jahlie

I'll be staying in Sintra for 6 nights at the end of March. Does anyone have any tips - good restaurants, close side trips, which fado singer to see in Lisbon? I've have a guide book and frequent a number of travel websites but always like to find one never-mentioned-before bit of advice. Like Klong Om in Bangkok (no other boat in sight- fabulous) or Casa de Memoria de Al Andalus in Sevilla (some actually mention this one - it's the best).

Long winded, I know, but you get the drift. I would love some good advice and appreciate it very much. Thanks.

tower

jahlie:

where will you be staying in Sintra? We spent three nights in Sintra as part of 3 weeks driving a good chunk of Portugal, which we loved.

We started in Lisbon where Calde Verde (soup of the same name) in Bairro Alto is a small intimate homey fado club...excellent singer and accompaniement when we were there (see pix). Easy to find from Lisbon..take the elevador Gloria from Praca Restuaradores (near the Hotel VIP Eden)...after five days we rented our car and headed for Evora, opting to stay at the new Arraiolos(h) Pousada about ten miles away...visited Evora, drove to scenic Marvao Pousada, on to Belmonte in the Serra Estrella and the Belmonte Pousada..cross country to Obidos (oo-bee-doosh)...colorful town....also visited Nazare'/Sitio, and then down to Sintra...our day trips from Sintra involved the eautiful ocean road to Cabo da Roca, on to Cascais and Estoril...visited the palace in Sintra, and the Pena Palace above town...stayed at the downtown Tivoli...certainly enjoyed it all.

http://picasaweb.google.com/stuarttower/Portugal2008# (slide show)

stu t.

thursdaysd

Any special reason you're staying in Sintra and not Lisbon? I spent a week in Lisbon recently, with a day trip to Sintra. My trip report, including info on food, is here: http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35174288 and my photos are here: kwilhelm.smugmug.com/Travel/667854

jahlie

Oh man! I'm such an idiot. I got a bit confused (an early change of plans)- we're staying in Estoril at the Palacio Estoril. Can I ask the same question concerning Estoril instead? We have business reasons for staying there. Since the two towns are pretty close and similar (so I hear) I'm hoping the suggestions will be the same for both.

Renting a car and driving through some of the areas you mentioned, stu t., is right up my alley. Looks fabulous and easy to do but I'll have to keep that down to one day road trip. thursdaysd - thanks for the trip report (food is fun and important). I also saw a mention of Lalique jewelry - I hope I run into some of that.

I like cities and will spend a lot of time in Lisbon as well. Any fado club recommendations are greatly accepted. I could ask the concierge at our hotel, but you know they like to recommend the regular tourist haunts. stu t, did you have to make a reservation for Calde Verde?

Thanks again.
jahlie

tower

>>>Any fado club recommendations are greatly accepted. I could ask the concierge at our hotel, but you know they like to recommend the regular tourist haunts. stu t, did you have to make a reservation for Calde Verde? <<<

Jahlie...the Caldo Verde is not quite a tourist draw ss some of the others that were recommended by the Lisbon mavens...we felt it was just the kind of low key place to enjoy the singing, We went on a week night, and just walked in (month.
of May).
Be sure to spend the better part of a day in Sintra (The Royal Palace, Pena Palace, etc. and do that coastline drive. Personally, I was not overly impressed with Estoril...sort of a Miami Beach flavor IMO...Cascais is more of a working town ambience...but Sintra's setting is hard to beat.

Any further questions, please write.

stu tower

jahlie

I've just returned and indeed Cascais is a beautiful little town and the walk along the Promenade from Estoril is lovely and a great place to people watch. The Palacio Estoril hotel is first class with a very attentive staff and close to the train and bus station. I actually enjoyed staying outside Lisbon and taking the train into town because the beaches were so beautiful and have that easy but active resort feel. It was easy to get into Lisbon, a very walkable town, especially if you take tram #28 to help get up some of those hills!

I took the bus to Sintra and indeed it is in a lovely setting and filled with interesting architecture - very historic. One day was enough though and I'm glad I didn't spend a night there. I prefer a bit more bustle

Thanks for your help making my trip to the Lisbon area memorable.