Just returned from a week long Portugal trip
 

All,

Thanks to the friend of this forum for offering the tips and suggestions, we had a lot of fun in Portugal. We visited Lisbon, Sintra, Evora, Tomar, Elvas, Marvao, Batalha and Alcobaca. We would love to answer any questions.

-JH

excellent choice of destinations (maybe too many for such a short period of time). Do you feel you had the flavour of each destination. Do you have plans to a more extended visit?

Terrific ! Looks like good choices to me.

How expensive was Portugal compared perhaps to France or England?

Kristinelane,
We did the spectacular NW of Portugal and Galicia, Spain 12 -20 July after 8 -12 and overnight on RT 20 July in the UK.
Even 'tho we stayed in Pousadas and Paradors, the near highs of the Euro vs the USD were not as difficult to accept as paying in USDs in the UK.
As a previously stated example, the 40% summer sale prices @ Harrod's (in USDs) are close to double what one might spend in Neiman Marcus, imho.
M

We are leaving this Sunday for Portugal and Spain. I am having a hard time finding a reasonable rental car rate. They charge about $600 just to drive the car over the border so we will now take a bus over and just rent a car in Portugal and then another car in Spain. Did you rent a car? If so, what company did you use?

Amee,
Europcar
Got a 1.2 L Man trans VW Golf in A/P Oporto no/a/c unlim km for less than $300. US for 9d/8N incl ins.
The weather was great so no A/C needed ex Stopped Dead for 1 hour on the W bridge coming back from the Port Houses into Oporto due to a bad crash.
M

I just went to Europcar and they are the worst! For 5 days, they quoted me $417 for a compact car. I am finding the best rates so far with AutoEurope. Guess I will finalize the car tomorrow with Auto Europe. Thanks for the recommendation though!

Mike - just wondering - was that $300 for Portugal and Spain??

Amee--your Portuguese rental through Auto Europe may very well end up being through Europcar. Ours was.

Amee,
Yes, rented in Oporto,PT, drove all the NW and into Galicia, Spain.
Only restrictions were NO EAST EUROPE.
Typically, one can rent a car anywhere in W Europe and drive in the "former" EU - the East is still a bit of a mess.
Germany is usually the best rental car "bang for the buck" as taxes are lower.
M

Mike - Gee - $300? Maybe you could search for me?? lol

To answer your questions:

1) Out of all these cities/towns, we enjoyed Sintra the most, maybe because we stayed there the longest (3 days). It's a nice little town with lots to see. Next time we hope to visit Oporto and North Portugal.
2) Regarding the cost, Portugal is definitely less expensive comparing to France or Italy. However, I don't think it'll take long for Portugal to catch up. So go while it's still cheap.
3) We did rent a car. We took this special offer from the B&B we stayed in Sintra. They offered us 390 Euro for 3 nights stay + one week car rental. It was a pretty good deal. The company is called Auto Jardim (http://www.auto-jardim.com). You may also try Sixt (http://www.sixt.com), which offers pretty reasonable rates
4)

Amee,
Just checked the various threads on tripadvisor.
Still many cars @ the A/P in Oporto under $300. US for many 9d/8n rentals:
I drive Man Trans in the US and the weather in NW was so nice A/C wasn't needed in mid July as I mentioned.
If you need a larger car for big folks or more people, A/C or an auto trans, you'll pay lots more.
M

Mike - I went to tripadvisor.com and then clicked on Portugal, but I don't see anything about car rentals. Can you send me the URL? Thanks!

Amee, you need to visit all the PT threads - Travelocity, Orbitz, etc.
The fees vary wildly among same and with diff dates.
M

Just got done booking a car just in Portugal through AutoEurope. I am so tired of looking and I am running out of time. We will take a bus into Seville and rent another car there for the remainder of our trip. Thanks for your help!

xymox - thanks for those URLs, but when I searched, they came out very high.

Amee,
Can you imagine being a travel agent and trying to earn a living at this insanity?
M

Mikemo,
I 'chatted' with you yesterday on the US- "Dallas' forum!

We just decided we might go to Portugal for spring break next year. Haven't even begun to do much research.Just pulled up Portugal right now for the first time..

Can I pick your brain about Portugal?
We are thinking about using Marriott rewards & staying at Prrai D'el Ray in Obidos- Do you know anything about it?
I will leave my email address in case you can or want to email directly---
[email protected]
Thanks, Anne

Prrai D'el Ray in Obidos ???
Take care with the return of Flash Gordon - The Deadly Ray From Mars (Part 2) :-)))