Highlights of Portugal

Upon your arrival at Lisbon Airport, pick up your car at the Eurocar station, then check in to your accommodation for 1 night on a bed and breakfast basis. You can spend the remainder of your day and evening exploring the “City of Seven Hills.”

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and drive to historic Óbidos before proceeding to Nazaré, an attractive and picturesque fishing village, with busy narrow streets where you can find fishermen and women wearing typical multicoloured costumes. Enjoy lunch at your leisure before continuing to Alcobaça, where you can see its 12^th-century Monastery and one of the most beautiful Cistercian Abbeys and/or Batalha, where you can visit the 15^th-century Monastery of Santa Maria da Vitoria, a masterpiece of the Portuguese Gothic Architecture and UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

Spend an overnight in Porto

(Approximately 360 km)

After breakfast, spend some time visiting Porto, the second largest city in Portugal, known for its many and varied monuments: the neoclassical Stock Exchange Palace, the Cathedral and its Romanesque choir and the Portuguese Manueline-style Church of Santa Clara. You can visit a wine cellar and try the well-known Porto wine. Enjoy lunch at your leisure then proceed to Guimarães, known as the cradle of Portugal with its unique historical centre. Continue on to Braga, one of the oldest religious cities in the world,  where you can visit the sanctuaries that constitute the faith triangle: the Cathedral and the Sanctuaries of Sameiro and Bom Jesus. Finally, you’ll head to Barcelos and drive along the coast, passing Vila do Conde before returning to Porto. 

Spend an overnight in Porto

(Approximately 168 km)

After breakfast, depart from Porto to Aveiro and visit the “Portuguese Venice,” the city of the river channels, where you can see the 15^th-century Cathedral and the Convento de Jesus. Enjoy lunch at your leisure at a local restaurant in Aveiro centre. 

Proceed to Coimbra and visit the University, one of the oldest in the world, with its magnificent baroque library, before visiting the 12^th-century fortified Cathedral and the Santa Cruz church known for its Manueline main portico. Continue on to Fátima, one of the largest pilgrimage centres in Europe and visit the Catholic shrine of Our Lady, one of the most famous in the world. Note: You can see the Candlelight Procession every night from May 13 to October 13. 

Spend an overnight in Fátima.

During the months of May and October, Fatima accommodations may be replaced with either Coimbra or Tomar.

(Approximately 230 km)

After breakfast, you’ll leave Fatima and drive to Tomar, where you’ll visit its castle with its imposing bulwark, the Convent of Christ – The Templar Order’s own headquarters, one of the finest architectural works existing in Portugal. You’ll then proceed to Castelo de Vide and visit the surrounded quarter of the castle and the Synagogue before continuing to Marvão, a medieval small town on a mountain top with beautiful views over the Alentejo region and Estremoz, famous by its original ceramic handicrafts and the medieval Castle.

Spend an overnight in Évora.

(Approximately 298 km)

After breakfast, it’s time to visit Évora, considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Walk along the narrow streets lined with whitewashed houses (suggested monuments: the Roman Temple, the Romanesque-Gothic Cathedral, Saint Francis Church with the “Bones Chapel” and the University). During the visit, you may also admire the diversity and authenticity of local handicrafts with cork, ceramic and copper objects. Enjoy a lunch at your leisure before departing for Lisbon. 

Spend an overnight in Lisbon.

(Approximately 132 km)

After breakfast, spend your last day visiting Lisbon. Here you may start your visit through the Alfama typical quarter and Saint George Castle, the Chiado and Bairro Alto quarters and Lisbon downtown, Praça do Comercio. Continue on to glimpse the Belem Tower, Discoveries Monument and Jeronimos Monastery. Stop for a coffee and taste the beautiful and famous ‘Pasteis de Belem’ pastry.

In the afternoon, drive to the charming village of Sintra (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) and see the majestic Pena Palace, an astonishing fairytale castle located in one of the highest peaks of the Sintra mountain range. Walk through the narrow streets and appreciate the several handicraft shops and stop at a tea-room to taste the delicious local sweets like "queijadas" or “travesseiros”. Continue to Cabo da Roca, the most western point in Europe and enjoy the unique scenery of the Atlantic Ocean. Return to Lisbon, passing Cascais and Estoril.

Spend an overnight in Lisbon.

(Approximately 80 km)
 

Check out of your hotel, drive to Lisbon Airport and drop off your car at Europcar station before boarding your flight back home.