Hello there,

I am going to Portugal from OCT 23-NOV 02
Will have 5 days in Lisbon + around
and then 5 days in the Porto area.

Any hints on stop overs, eateries, must sees, car hire company (wish to rent to go to Porto area only, not for the city) etc. are highly appreciated.

Thanks

Hi bl4ze
my partner and I spent 2 weeks in the lisbon area last year, and there is a lot to see in the city. I have just realised that I have given my guide book to a friend who flew to Lisbon today. They will be back then, so i will send you a list of sights.
We had one fabulous proper Portugese meal (on our last day and on the way to the airport!!) in Lisbon. This was at O Pieu, Largo da Graca, 1170 Lisbon - it is at the top of the old town, and easily reached by tram.
Will be in touch with other information next week.
Roger

Dear friend,
If , by my point of view, Budapest is a queen of Europe, Lisbon is a great Lady.
Places to visit:
District Belem: Tower of Belem , monastery of Jeronimos and near by taste the most famous sweets of Lisbon “pasteis de Belem (tramway 15).
District Chiado : Luiz de Camoes square (Luiz de Camoes is the great poet of Portugal as Sandor Petofi is for you) near by café A Brasileira a art nouveau style café.
Of the northen side of Luiz de Camoes square is Rua das Gaveas. At n.84 is a small restaurant “o cantinho das Caveas” NOT for tourists. It is very very good .In the same street for the night there is a restaurant with live Fado music named “A Severa”. Let’s say is good.
District Baixa You have to walk from square do Comercio up to Rossio. The place look like Vorosmarty Ter and Vaci utca.
Don’t miss the Alfama district. Is the old town you can go by tramway 28. Be at Largo das Portas do Sol by sunset, it has a great view.
Don’t miss to visit the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum near the Praça de Espanha ( Espania square).
For Fado music my favorite singers are, for classics Amalia Rontriges and the best Fado singer of today is Mariza, Her album Transparent is excellent.
Tips for the language.
In Portugal they write Fado and they pronounce FADOU , Dom and they pronounce Don.
Have a nice trip
Friendly yours
Mihály

Hello, I just returned from a 2 week trip to Portugal (yesterday). In addition to all the great suggestions below and the excerpts from the "Rough Guide to Portugal" on this website (which I used extensively), I would definetly suggest that you take a day trip to Sintra, as well as to Cascais (15 min bus ride from Sintra if you want to combine the two). It's about 35 min. by train from Lisbon. Take the blue metro line to Jardim Zoologico, and there is a train station within the same building (believe you go up the escalators). Purchase your ticket from one of the machines (has an English option)for Sintra (about 1.50 Euro one way). The train usually leaves from track/linha 2 (but watch for Sintra sign on front of train). They come every 10 minutes. You can walk to the historical center from the train station in Sintra (about 10 min). Great shops along this main street in the historical center and prices better than in Lisbon. Things made out of cork is a great souvenir and unusual (i.e. purses, wallets, handbags, hats,etc..). There is a shop on one of the side streets called "a ze" that has great artistic items (including pottery and tiles and items made out of cork - I bought a safari hat for 39 euro)all made in Portugal. Take the #434 bus to both the Moorish castle and Pena Palace. You can get off first at the Moorish castle, then walk up about 15 minutes or take another bus to Pena Palace. Alternatively you can get off at the Pena Palace (last stop) and then walk down to the Moorish castle afterwards (about 15 mintes - the bus doesn't go back and make another stop at the Moorish castle). The bus ticket is 4 Euro return, good for the whole day. At the enterance to go to Pena Palace, you buy your ticket (8 euro)and then walk another 10 minutes up to the palace. It's a beautiful walk through forests/woodland (paved & cobblestoned), or alternatively take the shuttle bus (1.50 Euro return). This is such a peaceful beautiful little town to explore. There is a tourist info office right in the center of town, or a smaller one not too far from the train station (about 5 min going right). On your way to Porto, stop at the very charming walled city of Obidus. For a small town, it has 4 churches and I think 4 hotels. You can pick up the cherry liquor called Ginja which comes from this region (or get it a small bottle in Lisbon for 5 Euro to try it, but it's not the famous Obidos brand). It makes a nice gift and it's strong at 19% alcohol content, but delicious. Good on ice cream as well apparently, but also served chilled on its own. I would also recommend the fishing village of Nazare that is a short drive from Obidos. We had a wonderful lunch there, at a family-run seafood restaurant in front of the beach. Fresh, off the grill fish, very reasonable. This village/town is usually packed in the summer, but blissfully quiet now. I think the restaurant is called Aleluja along the main street in town facing the beach.

Porto is very much as described in the Rough Guide. It's a commercial, working city. I explored it in 1 full day. The best part is the waterfront. I had lunch on one side overlooking the houses and then dinner on the other side overlooking at all the Port houses. Try to take a tour of one of the Port houses and do some tastings (I went to Sandeman). Each port is very individual, sort of like regular wines. You have to try different ones (including different brands) to see which ones you like. Speaking of wines, Portugal has wonderful wines to try from the Alentejo & Dao region. I would recommend the Borba red wine(2003 or 2005 - Alentejo). Wine is cheap as is the regular Port (i.e. non vintage - but get a vintage one if you can)and good. Many of the wine shops in Lisbon or Porto could help you, or simply go to one of the many corner stores and get it there. Porto is also known to produce all the filigrie jewelery which is typical for Portugal. It's actually hard to find a lot of these pieces in other parts of Portugal, but if you go to the shop right off the main waterfront area (Ribeira district) in Porto called O Cantaro (rua da Lada, 50), you will find a really nice selection of gold, silver, and gold-plated filigree jewelery that they produce themselves. It's also a souvenir shop, but they are known for their jewelery pieces in this style. It's pretty reasonable. You should try to do some day trips suggested in the Rough Guide from Porto, as well as a river cruise. Personally I think 3 nights/2 days is sufficient in this city, then you take the side trips just outside.
Back to Lisbon, try not to get too turned off by the many graffities that spoil the look of the city. The whole city is cobblestoned and hilly, so wear good shoes, or get metro/bus/tram day or week passes. I explored the Alfama many times (and got lost many times). They also have some great artisan and antique shops when you turn off rua da Magdelena and I think it becomes rua Augusto Rosso). There is a great shop that has all handmade regional items (textiles, tiles, jewelery, etc..) called A Arte da Terra (rua Augusta Rosa, #40). This street leads to a Roman ruin (Teatro Roma), as well as the St. George's castle (I didn't go in). It's a steep climb. Alternatively you can take tram #28 or #12 and get off at the Decorative Arts museum. Great lookouts. I find that walking the streets you discover things you miss on a bus ride. Save it for the ride home when you're too tired to walk.
The weather in Portugal for the last 2 weeks has been amazing. Very unusual for this time of the year, even for Portugal. It was warm, sunny, high of 25C in the afternoon, cools down to 19/20C. I would suggest layers (take short sleeved and some long sleeved light-weight shirts, and add a sweater and light jacket just in case). The rainy season may be starting when you go. I hope you see this posting before you leave. The Portugese are very friendly, helpful people, and i was amazed at how many spoke English. It's one of the languages thay are taught starting in elementary school, along with French. You can always start by asking "fala inglese" (pronounced "inglaysh" - do you speak English?)and then take it from there. One more thing, don't bother getting anything at duty free in Lisbon. It's too expensive and with all the security checks, trying to find the customs desk and then the tax refund desk, you'll actually need to arrive 2.5 hrs before your flight home. You won't have time to shop duty-free or otherwise. It's a bit of a zoo for security and boarding the plane, but the lines keep moving, so just be patient. Many shops will provide the tax refund form for items or total bills over 61 Euros. You have to ask them for it. You get about 11% back. Buy in the smaller towns/cities, the prices are much better and sometimes you won't find the same type of goods in Lisbon (I wish I had more time in Obidos to take advantage of the fine linens edged in hand-made lace that a little old lady was making as you enter the walled city). Hope you have a worry free holiday. Make sure you keep nothing in the car except in the trunk, even if you're only going away for 10-15 minutes. Regards, sk

Best place to go out at night is Docas in Lisbon with many clubs and bars, including famous Buddha bar .

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