Portugal or Bulgaria

Old Oct 21st, 2014, 10:28 AM
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Portugal or Bulgaria

Hi everyone,

We have been members for a few years but have not posted many questions as this forum has a wealth of information and has helped us plan our past summer vacations.

Our family (we have two sons, ages 17 and 15, who have enjoyed all of our travels together) have taken European summer vacations for the last six summers and have visited Germany, Spain, France, Slovenia, a few Greek Islands and many parts of Italy.

We are now planning for our 2015 summer vacation and cannot decide between the following two countries:

Portugal or Bulgaria.

We will have 16 full days to spend (plus 2 travel days) and we love art, architecture, history, beaches, old/medieval towns and beautiful scenery outside the big cities. We understand that Bulgaria is not as well travelled but looks very interesting. However, Portugal has that southern European feel that we really love.

Any advice you can offer would be much appreciated.

Thank you very much.

Michael and Andrea
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Old Oct 21st, 2014, 10:54 AM
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Personally, none of those countries really strikes me. However, I'd say both countries would be interesting. How about joining two countries? For example Romania & Bulgaria, or Bulgaria & Istanbul, or Portugal & Spain.

I'd personally think that Portugal is safer and more advanced, but Bulgaria will be more cheap and has nice mountain areas for skiing or hiking.

Did you consider: Switzerland, Austria (especially Vienna since you like art), Poland - e.g. Krakow (since you like History, old towns), Malta (since you're into history, old towns, and scenery), Croatia (old towns like dubrovnik)..
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Old Oct 21st, 2014, 12:25 PM
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I have been to both. (Click on my name for TRs.) Bulgaria is more off-the-beaten track (although not a mainstream destination for Americans, lots of Europeans go to Portugal). I think the Black Sea coast in Bulgaria is eminently skippable, but I'm not a beach person. The Atlantic coast of Portugal has some neat towns, and the Algarve is a major holiday destination.

I would say that there is more to see in Portugal, in fact you may find 16 days too short.
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Old Oct 21st, 2014, 12:30 PM
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You might want to take a look at my trip report on Portugal; click on my name to find it.
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Old Oct 21st, 2014, 01:18 PM
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Portugal-has everything you would want in terms of food,culture,history,beaches,etc.Sunshine and great temps which is perfect for your vacation!
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Old Oct 21st, 2014, 01:33 PM
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I don't think the OP would be getting much skiing done in the middle of the summer, not even in Bulgaria.

With two sons and 16 full days, I'd head for Portugal, especially if the boys are into surfing along with medieval towns and beautiful scenery. You could also include Galicia in the mix as you head up or down the coast.

You may also be interested in the outstanding cuisine and excellent local wines, as well as the Port.
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 02:58 AM
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I'd jump for Portugal and look at the Alentejo rather than the Algarve for the relax element of the holiday before the work of visiting museums etc. Prices are low and you know that money spent does NOT just go to the Mafia/corruption.

Bulgaria I like the interior but I'd avoid the sea-side elements. There are some real wonders up in the hills but if you want to know what has been destroyed or lost I recommend "The Broken Road" about pre WW2 Bulgaria. Prices are low and you know much of your money goes on kickbacks.
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 03:32 AM
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Never been to Bulgaria and I'm not very much interested in going. I do love Portugal, though. We have traveled all over the country on many occasions.
For beaches, I would certainly include the Algarve. Pick a town that is not yet overrun by (loud British) tourists. We love Tavira which is almost near the Spanish border and is mostly visited by Portuguese and Spanish families. And it's south of the Alentejo region, where you can drive miles and miles without seeing another car. The scenery in the Alentejo is absolutely stunning. Alentejo is also known for its excellent wines!
My alltime favourite in Portugal is Porto and the Douro Valley. History, architecture, old town ... even the rundown part of the city is charming. And there are nice beaches just a bit south of Porto, too. If you go in high season (July/August), the sea is usually warm enough for a swim. And there's always a good surf (not so much in the eastern Algarve).
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 04:44 AM
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Tavira is good, it has a Roman bridge and the beach has to be accessed by boat as much of the coast in this area is on sand bars beyond the natural end of the country. This makes for a very pleasant gap between the town and the beach..

Surf on the western ends of Algarve and the Alentejo is the place to be
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 06:51 AM
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Hello all,

Thank you so much for your advice and thoughts.

Portugal it is.

We are planning to spend 16 days in Portugal (plus 2 travel days) and plan on travelling between late July and mid-August and we are arriving and departing from Lisbon.

Would we have enough time to see Porto? We know we want to see Lisbon and the surrounding area, including Sintra, and travel to the Algarve area by car for some beach and relaxation time.

Another idea may be to stay closer to Lisbon for beach and sun, if beautiful beaches exist nearer to Lisbon thus giving us time to see Porto, which is over 300 km north of Lisbon. Is Porto worth the time? Is it worth replacing the Algarve for Porto?

I guess my question is if it is possible to see Lisbon, Porto, and the Algarve in 16 days. If not, we may be able to stretch our vacation a few more days, but at this point we are not sure about that.

Your help is really appreciated.

Thanks.


Andrea and Michael
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 07:50 AM
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So 14 days
let's try Lisbon 6 days
Algarve/Alentejo 5 days
Porto 3 days

makes sense, Lisbon to Porto by train is easy
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 08:41 AM
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Oh yes, there are beautiful beaches between Lisbon and Porto. Check out Baleal, Peniche and Nazaré for instance. Peniche is famous for wind surfing, kite surfing and bodyboarding. All are easy to reach from Lisbon (abt. 100 km).

The Algarve beaches are less windy and there's more variation. For instance, the beaches around Lagos (western Algarve) are golden sand with spectacular rock formations on the beach. The beaches around Tavira (eastern Algarve) are on sandbanks and the sand is as white as in the Caribbean.

Sixteen days is good for part of the country but you won't be able to see it from north to south and to east from west.

Suggestions:
Northern Portugal:
Lisbon & Sintra 5 days
beach (westcoast) 5 days
Porto & Douro Valley 6 days (daytrip to Braga and Guimarãres!)

Southern Portugal:
Lisbon & Sintra 6 days
Évora (Alentejo) 4 days
beach (Algarve) 6 days
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 09:15 AM
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Hi Myriam,

If I added 2 days to the trip, for a total of 18, could Porto be included or is it better to just choose either Lisbon-Algarve or Lisbon-Porto, even with the extra days?

As well, is the ocean temperature different from those beaches in the north, between Lison and Porto, and the Algarve in the South?

Thanks

Andrea
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 09:24 AM
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Porto is only three hours by train from Lisbon. Fly into one and out of the other. Consider seeing Coimbra on the way.
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 10:11 AM
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The water in the Algarve is slightly warmer than at the northern beaches but it's not the same as on the Mediterranean coast. The Atlantic doesn't warm up so quickly. It's very refreshing on hot summer days, though.

Although 18 days is still not very much IMO (we are slow travelers and do everything on a very slow pace), it must be doable to cover the whole country.

Will you fly in and out of Lisbon?

I have no advice re train travel because we have always rented a car. Driving time between Lisbon and Porto is around 4 hrs, between Lisbon and the Algarve (Faro) is around 3 hrs.
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 10:34 AM
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We are considering flying into Porto and out of Lisbon, thus saving us most of one day travelling between Lisbon and Porto and we also always rent cars whenever we travel in Europe as well.
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 10:37 AM
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The cheapest one-way rental we found in Portugal was through Autoeurope.com. Others had lower daily rates but a surcharge for the one-way rental. I was able to use my Visa card for the CDW.
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 12:06 PM
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Wow, you are slow-travelers, not a bad thing! You might want to consider spending some of your Lisbon time in Cascais - a suburb about 30 minutes away by train. Lisbon is a busy busy city, Cascais is much more laid back. There is a beach, tho not a great one, but we really liked staying there as it was less intense and I would suspect cooler as well.
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Old Oct 22nd, 2014, 12:18 PM
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I'm glad you'll be renting a car. This will allow you to visit other - smaller - towns along the road.

Start in Porto(*), discover the city and do a portwine tasting in one of the port houses, tour the Douro Valley(*). If you have time left, visit Braga (Bom Jesús do Monte) and Guimarãres(*).

Then make your way down to Lisbon(*). Maybe do it in two days and spend half a day in Coimbra(*), half a day in Óbidos and check out one of the westcoast beaches. Visit Sintra(*)/Cascais from Lisbon.

Then further south to the Algarve. You could drive back to Lisbon through the Alentejo and stay overnight in Évora(*) which is the best preserved city of Portugal's Golden Age.

(*) UNESCO World Heritage Centres!

Can I come along? ;-)
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Old Oct 23rd, 2014, 11:24 AM
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I guess a simple question to ask but not so simple to answer is this:


Is it worth spending 3 or 4 days of our ~16 day vacation in the Porto region or allocating these days to Lisbon (and it's surrounding area) and the Algarve, which also looks spectacular, especially the less travelled smaller coastal towns.

Thanks again.


Andrea
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