Experience an 11-day guided tour of Portugal that will delight your senses. In Lisbon, a knowledgeable local guide will take you through the historic downtown and the beautiful Terreiro do Paço square. Enjoy panoramic views from Monsaraz, overlooking the Spanish plains and Alqueva Lake, while a local boat captain shares exciting water stories during a serene cruise. Discover the Templar Castle in Tomar and its impressive rotunda with an expert guide. Savor a farm-to-table dinner in the Douro Valley featuring local ingredients and sample onsite-produced port wine. Explore Porto, a UNESCO World Heritage city, and unwind in a five-star hotel in the charming historic district.
Includes
11 Day Insight Vacations Guided Holiday
10 Nights in stylish, hand picked hotel accommodation
Authentic dining inclusive of 10 breakfasts, 1 lunch with Wine & 4 dinners with wine
Enjoy the comfort of Insight's luxury, air-conditioned coach
An expert Insight Travel Director
From time to time, your Travel Director will enchant you with an Insight Flourish, which is a local specialty representing the destination
Baggage handling everywhere, we include all taxes and porterage charges at hotels
Hotel and restaurant tips are included
Personal radio headsets, gives you the freedom to wander during visits to famous highlights without missing any of your local expert's fascinating insights and commentaries
Additional experiences during your free time that can be purchased at an additional cost
Top Rated Highlights
Lisbon Pastéis de Belém Tasting and Jerónimos Monastery Visit
Lisbon Jeronimos Cloisters Visit
Évora City Tour
Lisbon City Tour
Lagos Orientation
Explore the Ancient City of Évora
Explore the Monsaraz Castle Ruins
Tomar Templar Castle Visit
Visit the Synagogue of Tomar
and much more!
Unique Insight Experiences
Cruise Lake Alqueva with a Local Captain: Join a local boat captain for a tranquil cruise of Lake Alqueva. Relax and enjoy calming waters, picturesque views and tales of river life.
Make Travel Matter Experiences
Traditions of the Alentejo: During a wine tasting session, appreciate the delicate yet complex nuances of Alentejo wine, and learn how the Relvas family has been managing to keep low water consumption, reforestation of indigenous trees, and providing scholarships to children of the village.
Excludes
Flights
Tranfsers not mentioned
Visas
Travel Insurance
Items of a personal nature
Extras
On occasion, hotels of similar standard and location may be utilised.
Additional experiences that have been curated by your Travel Director from their own in-depth local knowledge can be signed up for on tour at an additional cost.
Highlights
10 Nights in stylish hotel accommodation
15 Meals
Unique Insight Experiences
Itinerary
Day 1: Welcome to Lisbon
On arrival at Lisbon International Airport, there are complimentary transfers to your hotel. Settle in and relax before joining your Travel Director for a Welcome Dinner at a local restaurant. Enjoy the opportunity to mingle with your fellow travellers during a pleasant evening of good food and wine.
Arrival Transfer: 09:30, 12:30, 15:30
Welcome Meeting: Meet your Travel Director at 18:00
Accommodation: Corinthia Hotel Lisbon
Included Meals: Dinner with Wine
Day 2: Lisbon and the Age of the Great Discoveries
Your guided sightseeing with a Local Expert takes you along the spacious avenues of the Lower Town and across the tree-shaded squares. Pass beneath the hilltop Bairro Alto to the Terreiro do Paço. See the ancient Belém Tower and marvel at the Monument to the Discoveries.
Explore more of the Belém Quarter as you enjoy a taste of Pastéis de Belém from the patisserie that has been using the same secret recipe for almost 200 years, and visit the Cloister of Jeronimos Monastery. This evening, gain further insight into Portuguese culture with an Optional Experience dinner.
Accommodation: Corinthia Hotel Lisbon
Included Meals: Breakfast
Day 3: The Algarve
Cross the River Tagus and head for the sun-drenched southern coast to reach Lagos, a fishing port nestled in the bay of Meia Praia. After free time to explore, continue to your resort hotel set within a magnificent 360-acre estate. Simplicity is in the soul of Algarve cuisine, along with seafood so fresh it still tastes of the sea. A short walk away specialised Portuguese seafood restaurants hug the coastline, overlooking the Atlantic.
Accommodation: Ria Park Hotel & Spa
Included Meals: Breakfast
Day 4: Everlasting Évora
Journey to the medieval walled city of Évora where cathedrals, churches, aqueducts and ancient castle walls all serve to create the feeling that this beautiful city is a living, breathing museum to Portugal's rich past. Join your Local Expert to explore the highlights of this UNESCO World Heritage Site. See the Roman Temple and visit the Capela dos Ossos, an extraordinary 17th century chapel comprising the skulls and bones of 5,000 bones. Visit the cathedral with its attractive mix of Romanesque and Gothic architecture. With the rest of the afternoon at leisure, you may wish to continue to stroll through Évora’s unique historical centre, or the serene city park, following the aqueduct inside the city walls?
Accommodation: M'Ar de Ar Aqueduto
Included Meals: Breakfast
Day 5: Monsaraz and Évora
Travel to the striking white village of Monsaraz, situated on an imposing hilltop, surrounded by olive groves and vineyards. From the castle ruins, admire the spectacular views across to the dry Spanish plains, contrasting with the blue of Europe's largest artificial lake. Join a local boat captain for a leisurely cruise on the tranquil waters of Lake Alqueva. Relax and enjoy calming waters, picturesque views and tales of river life. Sit down to a delicious Highlight Lunch at local restaurant Sem Fim, once an olive mill. Enjoy a wide range of tasty tapas dishes showcasing the local cuisine, and soak up the vibrant; cheerful atmosphere. Return to Évora where the evening is at your leisure to explore this beautifully preserved regional capital.
Accommodation: M'Ar de Ar Aqueduto
Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch with Wine
Day 6: On to Tomar
This morning, join a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience as you visit Casa Relvas for a wine tasting. Despite the dry climate of the Alentejo region, they have been producing exceptional wine using innovative techniques to reduce the use of water. Continue to Tomar and visit one of Portugal’s historical jewels, the Templar Castle and Convent of Christ, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With your Local Expert, explore the octagonal Templars' Rotunda in the cloister and glimpse the day-to-day life of a warrior monk in the domestic areas. Outside on the battlements, the Manueline Window is a national masterpiece. You also visit the Synagogue of Tomar, one of the best preserved medieval synagogues in Portugal, housing a small Jewish museum.
Accommodation: Hotel dos Templários
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner with Wine
Day 7: Coimbra and the Douro Valley
In Coimbra, your Local Expert will show you the highlights of the Old Town, including the University of Coimbra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Visit its impressive baroque university library, one of the finest in the world. Your journey continues past verdant hills and lush vineyards, along the tranquil waters of the Douro River.
Accommodation: Douro Palace Hotel Resort & Spa Douro Valley
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner with Wine
Day 8: Guimarães and Porto
Journey to Guimarães to admire the views from the ruined castle and explore the cobbled streets and cosy squares. Next, continue on to Porto, Portugal’s second city, a World Heritage town and where Portugal originates. Explore Porto with Insight Choice. Choose to join your Local Expert and visit the São Bento Railway Station, with a walk along the architecturally impressive Dom Luís I Bridge. Alternatively, enjoy a panoramic drive through the city streets led by a Local Expert.
In the evening you are at leisure to enjoy your boutique, five-star hotel, a member of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World, in the heart of Porto’s historic district. The decor is a mix of classic and contemporary and each room is individually decorated with original artwork. Alternatively, why not join an Optional Experience to see the pastel-painted houses in Porto's Ribeira district before cruising on a traditional Rabelo boat and finishing off the evening with a Portuguese dinner in the comfort of your riverside restaurant?
Accommodation: Pousada do Porto Rua Das Flores
Included Meals: Breakfast
Day 9: Porto, Grande Dame on the Douro
With a full day free to enjoy at your own pace, why not take a stroll to admire the multi-coloured houses and churches covered in beautiful glazed tiles. Perhaps choose to visit Braga, the capital of baroque. In the evening, enjoy a mouth-watering Celebration Dinner with wine at an authentic Porto restaurant.
Accommodation: Pousada do Porto Rua Das Flores
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner with Wine
Day 10: Holy Fátima, Ancient Óbidos and Lisbon
Continue to Fátima, Portugal’s most renowned place of pilgrimage. See the basilica or perhaps visit the Chapel of the Apparitions, which commemorates the appearance of the Virgin Mary to three young shepherds in 1917. Journey to the fortified town of Óbidos and walk within its walls, exploring the narrow, medieval streets where houses are covered with flowers. Your travels continue to the Portuguese capital, Lisbon.
Accommodation: Dom Pedro Lisboa
Included Meals: Breakfast
Day 11: Depart Lisbon
After breakfast, your departure transfer arrives at Lisbon International Airport.
Departure Transfer: 07:00, 09:30
Included Meals: Breakfast
Terms & conditions
Prices are per person twin share, include discounts, and are subject to availability and rate of exchange changes. Offers above are a guide only and will vary depending on departure date, our guide price is based on the cheapest departure within the stipulated season and availability is correct at time of loading. Visas may be necessary and insurance is essential. Pentravel and Tour Operator terms and conditions apply, and can be requested. Excludes flights, transfers, visas, travel insurance and anything not mentioned. Savings are not valid on all itineraries and/or departure dates, are subject to availability and may be withdrawn at any time without notice. High season supplements and block out dates may apply, pricing varies pending departure date. Package excludes flights. You can do optional free-time add-on experiences in your free time and pay for them as you travel (additional costs apply). Insight Vacations reserves the right to withdraw promotional offers and adjust savings anytime. All savings / discounts mentioned have already been included in the advertised price. Pentravel and Tour Operator reserves the right to withdraw or amend promotional offers at any time. 2024 Travel Sale, book by 30 May 2024. These packages are based on CASH price. E&OE;.
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