Driving around with the sun tied to the tow bar... In the south-west of Europe lies a beautiful paradise called Portugal. Where the day is celebrated sitting in the sun while the custard from your Pastel de Nata sticks to your lips. City-tripping, culture-sniffing, fine dining, surfing, beach-hopping; everything is within easy reach, making it a versatile holiday. With the result that after a week in Portugal, you feel like you've been on the road for just under a month; filled with great memories.
In September 2019, we went on a fantastic road trip through Portugal, which I am happy to share with you. A spacious week as-in; flying out early Saturday morning and back late Sunday evening.
All about a road trip through Portugal
Route through Portugal
| Day 1 | Saturday | Lisbon |
| Day 2 | Sunday | Lisbon |
| Day 3 | Monday | Sintra |
| Day 4 | Tuesday | Sintra |
| Day 5 | Wednesday | Setubal |
| Day 6 | Thursday | Setubal |
| Day 7 | Friday | Peniche/Ericeira |
| Day 8 | Saturday | Peniche/Ericeira |
| Day 9 | Sunday | Peniche/Ericeira |
| More... | - | Porto |
Lisbon
The road trip through Portugal starts in Lisbon, Portugal's capital. The plane takes you to Lisbon within 3 hours and even the budget airlines fly there for a few pennies. We had chosen to spend 2 days in the city first and not rent a car for our road trip yet.
If you do want to rent a car directly, you can simply do so at the airport. It is convenient to book online in advance with one of the various rental companies. However, count on standing in a long queue during pick-up anyway. Even with the many complaints the airport has received regarding queues at the car rental, check online reviews, they haven't made a change yet.
From the airport, you can easily take public transport to the city centre and your Uber app just works there too; quite convenient. In the city, we got around by bus and on Lime's electric scooters. You can also easily rent bikes, however Lisbon is built on 7 hills, so it's tough on your calves.
Tip: In Lisbon, you can buy a ticket for the ride from the bus driver himself, or buy a strippenkaart at the station.
Tip: You can also easily rent Lime scooters via the app on your phone. However, you do need a credit card for this, as it will be linked to your Lime account. After downloading the app and activating your account; you will be taken step-by-step through the instructions, you can take a scooter with you. Note: make sure your battery is well charged when using the scooters, so that you can check out and log out after use. Otherwise, charges will be high.
We mainly used the first two days to wander around, a few fine tips being;
- LX Factory; is a creative hotbed full of fun coffee shops and restaurants, interspersed with studios and shops. On weekends, there is often a market where creative talents sell their work.
- Day at the beach; From Lisbon, you can also take the train to the beach; little effort and enjoy the sun while the sand tickles between your toes.
- Sailing trip; Lisbon is located on the water and through AirBNB you can book several sailing trips, including the opportunity to watch the sunset from the water.
Tip: You can book the finest places to sleep via AirBNB. But you can also book ‘experiences’, which is actually much more fun. They are often organised by local people who enjoy sharing the city's best secrets with you. Booking and paying is simply done via your AirBNB account, which is so easy.
Belém; is a town next to Lisbon, great to travel to by bus and/or train. Unesco heritage, so that already promises much beauty. Home of ‘Pasteis de Belém’, the expert on the famous Pastel de Nata.
After two wonderful days in Lisbon, we collected our car from the rental at the airport. This is where our road trip through Portugal began. We drove on in a straight line to Sintra. It's only half an hour away by car and also perfectly doable by public transport, should you not want to rent a car.
Lisbon restaurant tips
- Nicolau; for breakfast and lunch, to lick your fingers! There is often a queue though so plan your visit well and don't go there when your stomach is already rumbling with hunger.
- La Vita é Bella; For fresh pasta. Whenever pasta is an option, I always want to eat pasta. I am simply in love with it. So for us, it has become a tradition to find the most delicious Italian restaurant with fresh pasta in every city. In Lisbon, it became ‘La Vita é Bella’, where they have a pizza tower as an appetiser; which is literally a tower of pizza pieces that you can then dip in sauces.
- Bakery Tease; For a fantastic piece of cake!
- Pastel de Nata is “the treacle-waffle” of Portugal; you can't leave without shoving this treat in your mouth at least once. And... if you are going to delve into the Pastel de Nata during your visit to Lisbon anyway, you might as well get a ‘Pastel de Belém’ in Belém.
Tip: Want to enjoy Lisbon's sunny weather, stunning views and lively atmosphere for longer? Then check out working in Lisbon is for you!
Sintra
Flat: Through AirBNB, we had booked a room at Pinho, highly recommended; nice and central, restaurants nearby, clean, great price, easy check-in and a cosy communal kitchen.
Known for its magnificent palaces, Sintra is like stepping straight into a fairy tale. The Monte da Lua, the moon mountain; mighty magical. Surrounded by many different palaces.
We arrived in the evening and had allocated the next day to go to 3 locations. It is good to read up on what you would like to see in Sintra beforehand, as it is not recommended to do everything in 1 day (especially in high season).
Pena Palace; ’In the morning, we boarded the bus to ‘Pena palace’, a colour spectacle before your eyes. This is the most popular palace to visit, so I admit, it was incredibly crowded. But definitely worth it.
Quinta da Regaleira; We then went on to ‘Quinta da Regaleira’, something completely different from ‘Pena palace’ but highly recommended. ‘Quinta da Regaleira’ consists of a large park with several underground tunnels where you can wander fantastically.
Cabo da Roca; The next day, we drove to ‘Cabo da Roca’ by car. From Sintra, you can also take the tour bus here. This is the westernmost point in Portugal and all of Europe. Infinite views over the sea. We recommend buying some goodies for lunch and especially climbing down the rocks at ‘Cabo da Roca’ for beautiful views and perfect spots for a picnic.
Tip: In Sintra, you have tour buses that drive around all the palaces, it works the same way as a hop-on-hop-off bus. Do allow for long waits at the palaces themselves to get back on the bus.
Setubal
Flat: We had booked a flat through Booking ‘Y. Baixa - Boutique Apartments’ and on arrival we were very kindly received by the owner Pedro.
We then travelled on to Setubal; a peninsula containing Portugal's fourth largest city. Much of the island is part of Arrábida Natural Park with beautiful beaches, rugged cliffs and a pod of wild dolphins. For that group of wild dolphins, we travelled to Setubal mainly because we wanted to see them with our own eyes.
We told the owner of our flat that we would like to book a boat trip to see the dolphins. He immediately gave us the contact details of his acquaintance. This was because he had his own sailboat and could take us on a private trip. We left early in the morning with the sailboat and then we had a wonderful day of sailing. To be fair, we did not see the dolphins, but this did not spoil the fun.
You can also book a tour on the ferry to see the dolphins, your chances of seeing them will be higher as the ferry can sail in shallow water; however, you will then share the boat with many other tourists.
In Setubal, we also spent a day driving along the coast, stopping at all the beaches that looked nice. Beach-hopping we call it.
Peniche and Ericeira
Hostel: Peniche Hostel
We ended our road trip through Portugal in Peniche, where we had booked our overnight stay at ‘Peniche Hostel’. Peniche is a small village where there is not much to do. What you can do there is enjoy the beach, the rugged coast and surfing. Peniche is a real surfhotspot.
Tip: All your surf gear and surf lessons can easily be rented locally. However, it is nice to bring your own water shoes when surfing in Ericeira. There is something for every surfing level.
Peniche is next to Ericeira, which is also a real surf-hotspot. With lots of nice bars, live music and fun. Want to stay in Ericeira itself? Then ‘Blue Buddha hostel’ comes highly recommended. Note the word HOSTEL. There are several Blue Buddha accommodations.
In high season ‘Tubo-bar’ on Wednesday night the place-to-be and on Friday night you have at ‘Quicksilver Boardriders Cafe’ a cosy evening with the best poké bowls. After a night of heavy partying, get the best breakfast at ‘Ribeira d'Ilhas’. Many surfing championships are also organised in Peniche and Ericeira.
Porto
Extend your red-trip through Portugal. Should you have extra holiday days and want to see more of Portugal, you can easily take the train from Lisbon to Porto. Famous for its Port and beautiful tiled churches. Porto is also an inspiration for the Harry Potter books, which is reflected in the school uniforms and the famous bookstore ‘Livraria Lello’.
Tip: If you want to visit ‘Livraria Lello’, make sure you buy a ticket, because to enter the bookshop you have to pay an entrance fee. You can buy the entrance ticket at the little red building opposite the bookshop.
When in Porto, I recommend booking the ‘Porto Bridge Climb’; this tour allows you to climb the bridge ‘Ponte de Arrábida’. This is the only bridge in Europe that can be climbed. At the top of the bridge, you have a fantastic view of the city!
Tip: Would you like to book the Porto Bridge Climb? Then do so on this website; www.portobridgeclimb.com
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