Cheryl

We have just got back from 12 days in Portugal. The route covered basically the lower half of the country: Sintra - Obidos - Marvao - Algarve - Lisbon. <BR> <BR>It was our honeymoon and we stayed at some wonderfully romantic and some not so romantic places. If anyone is looking for suggestions of places to stay or sites to see, please feel free to ask. <BR> <BR>Cheryl

maggi

Dear Cheryl, <BR>Did you rent a car? Please tell about the "romantic" places and which to avoid. We are planning to go next year. Thanks!

Cheryl

Yes we did rent a car. We picked it up and dropped it back off at the airport in Lisbon. The drivers in Portugal are very very agressive and don't really give an inch in any situation. Most of the cars have various dents and scratches on them however we didn't actually see any collisions in all the driving we did. <BR> <BR>Having the car was great because it meant we had quick and easy access to visit places that are slightly off the beaten track and to make good time getting from place to place. <BR> <BR>My favourite place we stayed was about 2 km outside of Sintra. It was the Quinta dos Sequoias (I'm sure that's spelled wrong). A wonderful place with about 6 double rooms available, jam packed with antiques I drooled over. There is a fabulous lounge where guests can chat with games tables, television, VCR, and a big comfy couch. There is also a bar where you can help yourself to drinks and just write down in the book on the table what you had. <BR> <BR>We liked it so much we went back for our last night after having spent the first three nights of our hoiday there. <BR> <BR>From the bedroom window you can look up to the hills to see Pena Palace, and there are wonderful gardens to wander in, and a pool for when the days are warmer. <BR> <BR>The family that runs it is just wonderful and make you feel right at home. We actually stayed in two different rooms there but both were superb. <BR> <BR>The region around Sintra was my favourite of the whole trip, although there were many other great places we went to. <BR> <BR>Another place I liked was Obidos. It is a wonderful little place for wandering around the steep streets and lanes. The flowers were all in bloom and it was just picture postcard perfect. We walked around the wall of the town in the early evening when it was quieter and it was like the whole place just belonged to us. I loved it. <BR> <BR>Evora was great too and the place we stayed was the Solar Monafalim (again I can get the proper spelling if you need it). I kept getting lost in this place, with all the narrow corridors and all. The rooms are smaller and older than some places we stayed but they are decorated beautifully and the bathrooms are done in marble and wood and are just wonderful. There is a terrace where you can sit and have a drink while looking down throught he trees to the people and cars below going about there business. I truly fabulous people watching spot. <BR> <BR>Hopefully this gives you some ideas. If you have any specific questions about places and sites let me know. <BR> <BR>You'll love Portugal so start making those plans. <BR> <BR>Cheryl

maggi

Cheryl, <BR>Thanks for your post. I have just spent the last hour exploring your suggestions on the Net. Quinta das Sequioas looks beautiful. Couldn't find anything about "Solar Monafalim" in Evora. Could you or anyone else shed some light? I am so looking forward to visiting this country!

Bets

Here's a link to the Solar de Monfalim site. A word of caution: you may need to try it a copule of times; for some reason, it's never worked the first time for me. http://members.xoom.com/monfalim/monfalim/

Beth Y.

I also stayed at Quinta de la Seqouias on the first two nights of our honeymoon in '96. It was just as wonderful as Cheryl described. Plus, staying outside Sintra was nice, as it tends to get filled with stinky tour buses during the day, but is great to hang around at night. <BR>The owner of the inn was incredibly helpful. She put us in touch with a wine distributor and they treated us like gold. Her introduction went a long way. Also, she and her nephew are great tour guides, as they gave us a recommendation for our next stop. We told them we wanted to go in the direction of Monsaraz, the little old walled town on the hill (not to be missed) and she hooked us up with some friends of hers that just opened an farm inn there. It was incredible. It is called Monte Saraz. The owners were great (belgian) and spoke about four languages each. It is a walled farm and we rented a small house (1 bedroom, kitchen, dining living area, bath) with a stone fireplace you could almost stand in, antigues, original art, etc. for about $65 a night. We had our own porch overlooking the garden. There is a lovely stone pool. Every day when we got home from touring, the maids had started a fire to take the chill off our room. Even evening, we could hear the bells on the goats of an old farmer as he drove them down the dusty road by our window. It was just incredibly relaxing place to hang out after exploring the area. For any pottery fiends like me, this is the place to explore. For anyone interested, the number for Monte Saraz is 351(0)66.55 385, fax is 351(0)66.55 485 (I even kept the brochure!