Portugal--Lisbon, Douro, Porto
 

Thank you in advance for a little guidance regarding placement of one night in my itinerary. My trip is in September after disembarking from a cruise in Lisbon. I have the following scheduled:

Lisbon--3 nights
Batalha--1 night (central to the sights of Obidos, Fatima, Ourem and others in that area)
Viseu--1 night ( want to experience the Pousada for one night)
Douro--2 nights (Casa do Visconde de Chanceleiros)
Porto--2 nights I will have one full day in Porto previously on the cruise (return to Lisbon via train)
Lisbon--1 night before flying back to US

Thinking of touring Guimaraes after leaving Pinhao on the way to Porto, so we would really only have one full day (plus the cruise day) in Porto.

I'm asking you experts if I should add a night to Lisbon and eliminate either Batalha or Viseu as I'm pretty happy with everything else.

Many thanks for your suggestions!

Not been to batalha but regretted not sleeping in obidos.
A poussada is another thing we missed - Mayne an inventive for is to Côme back.
Bottom line I would keep it like that 3 nights are enough in lisboa.

While I disagree that 3 days are enough in Lisbon, it may be that you don't need more, but you have to be sure yourself rather than rely on our divergent opinions. For us, a few weeks ago, nine days in Lisbon were not enough.

Get a really good and enticing guidebook like the DK Eyewitness and see for yourself what attracts you and where those attractions are.

In my opinion, you should spend one more night in Lisbon and eliminate the night in Batalha, after you visit it yo can go straight to Viseu 2h by car.

Are you visiting Alcobaça? We much preferred it to Batalha. There are pousadas all over Portugal, some historic, others modern. Try to stay in at least one of them and have dinner there too. I think there is now lne in Porto. Guimares is a wonderdul small city to explore and has a pousada too.
We also stayed in Lisbon for 9N and xould have stayed longer.

Personally I think 3 full days in Lisbon is fine. If you hire a tour guide to see the city sights it will help avoid lines and save you quite a bit of time.

I decided to stick to,the 3 days in Lisbon so I can also,have the chance to see some of the many sites in central Portugal. I've read many trip reports and have the DK Eyewitness guide.

There is a Karen Brown recommended hotel in Batalha which is why I chose that spot. Alcobaca would work, too, but the hotel I would choose is booked for the one night I would need it.

Will take the advice to get a guide for Lisbon. Some of my friends have used Guides by Locals and swear by them. Perhaps someone reading this has a guide to recommend.

It's hard to wait for this trip! I can definitely see us returning to a Portugal for more exploration.

Thanks, all.

I see advice to get a guidebook, not a guide. I think a guide for Lisbon is quite unnecessary.

If you are interested in history and enjoy getting off the beaten track, also in the food history of Lisbon, a guide in Lisbon -- or any European city -- can be a great idea. Most guidebooks are geared for the most superficial kind of travel, and are written by fellow tourists for editors who know very little about all the places their publishing outfit covers. They are incredibly useful for practical information if they are recent, but it is pretty rare to find a guidebook that can best a passionate local who knows their town inside and out.

thursdaysd,

Let me guide you to the post of mnag, so that you can see the advice to get a guide, not just a guidebook, for Lisbon. There's a range of views in this thread about appreciating the capital city of Lisbon, with some people not finding it worth extensive investigation and others finding it, apparently, rich and intriguing.

I'm sympathetic to spending limited time there because other destinations in Portugal are calling, but I'd be skeptical of advice that discourages getting to know the city well. It's unique.

I certainly would not advocate shorting Lisbon. In fact, if you click on my name you will find a TR covering several days in Lisbon, and I have been back several times since. But I still think a guide is unnecessary, I certainly have not had problems with lines, other than for one of the trams on my last visit, and you can always walk or take a taxi.

Don't think I would use the word "necessary" but surely you can see the added value for a city as complexly layered as Lisbon to have the benefit of a local's guidance if one is only there for a very short time? I'm not talking about avoiding queues. I'm talking about the history of Lisbon, which has gone through quite a few sea changes during its long and fascinating history. Obviously it all depends on a traveler's level of interest, but I have met many people who went to Lisbon and never appreciated the role Lisbon played in globalization, or its arab roots, and were pretty hazy about Portugal's contemporary condition as a member of the EU. Even a food tour has been very illuminating for many people, given how many far-flung influences there have been on the city's cuisine.

I see no reason to discourage the idea of using a guide for others even if you personally had no interest beyond what you found in guidebooks.

Each to their own.

Personally, I much prefer to read up about a place - NOT just in guidebooks, don't make assumptions - at home, in comfort and at my own pace, rather than stand around listening to a guide recite a bunch of facts and figures - and tall tales.

I have, on occasion, used a guide for a very specific interest - Art Nouveau in Budapest, for instance. Or taken a tour when public transport seemed problematic - Uzbekistan last year. But a general guide for a city as easily researched as Lisbon? For me it would not only be a waste of money, the guide would likely be an annoyance.

I see no reason to encourage the use of a guide when one is unnecessary.

We used Lisbon4Smile. From personal experience the lines last Aug at both the Jeronimos monastery and Belem tower were very very long (I mean hundreds of people). I was travelling with a group of 10 and had limited time and thus we had hired a guide. We not only bypassed the line but the service we got was exceptional. She was extremely knowledgeable about the history, gave us an insight into current affairs and answered all our qns.

But then, there is no way I would plan to visit Lisbon in August. Far too hot. I have yet to encounter serious crowds in off and shoulder seasons. If I did encounter lines at the monastery I would probably buy a combined ticket at one of the less popular sights.