hours you have &quot;express&quot; trains (without too many stops), that are even faster. As for driving from Sintra to Lisbon, simply forget it. You have a free highway named IC 19, if you want to do it, but there are zillions of cars, and you would take tooooo much of your precious holiday time in traffic jams. During weekends, it's easier to drive on that highway, and there are fewer trains, so a car might be better, but not to come to Lisbon. Why not a drive around the Sintra area, and near the sea ?? it's very nice to drive around in: Sintra- Colares - Guincho beach - Boca do Inferno - Cascais - Sintra.<BR>Have fun

Teresa

John, I suggest that you stay in Cascais, instead of Sintra or Lisbon. I live in the Cascais area and my daughter always takes the train to Lisbon. It's easier than staying in Sintra. It's also very near Sintra, Guincho and you can drive there.I would avoid staying in Lisbon and would drive in Lisbon only on Sundays or Saturdays (that's what I do).And yes, don't miss Evora. Have a great trip.

Jeff Kronenberg

John:<BR>I just got back from 3 weeks in Portugal. We stayed in Sintra 4 nights, and visited Lisbon 2 days. Here is my advice:<BR>1. Don't attempt driving into Lisbon. You will stress yourself out, get lost, and not be able to park easily. It is a bad scenc! I rented a car and drove extensively in Portugal, but stayed away from Lisbon except to drop the car at the airport.<BR><BR>Sintra is a great place to stay and it takes only 45 minutes on the train. THe train leaves every 20 minutes and there are 2 stations in Sintra. It drops you in Rossio, which is a great place to start exploration of Lisbon.<BR><BR>Definitely go into Lisbon on Sunday: all the museums are free! Don't miss the Gulbenkian, the Coach Museum, the Tile Museum, Alfama area, the Se (has incredible excavation of roman rooms inside the church), and the Moisterro (spelling?) Geronimo.<BR><BR>We stayed at Quinta Verde in Sintra, at about $75 Euros per night. There are great palaces and castles to see in Sintra. You can see all of this by cab if you don't want to rent a car, and that is what we did for 3 days (about $5-10 euros per journey). You could also rent a car and see Sintra and Cascais area, and leave it parked when you take the train to Lisbon. <BR><BR>Have a great time.<BR><BR>Jeff

xxx

Jeff, would you please post your itinerary and comments regarding your trip? Thank you.

MJ

Hi,<BR>Just returned from 2 weeks in Portugal. Had the same dilemma. Some people said stay in Lisbon, others said stay in Cascais or Sintra. We did both and it worked out very well for us. <BR><BR>We picked up our car upon arrival at the airport and drove to Cascais, specifically Guincho beach to stay at the Hotel Fortaleza do Guincho. Fabulous place, right on the Atlantic Coast. Relaxed there for 3 days while traveling to Sintra, Cabo do Roca, Estoril, Cascais. Didn't go to Lisbon at that time. Toured the rest of the country by car -- especially enjoyed Coimbra, Obidos, Alcobaca, and Evora. We dropped our car at the Lisbon airport and then spent our final 3 days in central Lisbon.<BR><BR>The advice you are getting is correct -- do not try to drive in Lisbon. Many, many narrow, hilly, one way streets, no place to park because there are far more cars than parking places -- people just park anywhere and everywhere, at the side of the street, sidewalks, etc. The Lisbon drivers are used to all of this and are much more patient than most Americans. Plus there is really no reason for a tourist to need a car in Lisbon. Public transporation is good; taxis are not expensive.<BR><BR>Hope this helps. Have a great trip.