What does this itinerary sound like to those of you that are familair with Portugal? We have 20 days, and will be renting a car. Would you suggest less time in Porto, area, and more time in the Algarve?


Day 1 – Arrival at Porto
Accommodation at Castelo de Santa Catarina
Day 2 – Porto
Accommodation at Castelo de Santa Catarina
Day 3 - Porto / Viana do Castelo / Ponte de Lima / Braga / Porto
Accommodation at Castelo de Santa Catarina
Day 4 - Porto / Gerês / Porto
Accommodation at Castelo de Santa Catarina
Day 5 - Porto / Guimarães / Amarante / Pinhão
Accommodation at Quinta de La Rosa
Day 6 - Pinhão / Lamego / Viseu
Accommodation at Hotel Grão Vasco
Day 7 - Viseu / Belmonte / Castelo de Vide / Marvão
Accommodation at Albergaria El-Rei D.Manuel
Day 8 - Marvão / Estremoz / Vila Viçosa / Évora
Accommodation at Albergaria Solar de Monfalim
Day 9 – Évora
Accommodation at Albergaria Solar de Monfalim
Day 10 - Évora / Monsaraz / Évora
Accommodation at Albergaria Solar de Monfalim
Day 11 - Évora / Sagres
Accommodation at Memmo Baleeira
Day 12 – Sagres
Accommodation at Memmo Baleeira
Day 13 - Sagres / Lagos / Albufeira / Tavira
Accommodation at Vila Galé Tavira
Day 14 - Tavira / Vila Real de Santo António / Castro Marim / Tavira
Accommodation at Vila Galé Tavira
Day 15 - Tavira / Lisboa
Accommodation at Fénix Garden
Day 16 - Lisboa
Accommodation at Fénix Garden
Day 17 - Lisboa / Cascais / Sintra / Lisboa
Accommodation at Fénix Garden
Day 18 - Lisboa / Óbidos / Alcobaça / Aveiro
Accommodation at Hotel Arcada
Day 19 – Aveiro / Porto
Accommodation at Castelo de Santa Catarina

Sounds like a total winner to me - very well thought out but day 18 may be too ambitious.

Braga i found had a lot to offer - in ways the national shrine of Portugal - don't cut it short!

I love it---take some pics. We loved Marvao.
I will not split hairs, but with 4 nites in Porto I would have split it 2 and 2 and stayed in Viano do Castelo to see that area.

I've stayed in Viana do Castello and found it a real ordinary town - not sure of surroundings but I'd scratch it off day 3 to spend more time in Braga - time to walk up the steps of the famous shrine just on the edge of town.

You don't seem to have much time for Lisbon - and don't skip Belem. Cool that you're staying at the Castelo de Santa Catarina, which I loved - I'll be interested to find out whether it's been spruced up.

I agree with thursdaysd. You have really need more time in Lisbon.
Do you need to return to Porto? An open jaw into Porto and out of Lisbon would work wonderfully for you.
The itinerary is very well thought out with the places you will see but in my opinion you are really moving into and out of a lot of hotels although you have picked some great ones.
Have a wonderful trip.

Looks like lots of planning went into this. You must have a high level of energy, and I think the good thing about your plans is that if things are too hectic, you can just drop one destination and focus on the others. Some comments:



Day 3 -- I don't think you can do justice to Viana do Castelo, Ponte de Lima and Braga in a one day loop from Porto. The driving time alone, not counting getting in and out of cities is more than 3 hours(and Braga is VERY confusing to get in and out of, IMO). I like all of these places very much but most definitely would not cut Ponte de Lima.



Day 5 -- You may find you need more time in Guimaraes, it's a very pretty city and there are several places to visit. But if that happens you can always just skip Amarante, which, though it's a nice town on the river, there is not much to do (unless you or someone wants to buy linens, in which case there are several very nice stores with good prices)



I see you haven't given yourselves time to visit the Douro Valley. From Pinhao east to Pocinho on the train (and back) is one of my most memorable half-days in Portugal. It is stunning.



Day 10 -- on the way to Monsaraz, you will pass through Sao Pedro de Corval where there are about 75 houses selling pottery along the main road. Be careful, a lot of it is very junky. If pottery is something you're interested in, I'd suggest a short detour and a visit up to Olharia Pirraca in Redondo.



day 11 -- Evora to Sagres is only about 3 hours, and there isn't a whole lot there to see (we thought the Prince Henry the Navigator school was not really that interesting). And you have a full day there the next day. So I'm assuming this is an R&R day to chill out.

While in the Algarve, I'd recommend visiting some of the stupendous rock formations on the beach -- the ones near Lagos and the Praia da Rocha near Portimao are my two favorites.

I totally agree with the comments about Lisbon, and if you're looking for places to get an extra day for Lisbon, I think you might consider Vila Real de Santo Antonio and Castro Morim. I have been to both of these cities, but they are not by any means high on my list of places to visit in Portugal, nice enough though.

Tavira is one of my favorites on the Algarve, and it is developing something of a small "restaurant scene" -- the last time I was there, there were at least three new restaurants. Great fish there. The Vila Gale is one of those huge boxy modern hotels -- I've stayed there several times in the winter, when they slash their rates and there aren't many people. Very comfortable if not much charm, and a good breakfast buffet. The location is good, in walking distance to all parts of town. (There are two hotels run by this chain in Tavira, one is in town, and one is on the beach so make sure you have reserved in whichever one you want).

In answer to your question about allocation of time between north and the Algarve, I would be tempted to cut the Algarve completely and add more time to the north -- but that's just because I'm not a beach person, and because I love northern Portugal. But this way you do get a well-rounded introduction to the whole country.

Sher has a good idea about the open jaw idea, but then you'd miss Aveiro. (If you do go to Aveiro, which is another one of those nice but not "must see" places in my opinion, you should consider taking the boat from the port to the north and driving along that strip of land -- there are some wonderful nature preserves with nice walks on dunes and along the coast.)

Hello there,
I agree with most that has been said here. In day 3 you must find some more time to visit Braga, not only the city, but the Bom Jesus sanctuary with it's famous stairs, lift, and the Sameiro sanctuary that is a bit higher on the hill above Bom Jesus. Not enough time also on the Douro Valley, at least you should have a day just for that. and of course Lisbon deserves at least one more day. You acn skip the sagres day, really nor much to see there. If you're into beach the days on the Algarve are nice, but if you are more into culture, you can skip the Vila Real de Sto Antonio day too.

Castelo de Santa Catarina is a good location for getting out of Porto to the north. It's a funky hotel, but we enjoyed it.

If you're going to do Viana, Braga, Ponte de Lima, Guimarães etc., however, why not make it a loop and stay somewhere for a night or two to the north? Seems silly to drive back down to Porto and then back back north.

Day 17 - Sintra deserves at least one whole day or a day and a half.

Day 10 you can see more than Monsaraz and maybe shorten your time in Evora to make more time elsewhere.