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Spain and Portugal - 2 weeks in Mid-July - help with itinerary

Spain and Portugal - 2 weeks in Mid-July - help with itinerary

Old Apr 25th, 2017, 04:28 AM
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Spain and Portugal - 2 weeks in Mid-July - help with itinerary

Hi,
We are a family of 4 (2 boys 13 and 10), we are traveling to Spain and Portugal from July 15th to Aug 2nd. I got good tickets with miles getting to Barcelona and returning from Lisbon. We have been to Europe few times and twice with the kids, and they love it, they have been to Barcelona and San Sebastian. Looking for help with itinerary. We are foodies, like beautiful scenery, and like to enjoy ourselves. I was thinking 3-4 days in Barcelona or more days and do day trips to Girona or other towns close by... or spend a night or two in another town close by and then fly from Barcelona to Porto, Stay in Porto 2-3 days and rent a car, drive around the Douro Valley - Vineyards and then head down to Lisbon (take few days to do that - which towns to visit?). The other option was to head to Andalucía, then The Algarve area and then Lisbon. I thought this last option might be too hot that time of year and not enough time, but we are open to suggestions. Any advise is greatly appreciated. We can fly, take train rides, or rend a car. Thank you!
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 08:25 AM
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Well I'll respond, tho I may not be the most knowledgeable. My opinion would be that Andulucia would be more interesting but there is the heat factor. But maybe if you did half a day of sights and half a day of pool time? You can fly from Sevilla to Lisbon. IMO you could do Sevilla with Cordoba as an easy day trip. I think if you see the Alcazar in Sevilla it has the same moorish architecture as the Alhambra the Mezquita in Cordoba is quite unique. From Lisbon you could do a day trip to Sintra - interesting palace there and Lisbon itself is worth two days. Or stay on the coast in Cascais - 30 minutes by train from Lisbon and not as hectic. Hope some other posters weigh in!
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Old Apr 25th, 2017, 05:45 PM
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As you already know, you have many options in and around Barcelona, giving you plenty of time to recover from jet lag before trying to rent a car, and of course, many places in the area can be visited without a car at all -- bonus!

FWIW, I think the "perfect" trip to Andalusia includes about 10 days during a time that isn't overly hot. So for me, it would be off the list of options for this trip for reasons of both time and weather. But that's just me; YMMV.

If you do go to Andalusia, I must admit that one of the things I found most fascinating about Sevilla's Alcazar was how very different it was from Granada's Alhambra. (Sorry, suec1. ) Seeing both in close temporal proximity helped me see just how very different they are!

Given that you are committed to flying into Barcelona and out of Lisbon, you might consider limiting your time to these two cities and places that you can see by day trip or overnight (or two!) from them -- I think you could easily fill the time you have by doing so.

For transportation from Barcelona (or) to Lisbon (or), consult rome2rio.com -- but then check any ideas you get there, as that site is not sensitive to seasonal variation. Still, it should give a sense of your options.

Hope that helps!
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Old Apr 26th, 2017, 04:31 AM
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Hi milena1c !

We will do a very similar trip this year !

We arrive in Barcelona july 13 and leave from Lisbon august 6 (24 nights in total). We travel with 2 young kids (5 and 9). Here,s what we have planed and reserved (make it quick for reservations good places begins to be not avaible !)

- 5 nights In Barcelona (never been there and want to enjoy it )
- Rent a car(girona, Costa Brava, Tarragona)
- Fly to Porto
- 3 nights in Porto wih a daytrip in guimaraes
- Rent a ca for 5 days: Douro valley 1 night, 2 nights Coimbra, 2 nights Sao Martinho + daytrip alcobaca and batlaha) Stops in Tomar and Obidos.
- 5 Nights in Lisbon with day trip to Sinta
- Fly back home !

We dont know if it's the perfect idea, but from what we want to see and what we have read it sound like a very good plan for us. Maybe uit could suits yout partly too !

We decide to skip the southern Spain for this time, it would be too hot for us.
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Old Apr 28th, 2017, 09:16 PM
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Just remember, it will be very warm (to very hot) in the Douro in late July/early August. I'd stick with the cooler coastal area, from northern to southern Portugal. You'll need to secure you reservations as the coastal regions, including the Algarve will be busy.
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Old Apr 30th, 2017, 11:41 PM
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Andalucía is something special, and 3000 year old Málaga city by the Med need not be that hot with the sea breeze and everything, normally some 5-10F lower temperature than inland Sevilla, Córdoba and Granada in summer. http://www.wetteronline.de/klima-temperatur/malaga

Málaga is fabulous sights and museums, genuine and laid-back Andalucian atmosphere, much fun for the kids and a fabulous - both cutting edge and traditional - food scene. Málaga is now the "province's city of culture with its so-called 'mile of art' being compared to Madrid, and its dynamism and fine dining to Barcelona." https://www.lonelyplanet.com/spain/andalucia/malaga
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Old May 1st, 2017, 01:21 AM
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We flew into Barcelona and out of Lisbon this past fall (when it was not hot), but only for nine nights, so we pretty much stayed in those two cities with a flight (Vueling Airlines) between them, so I can't give a lot of advice.

I will say this:

Be sure to visit to Sintra when you are in/near Lisbon...makes a nice day trip, or--if by car--stop there as a detour on the way to Lisbon from the Douro Valley.

It has three excellent sights: The Moorish Castle (not really a castle, but more of a fortress, with an astounding view), The Pena Palace and the National Palace.

ssander
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