I will be on a voyage to Portugal shortly- will stay in Lisbon, Obidos, Porto, Guimaraes, Coimbra and Santarem. We will be renting a car once we leave Lisbon so that we will be able to see many wonderful cities along the way.... Nazare,Alcobaca, Batalha, Aviero, Bucaco & Vianna do Castelo to name a few. <BR>Any comments/suggestions from anyone who has been there recently will be most appreciated. <BR>While in Lisbon we will be using the metro,etc. Should we buy the Bilhete de assinatura tusitico or the Lisbon card? Do these provide free transportation on the tram & funicular & electric train to Cascais or do we have to pay for these modes of transportation in addition to the tourist card fees? We will be in Lisbon for 4 days and are planning to go to Belem, Cascais, Estoril & Sintra as well as the museums. <BR> <BR>Our hotels are Avenida Palace, Pousada do Castelo, Infante de Sagres, Pousada de Santa Marinha, and Quinta das Lagimas. Any comments good or bad? <BR> <BR>Thank you in advance for your help

hello, hope to give you some hints. <BR>In lisbon, first. <BR>I think one of the best ways to move around is using subway ( metro ). You can get to some nice location ( for example expo'98 that has a fantastic Oceanarium, the Vasco da Gama tower - you can get to the top for some nice pictures - But if you want to go to Belem you must go either by car or by bus ( try Pasteis de Belem - a cream cake with cinnamon, hmmmm!!!) <BR>If you want to visit the castle one again you have to use the bus, and if you like art exhibition there´s a fantastic exhibition in the Ancient Art Museum in the Janelas Verdes area ( not far from belem ) about the dicoveries period. <BR>You didn´t mentioned Sintra, but it worths a visit ( use the train that departs from Rossio ( downtown ). <BR>In Oporto ( prepare from some traffic problems ) you have the traditional visit to the Port wine cellars, and the Ribeira area, but note that this year Porto is the european Capital of Culture, (www.porto2001.pt). <BR>Nazaré - that´s a fantastic place, but don´t forget to take a coat because it has a "microclimate" . Don´t miss a visit to the Sítio ( using the funicular ) it´s fantastic, and it´s also a good place to buy souvenirs. You´ll find the 7 skirts ladies around trying to arrange you a room ( it´s typical...just have to say no, thanks ! and wave your hand), the fish drying in the sun, and the shops with wool shirts used by the fisherman. <BR>Alcobaça is completely different, it´s less cosmopolitan than Nazaré, and has a beautiful monastery. You can try here the almond cakes ( shop right in front of the monastery - Alcôa )and- another souvenir - some pots that are used to make a local plate of chicken ( frango na púcara -´chicken in the pot ).. There´s also a drink made of cherries ( ginginha ) very good. <BR>Batalha - very nice monastery ( only thing i´ve visited ). <BR>Guimarães is very beatiful ( historic center ), but you should also try to go to Braga <BR> <BR>

( cont .) <BR> <BR>Braga is a Cosmopolitan small city, with nice monuments and good shops. It´s very interesting. <BR> <BR>Driving in Portugal. - this is a sensible issue, and I advice you to always adopt a more defensive driving, not that you´ll find many people doing that, but still is the safest way. <BR>Safety belts are always required, and the alchool limits legally accepted are very low. <BR>Have a nice holidays , and if you need more tips, post here. <BR> <BR>

Lisa, we were in Portugal in May 2000. We started at the Lisbon airport, rented a car and drove north. Our first stop was Tomar which I thought was an interesting stop to visit the Knights Templar castle. They had a sign up for an English tour so we waited around for that and got into some of the rooms that aren't open to the public. From there we drove up to Coimbra. I thought an interesting stop nearby was Conimbriga, an archaeological site with fabulous mosaics that are well preserved (go inside the museum to see the Minotaur mosaic). I also really enjoyed Bucaco, there's a lovely hotel in the middle of the forest and the view from the top most point is great. We also spent some time wandering through the forest. <BR> <BR>On our way back to Lisbon, we stopped at Fatima. Personally, as a non-Catholic, I didn't think it was worth the detour. We also stopped at Batalha and Alcobaca to see the cathedrals. I picked up some lovely pottery in Alcobaca, much cheaper than in Lisbon. <BR> <BR>We were forced to buy the Lisboa card as our ATM card didn't work in Portugal and we were running out of money. Here's a website that describes the benefits of the card. http://www.atl-turismolisboa.pt/leisure/cards.htm <BR>We used it for entrance to the palaces in Sintra and Quelez as well as the coach museum and the Tower of Belem and all of the public transportation in Lisbon including out to Belem. I don't think it was good for the train out to Sintra. <BR> <BR>I had read a lot about car theft and difficulty of getting around in Sintra so we dropped the car off in Lisbon and returned to Sintra via train. There's a bus you can catch at the train station that will take you to all of the sites for a one day fee. It's a long walk up so it's the best way to get around. On the way back from Sintra we stopped at Quelez to visit the palace there. It's a bit of a walk from the train station, maybe 20 minutes. Be sure to check opening times on the various palaces at Sintra. They were closed on different days, there were only a couple of days that the Pena Palace, National Palace and Quelez were all open.

bejeca: Wow thank you for your detailed message. Yes I am planning a day trip via the train from Lisbon to Sintra. <BR>In regards to Nazare please advise what type of weather I should expect in mid September- rainy ... how cold? Yes I am planning to see Braga another day trip from Guimaraes as well as Bom de Jesus <BR>(sp?) Do you think I should drive from Porto to Castello do Vianna or from Guimaraes to Catello? thanks for your help

Kris: <BR>Thank you for your tips on the cities <BR>In regards to the ATM mishap please advise which bank you bank with that it didnt work. I was planning on relying on my atm card (cirrus/nyce) and credit cards as the last time I used amex travelers checks in Spain it was such a hassle to exchange to local currency and no merchant wanted to accept the american express "dont leave home without it" travelers checks! <BR>As for the Lisboa card I went to the site thanks a million. <BR>In regards to the palaces of Sintra and Quelez as per my travel books the Pena Palace & the National Palace are not open on the same day. We will go to National palace as will not be in that area when Pena is open. I was planning on day trip to Estoril/Cascais and separate day trip to Sintra. As for the palace in Quelez definitely want to see this h/e out of time so I thought we would stop there on our way out of Lisbon via car on the way to our next stop Obidos. Do you think this is feasible -is it safe to park the car in quelez with suitcases in trunk? Is there even parking avail? Thanks for your help

The ATM problem was actually my fault. Our ATM card had expired and I hadn't noticed. It worked fine in the US and Spain but once we hit Portugal their system picked up on the expiration date. After trying in several cities and even at foreign banks (Like Barclay's)it appeared that all the ATMs were linked so we eventually gave up trying to use the ATM. So your ATM card should work fine but you might want to bring back up travelers check or cash or at least know your PIN number for your credit card so you can get a cash advance. Your Cirrus card should be fine. <BR> <BR>It's too bad that you'll miss the Pena Palace as it is the more interesting of the two palaces. If it's possible to reschedule your time, I think you'd like the Pena Palace more. <BR> <BR>Quelez should be fine by car. We didn't park but the area around the palace wasn't very busy so you should be able to find somewhere to park. We went later in the day so there weren't that many people there but maybe it's like that all the time. We had our suitcases with us most of the time and no one bothered with our car. Just be sure to put your guide books and maps away before you leave the car and you should be fine. <BR> <BR>One more thing, the main road out of the Lisbon airport is a toll road. The tolls are kind of high so make sure you have plenty of local currency. I had heard stories of crazy Portugese drivers but if you stay over to the right except for passing you should be fine.

weather in Nazaré...well...it´s always a mistery. I´ll tell you what so often happened to me. I used to go a small village between Nazaré and Alcobaça, and very often, in the same day,we would have brilliant sunshine in Alcobaça and misty and rainy in Nazaré ( and it´s only 15 km distance ). <BR>you see, Nazaré is located on the shoreline, and for you to get there, you´ll have to drive through a small terrain elevation, with lots of pine trees, and when you start to descent you have Nazaré...and this elements make a natural "microclimate". The same happens in Sintra, so for both places prepare for some "crispy" weather. <BR>In Nazaré, and if you like fish, you´re in the right place. <BR>Don´t miss a Espetada ( grilled fish ) or Caldeirada ( assorted fish, with potatoes )- there are good restaurants in the vicinities of the funicular entrances, and there´s one in a small street near the fish market ( it used to have a parrot in the entrance ). <BR> <BR>(sp ?) - it´s Bom Jesus de Braga ( go for me-take the funicular up! don´t climb the stairs or you´ll need an extra week of vacations !!) <BR> <BR>Driving from porto to Viana or from Guimarães to Viana. Distances are more or less the same, and it depends on your plans, but, I consider Guimarães more interesting than Viana. <BR>Guimarães is a very old town, in fact it was there that D. Afonso Henriques ( portugal 1st king )started the conquest of what portugal is today. He started up by beating up his mother ( those days in the XII century were more violent ), only because he wanted more lands to expand the Portucalense County. <BR>There, apart from the historic center, you have the castle, and the royal palace, where, if portugal was a monarchy, the kings would habit ( our royal family is rather funny !! we make jokes about them, because none of them is blonde...and their sons are !! are they...legitimate !!!). <BR> <BR>note: if you need some extra thing...you knw, just post here <BR> <BR>

So...it´s lunch time and you´re in Lisbon !! where should you go ??? <BR>Tips - downtown ( baixa ) you´ll have some good to fair options. <BR>You have the Mc´do, but, here we prefer fork and knife food. <BR>In street (rua) of Portas de Santo Antão, the colisseum street, you´ll find some frugal restaurantes, not bad. <BR>If you prefer to blend with the alfacinhas ( how lisbon people is called ), there´s a popular restaurant named Bonjardim ( in a street that intersects rua Portas santo Antão, and the office post in restauradores square ( it´s all very near ), and at the end of the Sto Antão street, there´s a more typical restaurant named Solar dos Presuntos ( near the Lavra tram). <BR>In the Baixa area, there are some nice restaurants, and you can ask for João do Grão. In bairro Alto you can go for a Fado night, but it´s very touristic, still... <BR>There´s also another restaurant, near Bairro Alto, in the Trindade area, named...Trindade ( beefs, chips, beer, and excellent atmosphere )- near here you have church of São Roque ( one of the most, if not the most beuatiful in lisbon - go there, and see what we did with the gold plaqué...what a waiste!!-) <BR>In street of Alecrim ( that starts in Bairro Alto, and ends in Sodré pier ( cais do sodré ) you have also a very good restaurant but a little expensive named Brasserie de l´éntrecôt. <BR>speaking of expensive restaurants, if you want to ruin your budget, there´s a restaurant inside the castle, and one in expo´98 area in tower Vasco da Gama, that do it easily (!!). <BR>But also in this part of town, there´s a shopping mall, with restaurants overlooking the river that are more frugal, but very good. <BR> <BR>Prices: Top end rest. - min 10.000esc p\pax; middle scale - 2500$ - 5000$ p\pax, low budget 1000$-2000$ p\pax ( note that portuguese love to eat, and portions are generous ) <BR> <BR>last tip: ther´s in Bairro Alto a "tasca" ( low...low budget) named...I think Lusitania, that is in the Louis Vuitton guide as having the best rice and fish in lisbon ( don´t know , never been there ) <BR>

(cont). In baixa, in Rua (street) of Correeiros, there are two good restaurants and not expensive, one is João do Grão ( mentioned earlier ) and Prado Verde. <BR>For a dessert...in Restauradores square ( on the opposite side of the post office) there´s a italian style ice cream shop named Veneziana. <BR>Bom Apetite

Kris- Thanks for the tip on atm machines I will make sure my card not pending cancellation and have alternative just in case. Well if the Pena Palace is more interesting, perhaps I can re arrange my plans Glad to hear Quelez will not be a problem will make sure to have plenty of $$! thanks again for your help

Bejeca ok I will make sure to bring a sweater for Nazare/Sintra thanks! Perhaps I should just skip Viana do Castello- only have 2 days in Guimaraes and so much to see guess I'll play it by ear thanks. <BR>Thank you for your extensive listing of restaurants- funny I had Bonjardim on my list of must eats! You forgot to mention one thing.... where I will go to buy pants 3 sizes larger than the ones I brought from home -I will need them after I finish with all your yummy ideas! Thank you again for your help