My husband and I will be staying in Lisbon the middle of November for eight days and are interested in day trips that can be reached using mass transit.
Any suggestions???

We will also be going to Evora for three days. We would prefer to not rent a car ...does anyone know about a train that could get us from Lisbon to Evora?


Also, how far is MARVAO from Lisbon...a day trip? Thanks for any help. Bob the Navigator, you might have some info about all of this. My thanks!

The best day trips would be Sintra & Cascais; both are accessible by short train rides. From either Sintra or Cascais, you should go ahead to Cabo da Roca by bus (which is the westernmost point in Europe), and is wonderful. You should budget for a full day for Sintra, and maybe half a day for Cascais.

Sintra first - less than an hour by commuter trains

Obidos is also a good one - one of finest walled towns in europe IMO - regular buses there with one change

For a great excursion take the train to Sintra, see the town and two castles, hop a bus from there that goes thru eucalyptus forests (unique smells and trees) to Capo de Rabo, one of the most western parts of europe mainland. Cliffs, smashing waves, light house, oberservation deck - then bus to Cascais for commuter trains back to Lisbon

There are trains Lisbon-Evora though bus may still be quicker.

Fatima would be an easy enough day trip is that type of thing interests you.

You can easily spend the day in Sintra. Tour the palace/castle, grab a bite in one of the restaurants, shop, etc.

Cabo de Roca for us was about a 15-30 minute stop--amazing view, took a few photos, and interesting as the most westernly point on continental Europe. Loads of big buses, touristy, and a related touristy gift shop, etc.

I was disappointed in Cascais--we stayed just outside Cascais--it's not the relaxing beach getaway location I was looking for--but that shouldn't be a problem for you in mid-November.

The best part for us was renting a car and driving along the coast to take in the scenery. We drove from Cascais up to Cabo de Roca and then to Sintra and back to Lisbon. We did a short 2 day car rental in the middle of the trip and were glad we did.

Cascais to me also was very disappointing - fading seaside resort with little of merit IMO. Ditto Estoril

Sintra
Cascais
Obidos
Fatima
Evora
Evoramonte
Monzaraz
Nazareh

"Capo de Rabo" lol... don't say that in Portugal, unless...
If you want to know what I mean, just google it.

Thank you ALL for your suggestions. We rarely use a tour company....but might this time if the trains and buses aren't as available as in other countries.

Any suggestions on tour companies?

Thanks again, Nanners

Nanners,

Take a "Rede Expressos" bus to Evora. It is inexpensive and goes directly from Lisbon's Sete Rios terminal which is right outside the metro's Jardim Zoologico station.
To get to Sintra, take the train.
Have you taken a look at the www.golisbon.com site? It may have other information you may be looking for regarding daytrips.

Tours for You is a good local tour company. I've used them for a private full-day tour of Evora (absolutely great tour guide) and a half-day 'public' (regularly scheduled, but we were the only people on it so it ended up being 'private').

The website is http://www.toursforyou.pt