mlgb

The train from Lisbon is pretty convenient however.

When I flew into Lisbon I stayed the arrival night near the Airport and then took the train from the Oriente Station, which is an architectural gem. You can take the RED line from ther airport to the Oriente.

I believe you can also take an Uber to Sintra.

Info here
https://www.sintra-portugal.com/guid...to-Sintra.html

Of the sites I visited my favorites in order

Quinta da Regaleira (interior and grounds)
Pena Palace (Outside) I mistakenly bought the ticket that included the interior.
National Palace (inside and out)
I didn't care that much for Montserrate and didn't climb the ramparts.

Quinta is walkable from town, the National Palace is right in town.

The town itself is charming. I stayed at Casa Da Pendôa, booked through Expedia, the double mountain view. However they are not showing availability on Exedia but maybe on booking.com

Maribel

My vote would be for Lagos. But.... we had a car in order to do day trips to the stunning beaches of the Costa Vicentina (Praia Arrifana, Praia da Bordeira, Praia do Amado are beautiful), the fishermen's trail, the castle at Silves and Cabo São Vicente.
Yes, Lagos has plenty of amenities.

Maribel

progol,
Don't second guess yourself please!! Keep you reservation in Sintra. If you find yourselves with extra time there you can always go to Cascais by bus 417.

For those who are staying in center city (downtown) Lisbon and NOT from the airport, visitors on a day trip will want to take the day trip to Sintra by train from ROSSIO. It's a 40- minute ride.
https://www.sintra-portugal.com/guid...to-Sintra.html

Yes, uber does work in Lisbon-Cascais -Sintra.

progol

Maribel, no worries, I’m not going to change it! We’ll probably do a day trip to Cascais, either from Sintra or, more likely, Lisbon. But I still can’t stop thinking about alternatives! 😉

progol

Announcement made that negative tests for restaurants, hotels and other settings will officially no longer be in force, although, as Maribel has already told us, vaccination cards haven’t been needed for most cultural establishments. So no need to take frequent tests to enjoy Portugal. As of now, US citizens still do need to test to enter, however.

https://www.theportugalnews.com/news...portugal/65342

Maribel

Yep, happy day!
And I continue to get email responses today from Portugal museums/monuments assuring me that vaccination certificates are not required.
And the negative test that was required was only for major sporting events, bars that have dance areas and nightclubs.

Today, from The Portuguese Resident-
https://www.portugalresident.com/por...ve-weeks-time/

Melnq8

Yay!

Maribel

Mel and progol,
Yay is right---we don't have to cancel for the third time!

I forgot to mention to you that Quinta das Carvalhas in Pinhão, across the bridge from The Vintage House, has a hiking/walking trails opportunity.

WALKS & TRAILS

"At Quinta das Carvalhas we have available a challenging yet relaxing walking trail for adventurers and nature lovers. We offer visitors the chance to enter the Quinta and follow a track amongst vines, forests, terraces, orchards and olive trees to finish at our Wine Shop for a tasting of Quinta das Carvalhas Ports.

All tracks are signaled accordingly as well as a Map is given to every visitor."

INFO
Price (VAT included): € 10,00 (adults) |
Available all year | Mon-Sun (Except 24 to 26 and 31 December, 01 and 02 January)
Available hours: 10:00 -12:00; 14:00-16:00; 16:00-18:00 (Last time period only available between March and October).
Booking only
https://realcompanhiavelha.pt/en/win...e-experiences/

wtm003

Thanks for the update! Looking forward to our 4 nights in Lisbon in April.

Melnq8

Fabulous Maribel, thanks for the hiking info.

xyz99

Maribel,
This is wonderful news, thank you so much.
Our trip is supposed to start on March 18th, and I got confirmation from all the hotels that the CDC issued card is acceptable, if showing one of the 3 approved vaccines. All hotels except the one in Evora, but I booked a different one which accepts the CDC card.
It sounds like I can go ahead and book the flights, yay!

Maribel

xyz99,
It's so great that we all don't have to cancel for a third time! Our trip is to start on March 10 and we're getting excited. Have a really great trip!

scrb11

I went for Carvoeiro.

Will actually be driving from Cascais to Algarve. Mainly chose to drive rather than fly or take the train because of car rental options. I wanted to have a car around Cascais but that is only for 3 nights. So I did a one-way rental for 8 nights.

Actually, I added 3 nights so I'd have extra night in Cascais/Sintra, extra night in Algarve and extra night in Lisbon before return flight.

Between Carvoeiro and Lagos, it seems Carvoeiro has amenities and the Boardwalk close so that seems like it would work better. We will see though.


Now for Porto, I booked a place in Vila Nova, near some Miradouro that iconic bridge and Porto center. Seems the views are better looking north across the river than looking south?

But all the attractions and many of the dining options are north of the river?

Has anyone stayed on the south side and found that they had to cross the bridge, which is also very elevated, often?

Maribel

Well, Carvoeiro wins out!
In Porto you've booked a hotel on the other side of the Douro in Vila Nova de Gaia (just called Gaia by the locals), where all the port lodges sit. You'll have great views of Porto.
Other than the port lodges that will surround you, the major attractions of Porto are in Porto itself.
Gaia does have dining options, many in the new WOW (World of Wine) complex, a restaurant at Graham's port lodge, a restaurant at Taylor's port lodge (lovely terrace dining) and several on the Gaia riverfront.

Our favorite dining spots are in Porto and in the "posh" section of Foz do Douro (where the river meets the ocean). And for fantastic, fresh fish we take the 500 double decker bus in Porto to Matosinhos to the street across from the fish market, Rua Heróis de França. All the fish houses are lined up in a row and have charcoal grills outside. A favorite: O Valentim Others: Casa Serrão, Salta O Muro

Yes, you'll have to cross the bridge often to do your Porto sightseeing, but taxis are inexpensive and there's also the Uber option. There's also a river taxi/shuttle that departs every 10-15 minutes from Gaia's quay (cais de Gaia) and docks in Porto at Cais da Ribeira. Some people enjoy staying over in Gaia, others prefer to be in the heart of the city. But since I don't know what hotel you've chosen, I can't tell you how far a walk that would be for you to catch the river taxi. See the departure point on this map.
https://www.dourorivertaxi.com/en/location
Then you'll make your way up from there for sightseeing. Porto is a "vertical" city (lots and lots of climbs), like Lisbon and Coimbra.

scrb11

Looking at a couple of places near the bridge with views, Vincci Ponte de Ferro and Porto View.

Porto View costs less, has bigger apartment rooms, actually think it has better views on the west side of the bridge. Looks like you'd have to climb a bit to get to the bridge or the miradouros up there or to get to restaurants and such.

But Vincci offers buffet breakfast €15 so that I don't have to hike to a cafe and for anything other than pastry and coffee, it would cost about the same anyways.

Plus I notice a lot of the cafes, according to Google Maps, don't open until 9 or 10 AM anyways?

So the convenience of breakfast on site would be something of a timesaver, unless I can do my excursions to grab a bite and then explore the city, without going out of my way. Then you may have to compete with a crowd to sit down for awhile.

Maribel

Seems like you're set on staying in (Vila Nova de) Gaia, which is actually a city in its own right. I think the Vincci Ponte de Ferro is a nicer property. But now that I've looked at the photos of the Porto View, it would be nice to have that balcony. I guess a coin toss!

Maribel

scrb11,
I had always thought that for convenience, handiness to sightseeing and dining, a first-time visitor to Porto, especially for a short stay, should stay IN Porto rather than in Gaia.
But...I've looked closely at the reviews of the new Vincci Ponte de Ferro (but won't see it until Oct.) and am intrigued. It's right next to the Eiffel- inspired Luiz1 bridge. So...being intrigued, I checked the "location" remarks of guests on booking.com and on TA. Here are some that speak to the convenience of its location, if you're still interested.

"The location..exceptional, being right next to the bridge with stunning views. Also, next to a metro stop."
"Super easy walk down to port cellars or across the bridge to Porto proper with easy (elevator) access to both upper and lower bridge."
"Possibility to use the elevator to descend to the riverside."
"There’s a lift to the ground floor where you can easily access the river side which saves a big uphill walk."
"Very convenient... you can use the indoor elevator to access both the upper and lower sides of the famous bridge."
"Elevator provides access to both levels of the city which cuts your walking time down significantly when exploring the city."
"You're close walking distance to most everything on the other side of the river."
"Really handy for both sides of the Douro, with many activities/restaurants etc within easy reach. Also easily accessed from the airport if traveling by the metro."

So, the Vincci Ponte de Ferro seems to be a more convenient location that I had thought. I don't know about the other property.

scrb11

Yeah I just booked it.

My main priority is taking pictures and besides the views from the hotel grounds, there are miradors all around it, with the iconic bridge and the view across to the Porto skyline.

The other place I was looking at were the Porto View apartments, which is just above the river banks and the apartments all have good views over the river and Porto

The Vincci is a bit more expensive and the rooms are like half the size, unless you really spend on a larger room. But it has amenities, like 15 Euros for breakfast which would save me time going out somewhere (and most places don't seem to open before 9:30-10 AM, at least going by the hours listed in Google Maps). They also have a lot of restaurants on site but I'm guessing they will be pricey, not because of the quality of the food necessarily but the scenic setting.

I don't know how easy it is to get to places near the river from that location but with the metro, seems like I could easily reach the areas around the Sao Bento and Aliados metro stations. Would make taking the metro from the airport easy. Otherwise, I'm sure hotel staff can tell me about using those elevators.

scrb11

OK, after Porto, it will be 3 nights in the Duoro valley. I'm considering Dois Lagres in Pinhao, a bit of a hike to the town or I can drive if parking and traffic isn't too hectic. There are a couple of places above town with stunning views but I wouldn't want to hike or drive down every time to get a meal. Seems like some people hike down for dinners and take a taxi back up.

Again the priority is scenery. I've found a few miradors I want to drive to. They're all spaced apart including a place called Mesao Frio. There are some lodgings with great views and it's close to some restaurants and stores as well.

I'm wondering whether to stay in Mesao Frio and then day trip to Pinhao rather than staying out in Pinhao. There are obviously more things to do in Pinhao, as far as quintas and that boat trip. But Mesao Frio is closer to Porto and I will be returning to Porto airport probably for a morning flight back to Lisbon.

Maribel

Parking and traffic aren't remotely hectic in Pinhão. It's a tiny burg. You should be able to find a spot down by the pier and behind the pier. Yes, I know the places above the town with stunning views (Casal de Loivos, for example), but I personally wouldn't want to drive back up at night on those very winding roads. I've been to the Miradouro there.

I've not stayed at the Dois Lagres. It sits above the LBV House.

If you want the best photography, you need to stay between Régua and Pinhão, imo, as that stretch is the prettiest part, at least for me. It can be quite a slow day trip, ime, from Mesão Frio to Pinhão via the narrow N222 highway. I've done it.
But.. if you'll be returning to Porto for a morning flight, you'll want to stay closer. Count on a minimum drive of 90 min. to the Porto airport from Pinhão.

As for the miradouros, these are the most impressive, pdf attached.