thursdaysd

Do you mean Porto instead of Lisbon? Because I would definitely rate Lisbon and the surrounding area as more interesting than Porto.

AirBalloon

Hi,

We are definitely going to Lisbon and it's surrounding area but we are not sure if we should travel south to the Algarve and miss the Porto region entirely or miss the Algarve region and visit Porto, replacing the south beach time and it's coastal towns with some beach time in the north.

We just do not think 16/17 days is enough to be able to enjoy the vacation and see it all. According to what people have said in this topic and others, there is so much to see in the Lisbon area and even day trips further afield.

If you think it is enough time, please let us know.


Thanks


Andrea

IMDonehere

We like the towns in the north better than the Algarve-Braga, Viana do Castelo, Amarante, Coimbra.

And be sure to visit Sintra and Cascais.

AirBalloon

Hi again,


The towns in the North look fabulous but we want to spend time on the beach for sun and relaxation as part of our vacation and the Algarve beaches look spectacular.

Is it feasible to do all three regions in 16 or 17 days?


Andrea

IMDonehere

A car will be a burden in Lisboa and it is impossible to park in Sintra. If you fly into Oporto rent a car, get rid of it Lisboa and then pick up one again for the southern route that might help.

thursdaysd

I have been to Portugal four times and am going back to Lisbon later this year but have not visited the Algarve. But then, I'm not a beach person, and most of the Algarve sounds very touristy.

MyriamC

It is not impossible to park in Sintra. No need to scare off people. We stayed there for five days and have always found a place to park our car, be it in some narrow streets sometimes.

As to Porto ... and please don't beat me!!! I rate Porto a lot higher than Lisbon. I'm not a fan of big and hectic cities. Lisbon is nice, but I was very glad we stayed in quiet Sintra and could take the train to Lisbon for a day. This was enough for us. But then, to each his own.

You can do a lot in Porto in 3 days. The city isn't very big. Two days for the city and 1 day for the Douro Valley (a MUST).

AirBalloon

Hi all,


Here is our initial itinerary:

- Fly into Porto (arrive late morning): stay 4 nights (3.5 days), 2.5 days Porto, 1 day Douro Valley
- Train to Lisbon (arrive early afternoon): stay 4 nights (3.5 days), 2.5 days Lisbon, 1 day Sintra
- Drive to the Algarve (arrive late afternoon): stay 5 nights (4 days), not sure where to base (looking for a small coastal non-touristy medieval town with gorgeous beaches and beautiful rock formations)
- Drive back to Lisbon (arrive late afternoon): stay 3 nights (2 days), 1 day Lisbon, 1 day Evora, fly home

This is very preliminary so please let us know of any changes you would all suggest.

Thanks again for all of your help.


Andrea

MyriamC

Sounds good to me! Check out Carvoeiro (or Ferragudo). Have only visited for the day. Really beautiful! Praia da Marinha is known to be amongst the most beautiful beaches in Europe. With huge rock formations! Carvoeiro is not a big town and has some good restaurants! But it's not medieval and it's pretty touristy in high season.
http://www.portugal-live.net/UK/places/carvoeiro.html
Maybe Lagoa, which is a bit inland and only 10 min. drive to Carvoeiro?
http://www.portugal-live.net/UK/places/lagoa.html

AirBalloon

Hi Myriam and anyone else who has an opinion on this,


Is Porto really worth the 4 nights (1/4 of our trip) and a travel day to Lisbon? Could those days be better spent basing ourselves in a small medieval town in the interior of Portugal, such as the Alentejo region, on our way to the Algarve?

I know I keep coming back to this but I want to make sure we can get the most diverse vacation we can in the 16/17 nights we have and to feel like we saw the different sides to Portugal.

Thanks again everyone,


Andrea

MyriamC

I cannot answer your question, Andrea.
For me personally it is worth the 4 nights. Others may say it is not. I had that click with Porto right away, from the first moment I set foot in the city.

AirBalloon

Ok, I understand.

So you would trade the 4 nights in the Alentejo region for 4 nights in Porto. Let me do more reading on Porto.


Andrea

bilboburgler

Porto falls into four areas in my mind, the area around the station which tends towards the dusty but perfectly pleasant area (look out for the tiles at the station) the area down by the river (read up on the earthquake and the French invasion before you start your visit to understand how many people died), the art deco section towards the west and then a visit up river to a wine growing area. For me a good 4 days.

Alentejo is very much a walking, cork growing, bird watching wine tasting visit. Sit down in bars and chat to the locals, it would take 4 days but no real focus unless you are really into nature.

So a vote for Porto

thursdaysd

I don't know that I would trade Porto for the Alentejo, but I would certainly trade it for Coimbra, or I seem to remember the's a rather special place to stay a bit south - am traveling so can't look it up.

Porto was my first foreign city (aside from Valletta on Malta) and I remembered it with an aura of the exotic and exciting for years. Until I went back in 2004, just did nothing much for me then.

AirBalloon

Hi,

As we are landing and leaving from Lisbon and driving south to the Algarve, we would need an area in the interior between Lisbon and the Algarve. Coimbra looks beautiful, but is north of Lisbon.

The Alentejo region does have Evora, which looks superb, and many small medieval towns and beautiful nature that our sons would really enjoy, as well as wine tasting that we would want to do.

If we do decide to do our vacation this way, we would have Lisbon and its surrounding area, the Alentejo region, basing ourselves in Evora (best choice for a base?), and the Algarve.

Is this a good mix?


Thanks


Andrea

MyriamC

Évora is superb and the best base for the Alentejo. Check out hotel Albergaria do Calvário. However, 4 days would be too much for me.
We made a stop in Beja which is very small and not very interesting IMO. Don't know about Monsaraz.
As bilboburgler says, Alentejo is mainly nature (the Parque Natural do Vale do Guadiana is very pretty!) and a varied landscape with cork trees, rice fields, olive groves, sun flowers, ...