Best Two Weeks in Portugal Itinerary

In my opinion, here are the top things to see and do in Portugal: Coffee and pastries and people watch (evening version: wine or ginja by a river); beach side strolls (Portugal is basically all coastline); churches (so many churches); parks (Sintra too); get medieval (Obidos, St. George castle.), eat fresh caught seafood. 

OVERVIEW {quick links}

• Longer than two weeks? (extras doc)
• Food 
• Sintra
• Transportation 
• Souvenirs 

My trip took place May 2022, from Saturday April 30- Sunday May 15. It was technically 16 days, with the first and last being full travel days for us, but we spent 14 days on the ground in Portugal. To me, this was a perfect amount of time to see this beautiful country!

Day 1- Lisbon City: Get your bearings

You’re going to be likely tired from your plane ride (unless you can sleep on planes, you lucky duck!), so either check into your hotel and drop your things off, or heft your carry-on bag to the nearest food spot to settle down.

Travel tips: Grab a Via Viagem metro/travel card and load up with some cash to help you get around

My grandmother and I needed a moment to just settle into the atmosphere of oh-my-god-we-made-it-to-Europe vibes, and Praça do Rossio, or Rossio Square, is the perfect place. It’s right where the metro spits you out at anyways, and is a pretty spot to sit and people watch and get your bearings. Lisbon has a lot of squares (called praça), or peaceful areas that surround a central point like a statue or fountain, and we visited about all of them.

More on Lisbon in this Blog Post!

We arrived in Lisbon in the morning, and decided to take this day slowly. We spent some time in the airport getting our SIM cards- I used Vodafone SIMs with unlimited data for two weeks which cost €15 for each of us. Then we got Via Viagem cards to use as transport in the city (more on that in this article) since we didn’t get Lisboa cards (free transport and discounted entrance to certain places). We tried to use the aerobus to the city center, but realized that the service was canceled due to COVID (Google maps does not seem to be aware of this, so keep this in mind). 

We then used the metro to get closer to our AirBnb to then walk to it. It spit us out at Baixa-Chiado, which is just a one minute walk to  Praça Luís de Camões. 


Right outside Baixa-Chiado metro station

Praça Luís de Camões. We spent a moment here, collecting ourselves, feeling the breeze and watching the people go about their day. 

We then walked to our apartment, dropped off our things, and headed out again! We couldn’t settle in quite yet as the hosts were still setting up. 

Right nearby (you’ll find that everything is within a five minute walk of one another in downtown Lisbon) is Praça da Figueira where a local market, Mercado da Baixa, hosts Portugal’s greatest hits: cork souvenirs, sizzling pork dishes, and several tapas and wine bars. 

I couldn’t resist the smell of freshly frying pork, and got myself a plate of it served on some pickled veggies. It was sooo good, the tangy vinegar from the vegetables balancing out the fattiness of the fried pork, and it only cost a couple of euros! This was my perfect introduction to Portuguese cuisine, as I found the low price and delicious flavor to be common all across the country. 

In the same area is Estátua do Rei Dom Pedro IV, a large column featuring a statue and fountains, as well as Praça do Rossio. It is a pretty square in central Lisbon, right next to Rossio station, which also right near the Igreja de São Domingos (Church of St. Dominic) which you should also check out. 
For a snack we ate at Confeitaria Nacional, a famous pastry shop where we had pastéis de nata and coffees. 

To read more about Portugal’s famous pastries and best foods, read this article! 
Afterwards, we were still pretty exhausted, so we decided to return to our apartment for some relaxation.



Lisbon is one of those places where you are transported to a different time when simply walking around town. Leisurely stroll across cobblestone mosaic pathways, hear the chatter of people of all ages who are out soaking in the sunshine, smell the freshly cooking seafood, watch laundry drying in the breeze. Our apartment was in the midst of all of this wonder, and I couldn’t help but feel a desire to move here one day. Maybe I will. 

Day 2- Beach Episode! Cascais Day Trip

I’m going to say something honest here, and try not to hate me: I don’t love the beach. I’m born and raised in California, and with the beach always within 1 hour from me, it just never really held its charm. Plus, it has sand- it’s coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere.

Portugal changed that for me.

Not the sand bit, mind you, but WOW the beaches in Europe are something else.

Things to see/do in Cascais:

The next morning we were more refreshed, ready to truly take on the day. I’m glad that we did, because, like Portugal’s other small towns, Cascais ended up being one of our favorite places in Portugal! 
Logistics: We took the metro green line then the 40 minute suburban train from Cais do Sodré station, getting off at the last stop, Cascais Station. We used our Via Viagem cards for both the metro and train, and tickets for the train were €2.25 each. 

Beaches: Praia da Rainha and Praia da Ribeira. During the summer months (especially July and August), these beaches get pretty packed.

Museu Condes de Castro Guimarães

Marechal Carmona Park. Like most parks in Portugal, this was well landscaped, huge, and free.

WOW! Our favorite place to eat in Portugal, A Nova Estrella in Cascais. We arrived as soon as it opened, and sat outside.

There is still more to Cascais, we did not see Mercado da Vila or Boca do Inferno, but we still had a full day experience without those! If I were to return, I would definitely stay the night in Cascais, or at least visit again the next day from our stay in Lisbon.

What else to see: There are two large, beautiful houses near the park, the Condes de Castro Guimarães house and Casa de Santa Maria, near the lighthouse. Both cost a few euros to enter. The Santa Marta Lighthouse, and Casa da Guia. Rent a kayak for the day and kayak in the waters!

I cannot recommend Cascais (pronounced kash-ki-sshh) enough! More on this cute beach town in this dedicated Blog Post here.

Day 3- Unmissable Magical Palaces in Portugal: Sintra

To visit Sintra on your own, you’ll want to catch a train from Lisbon’s Rossio Station to Sintra (and leave as early as possible to beat the crowds – Sintra is one of the most popular places to visit in Portugal!).
Once you arrive in Sintra, you’ll want to snag a ticket for the 434 bus that runs in a loop to most of Sintra’s top attractions.

In Sintra, you can visit:

• The historic centre of Sintra (Sintra Vila)
• Sintra National Palace
• Castelo dos Mouros
• Palácio Nacional da Pena
• Quinta da Regaleira
• Monserrate Palace

Pena Palace (Palácio Nacional da Pena)

9:00 arrive at Pena Palace, which opens at 9:30. Take a 7 Euro Uber ride from the train station to the palace. My recommendation for your day in Sintra is to skip past Sintra town center and the Castelo dos Mouros and make straight for the Palácio Nacional da Pena (Pena Palace) from the train station. This brightly-painted palace is regarded as one of the very best in all of Europe, and it’s definitely the most popular spot to visit in Sintra (meaning you want to get there as early as possible, and book your ticket in advance!).
* The Pena PARK opens up at 9:00- get there first and see it, then see the inside as soon as it opens, then more of the outside €14 (reg) and €12.50 (senior) ticket for Pena park and palace

Quinta da Regaleira

From the national palace, it’s only about a 15-20 minute walk to the Quinta da Regaleira, a fancy villa with fairy tale-like gardens that is my favorite place in Sintra. You can easily spend a couple hours here exploring the gardens.
€8 (reg)

Monserrate Palace

Closes at 6:30, last admission to the grounds at 5:00 pm
See the sunset, take pictures! See the outside first, then inside while it’s darker
435 tourist bus from Quinta da Regaleira
€8 (reg) and €6.50 (senior) ticket for Palace

Getting back

Bus back to Lisbon at 7:00 (bus from Monserrate to Sintra Center then to Lisbon 1.5 hour), get back around 8:00 pm, eat dinner (leftovers in the apartment? Late night eating is common, especially in big cities.)
Consider spending the night in Sintra to see everything, including what we did not get to see:
– Castelo dos Mouros
– Sintra National Palace
– Chalet and Garden of the Countess of Edla
– Villa Sassetti
– Convent of the Capuchos

Sintra is like the Disneyland of Portugal- you could spend several days in this area and still find new things to discover! More on the secrets of Sintra in this Blog Post!

Day 4- Explore the City

Today, after our busy day hiking in Sintra, we decided to take it easy and explore more of Lisbon.
First we began by doing some laundry local style by hanging our clothes to dry right outside our balcony.

Who knew laundry could be so fun! I felt like a Disney princess hanging my clothes on a line, which also helps the environment by using plain-old solar energy to dry your clothes. We make an effort at home to line dry our clothes as much as possible for this reason.


We then grabbed brunch at Cotidiano, a cute but busy spot right across from other well known eateries like Dear Breakfast. If you do come here, take a chance to sit by the street to view the famous yellow trams rolling by! (for two coffees and two breakfasts it was €22.50- not unheard of for brunch, and definitely cheaper than what can be found in California. Overall though, I probably wouldn’t come back. The food was just fine, not amazing, and the atmosphere was ear piercingly loud, similar to Dear Breakfast. The chance to see the trams up close from a good vantage point might be worth it to you though!)

Two streets over was Rua Augusta, a well known road for shops and dining, often packed with tourists. What we really came to see, however, was at the very end: Arco Da Rua Augusta, an imposingly large Roman style triumphal arch, built in 1875 to glorify the achievements of the Portuguese and to celebrate Lisbon’s resilience after the tragedy of the earthquake, fire, and tsunami in 1755. 



Walk through the arch and enter Praça do Comércio, a large plaza facing the Tagus river.



We wandered around here for a bit before moving on, as there isn’t much to do. We headed up the steep and winding alleys to St Anthony’s church, but it was closed. Right next door is the Sé de Lisboa, which you can enter for €4 per ticket.


After exiting the church, we wandered towards some notable viewpoints throughout the city, stopping once for pastries.


Our first viewpoint was Miradouro de Santa Luzia, or, more accurately, a smaller version right below it, called Praça Júlio de Castilho. The Luzia viewpoint is technically right outside of a restaurant and was packed with tourists, but below was a peaceful and private area to see the Tagus river.



Walk up just a little bit further to see Miradouro das Portas do Sol!
You’ll notice that there are various viewpoints the further up you go in the city, usually along the Tagus side of Lisbon and on fairly steep inclines, spend your day in Lisbon walking up its hills, and be rewarded by breathtaking views of the city!

Take your time traversing the alleyways, noticing all the hidden (and not so hidden) street art, juxtaposed with antique azulejos and marble columns from Portugal’s history. 
Make your way up to Castelo de S. George, and buy your tickets at the front gate (or online ahead of time). Tickets are €10 for adults, €5 for 13-25 year olds, and €8.50 for seniors. 

Garden of the Castelo de S. Jorge, Castelo de S. Jorge, and St George Castle viewpoint
Dinner at Santiago Tapas (was supposed to be pizza at Bacalhau no Castelo, but it was replaced by Santiago Tapas) 
We got these cute little ice creams at Popbar to cool down after the hot day, then took the 737 bus to Praça da Figueira and home.

Did not see:
– Miradouro do Recolhimento
– Torre da Igreja do Castelo de São Jorge
– Focaccia in Giro 
– Lisbon Botanical Garden
– Belem
– Pastelaria Benard
– Queijadas  
– Parque Eduardo VII
– Lisbon Botanical Garden 
– Igreja de São Roque
– Belem and tower and Mosteiro dos Jerónimos
– Fado or Tile Museum
– Time out Market for dinner 

Day 5- The Bone Chapel of Evora

We saw plenty of Lisbon, and It’s time for our first day-trip. And what better place to go than the medieval city of Évora. One and a half hours away from Lisbon, the windy alleys of Évora offer just enough highlights to fill our day.
They are all right next to each other so you can do them in any order you want. The Sé of Évora (the cathedral) is a beautiful piece of architecture, blending Romanesque with the Gothic. It also offers rooftop views and a picturesque cloister.
The Roman Temple of Diana is right next to the cathedral, and while it’s not out-of-this-world exciting, it’s very well-preserved, and there’s a lovely park next to it you can unwind in.
The biggest attraction of Évora is the Bone Chapel. Lined with the remains of 5,000 monks, Capela dos Ossos is a bizarre but quite unique place that is an absolute must-see.
Trains (and busses) depart from the Sete Rios station, which can be easily reached by metro. 

Train Lisbon Sete Rios 9:14- Evora 10:35. Evora 16:57- Lisbon Sete Rios 18:23.
€19,00 for me, €13,00 for Grandma 
•8:37 leave for train station, use Metro
•9:14-10:35 am train Sete rios (read, listen to music)
Bone Chapel; The Roman Temple of Diana
•Take bus to Bone Chapel 
•Jardim Público de Évora
•Bone Chapel (opens 9:00 am) aka Capela dos Ossos; Igreja de São Francisco
•Igreja da Misericórdia
•Lunch? A Choupana
•Praça do Giraldo
•Fonte da Praça do Giraldo (Giraldo Square Fountain)
•Igreja de São Tiago
•Arco Romano de Dona Isabel
•Catedral de Évora 
•Templo Romano Évora (The Roman Temple of Diana)
•Páteo de São Miguel
•Have dinner/lunch (Porta d’Aviz)

Day 6- Óbidos: Cherries and Chocolates and Medieval Castles

You’ve been busy in Lisbon, so take it easy today! If there are any additional spots in the city you wanted to see (or maybe some you want to revisit), do that this morning. Then, in the late morning or early afternoon, I recommend heading to the town of Óbidos.
The easiest way to get to Óbidos is by bus. The Rodotejo bus company runs its Rapido Verde (Green Express) service to Óbidos from outside Lisbon’s Campo Grande Station at least once per hour (check timetables here).
To find the correct bus stop, take the metro to Campo Grande, and exit towards Rua Cipriano Dourado. Turn left and go toward the big green apartment building. The bus leaves from a stop on Rua Actor Antionio Silva between the train tracks and the green apartment building.
Tickets are 7.95 Euro one-way, and you buy your ticket from the driver when you get on the bus. The ride to Óbidos takes an hour, with one stop on the way.

Óbidos itself is an incredibly cute and historic town famous for being surrounded by a fortified wall.
Shop street of Rua Direita
You can also see the old medieval castle (which today is a private hotel), visit a church or two, and just enjoy getting a little lost in the narrow streets and alleyways.

Churches:
Igreja de Santa Maria
Senhor Jesus da Pedra
Porta da Vila is most commonly known as the town gate, however, it is also a chapel. On the second story, you can see the famous azulejos tiles that make this town gate one of the most beautiful in Europe! Pass through the gate directly onto Rua Direita or take the stairs up to the castle walls leading towards this chapel.
Igreja de Sao Tiago
If you visit in spring, you’ll likely see lots of flowers in bloom.

Return to and explore Caldas da Rainha where you will sleep.

Day 7- Foz do Arelho and Nazaré

30 min bus ride from Caldas to Nazaré
Nazaré: small cute beach town (possible celebrations of the beach here)
Foz: nearby beach, quieter, uber or trolley to get there
Return to Caldas and sleep

Day 8- Coimbra

Café Capristanos coffee! 8 min walk from apartment in Caldas to the Caldas da Rainha station
07:30 Caldas da Rainha- 09:50 Coimbra. Bus No.: 15. Seats 5, 6
€11,90 each person
8 min walk from Caldas apartment to Caldas bus station. 7 minute DRIVE from Coimbra bus station to Coimbra apartment. Uber or ask host to pick you up from Coimbra bus station.
Communicate with host when you’ll be there, drop things off, get food and coffee, sightsee.
•11:10 Rede Expressos changed bus time •Checkout at 10:30
•TRANSFER at 12:15 to bus 16 seats 6 and 7
•Message host when you are 30 mins from Coimbra
•1:05 pm arrive in Coimbra
•1:30 Check into Coimbra hotel, eat lunch
•Botanical Garden, College, Bibloteca Joanina, Loggia Restaurant, Escadas do quebra costas, Santa Cruz cafe, Quinta dad Lagrimas, Mosterio de Sao Francisco, Penedo da Saudade, Sé Velha, Sereia Garden
•Cafe O Afonso Tentugal cakes

Day 9- Porto

•Wake up 7:00
•Checkout by 9:00
•Uber at 9:30 with luggage (12 mins to get to Coimbra train station)
•10:23-12:30 two hour train to Porto
•12:00 Porto Uber to apartment, Message Helena time of arrival
•12:50 check into Porto airbnb
•1:30 Lunch: Churrasqueira Paraiso
•2:46 Bus to Carmo and Carmelita
•3:50 Livraria Lello (did not go)
•3:20 Clergios Church/tower
•4:00 Se do Porto
•4:35 Cerca Velha restaurant sangria and Gingja
•5:00 Largo da Pena Ventosa
•5:30 shopping on the Riberia
•7:45 made it back to the apartment, took D metro

What we WOULD HAVE DONE:
10:30 Morning coffees and breakfast
11:00 am Jardins do Palácio de Cristal 
Relax, slow down
(Opens around 10:30, get there 10:15) Livraria Lello. This bookstore from the 1800s. Entry to Livraria Lello is now ticketed, and the entry ticket is not purchased at the bookshop itself. You have to purchase a ticket (€5) from a shop on the corner of Rua das Carmelitas at Armazéns do Castelo. This shop opens about 15 minutes before Livraria Lello. I recommend getting in line 15-30 minutes before the shop opens in order to be one of the first ones inside to admire the shop’s striking red staircase and Art Nouveau/Art Deco design.
Lunch 
12:00 Carmo and Carmelita churches with their stunning azulejo-tiled exteriors (something Portugal is pretty famous for) are the perfect place for a new profile picture while the Clerigos Church and its tower offer stunning panoramic views of Porto.
1:30 Largo da Pena Ventosa (view)
2:00 For an afternoon in Porto, I recommend a walk along the Ribeira Square and Cais da Ribeira, or the waterfront right along the Douro River in the oldest part of the city. This is where much of Porto’s trade used to happen, though today the old warehouses have been transformed into cafes and shops.
3:00 From the Ribeira, make your way to the Dom Luís I Bridge, the grand iron bridge spanning the Douro River that was designed by a student of Gustave Eiffel. Cross the bridge over to Vila Nova de Gaia, which has some of the best views of Porto and is home to the city’s best port lodges (cellars). 
Can do Vila Nova de Gaia in day 2 for more sunset views 
4:30 Dinner
5:30 Finally, head over to the Jardim do Morro or fortress-like Monastery of Serra do Pilar for the best sunset views over the river. From this vantage point, you can watch the sun set and the twinkling lights of Porto come on at dusk.
May 11 2022 Porto sunset at 8:41 pm

Day 10- Aveiro and Costa Nova

NOT booked. 1 hr train Aveiro and the nearby town of Costa Nova with striped houses and seafood restaurants. 1 hr train back. Ex: leave at 7:00, arrive at beach 8:30, spend all day there (7 hours, including short uber to Costa Nova), leave at 4:00, arrive back in Porto apartment 5:30.
•Take out gmas stitches
•1 hr train trip to Aveiro and nearby town of Costa Nova
•Uber to Aveiro city center
•Casa de Santa Zita
•Parque Dom Pedro Infante – City Park Parque Infante Dom Pedro – Parque da Cidade de Aveiro
•Uber to Costa Nova and the beach
•4:18 Train to Sao Bento
•5:20 dinner
•Wash shirt

Day 11- Braga or Explore More Porto

1 hr from Porto; Bom Jesus do Monte
The Bom Jesus do Monte is 6km to the east of Braga city centre and is connected by a regular bus service (route 2). The bus departs from the Avenida da Liberdade (see the map in the next section) and is operated by TUB buses (https://tub.pt/), and terminates at the base of the stairs.
Bom Jesus do Monte
Bom Jesus do Monte Funicular
Braga Cathedral
Praça da República
Garden of Santa Barbara
Sanctuary of Our Lady of Sameiro
Biscainhos Museum
Raio Palace
Chapel of São Frutuoso
S. C. Braga
Arco da Porta Nova
Monastery of São Martinho de Tibães
Misericórdia Church
Festa de São João
Vinho Verde
Train tickets €17,60 for me, €11,65 for Grandma:
8:50 Porto Sao Bento train station- 10:17 Braga.
17:54 Braga- 18:45 Porto Sao Bento
Cancelled, refund.

What we actually did:

•10:15 am bus to Jardins do Palácio de Cristal
•12:00 Bus to Jardim Botânico do Porto
•1:00 Bus and walk 9 mins to Bolsa Palace (CLOSES at 6:30 pm; Arab room; €10 each tix)
•5:30 bus to Dinner on the Riberia watching the river (Bacalhoeiro?)

Day 12- Porto

9:00 am Jardim Botânico do Porto (either in the morning or during lunch)
9:00 am The Igreja Monumento de São Francisco is right next to the Palacio da Bolsa, and the Sé do Porto (Porto Cathedral) is a short walk away.
Lunch
I recommend making your way down to the Palacio da Bolsa to continue your architectural tour of Porto. The Neoclassical Palacio da Bolsa was built in the 19th century to be the seat of Porto’s Commercial Association. It’s name translates to “Stock Exchange Palace” – but don’t be fooled into thinking this is just a boring financial building. Inside, it really does look like a royal palace. Highlights inside the Palacio da Bolsa include the glass-domed Pátio das Nações (Hall of Nations), and the Arab Room, which is decorated in a lavish Moorish Revival style. In order to visit, you need to book a spot on a tour (€10). They offer tours in multiple languages, but the language a tour is offered in is based on the first person who books.
If the weather is nice, you might want to head back down to the Ribeira and hop on an hour-long cruise on the Douro River to see the Six Bridges of Porto. Seeing the city from the water will give you yet another set of amazing views. (Book a cruise here; they run hourly.)
Dinner
(In case you didn’t on day 1) Jardim do Morro or fortress-like Monastery of Serra do Pilar for the best sunset views over the river. From this vantage point, you can watch the sun set and the twinkling lights of Porto come on at dusk.
May 11 2022 Porto sunset at 8:41 pm
Sleep in Porto
Extra: Parque da Cidade do Porto (park by beaches), beaches of Porto, Mercado Bom Sucesso (local market)
Braga day trip?
•5:45 get Uber to Coimbra B train station
•6:29-7:53 train Coimbra B
•Uber back to apartment

Day 13- Back to Lisbon!

Day 14- Train to Lisbon, sleep
9:20 am-12:22 pm €40 for both tickets (€20 each). 9:20 am Porto Sao Bento- 12:22 pm Lisbon Oriente
1:30 Rapid 24 hr COVID test Farmácia Internacional, R. Áurea 228, 1100-044 Lisboa
Eat dinner, walk 8 mins to Venus room, get tattoo
3:00 pm Venus Room
4:00 metro to apartment, arrive 5:00 pm, check in, shower, sleep, set alarm for 4:00 am
•Uber to Campanha train station (ask what platform), ride for three hours (train wifi watch youtube stay plugged in), call uber or take bus to Lisbon apartment, check in, get COVID test, eat, GET €20 FROM GMA, 3:00 get tattoo, return to apartment/see anything you want to see in Lisbon if you want
•9:20 am Porto Sao Bento- 12:22 pm Lisbon Oriente. We skipped the Sao Bento station and Ubered straight to the Campanha station train which leaves at 9:32.
•Uber 20 mins to apartment, shower, sleep, set alarm for 4:00 am