Portugal

Portugal seems to have been on the rise in tourism the last few years, and I finally had a chance to visit with one of my best high school friends for a week traveling the country. We went in early November, which had me a little worried about the weather, but it ended up being warm and sunny almost the entire trip, hitting the mid-70s, and at most, I needed a light jacket in the evenings.

Since we weren't going in a hot season, we opted to travel north of Lisbon for the second half instead of to the beaches of the south, although photos of the Algarve definitely had me debating over that choice. Still, the Duoro Valley ended up being one of my favorite days, so no regrets.

Day 1

Arrive in Lisbon, Time Out Market, Pink Street

Jackie and I live in different states, so we took separate flights into Lisbon that luckily landed around the same time. After meeting at baggage claim, we ordered an Uber to our hostel, and I highly recommend the ride-sharing apps to get around the city. All of our trips were around $4-8, and never over $12. Some other travelers told us Bolt is even cheaper.

Our driver pointed out landmarks to us on our way into the city and told us about the crazy costs of housing for locals. He said that Lisbon is mostly tourists these days and began pointing out every foreign pedestrian we passed (which was literally all but one of them).

The place we booked was called Lisbon Calling, which is something of a combination hotel/hostel. The rooms on our side of the stairwell seemed to all be private, but the opposite side were dorms. It's located on the third floor of a larger building in a fantastic location, basically right across a square from the Time Out Market.

We'd opted for the quadruple room because it looked so gorgeous, and it was. I was absolutely obsessed with how light and spacious the whole room was, and the bathroom was equally impressive. There were two single beds against the wall as well as the double (we shared the main bed since the cots were not comfortable).

There was a little lobby between all the rooms, and then a large kitchen and sitting area beyond that.

After we showered and changed, we hit the Copenhagen Coffee Lab a few doors down for some caffeine, then went to check out a Saturday thrift market that Jackie wanted to see.

Lisbon has these old trams around the city, so we caught one of those, although people were crammed in. Turned out the reason for the jam was protests (over labor and wages, good for them) holding up traffic and causing the trams to run behind, but when we hit one ourselves, plenty of people cleared out and gave us opportunity for a seat.

A lot of the market was packing up by the time we arrived, but I wasn't terribly impressed anyway. Just basic thrift clothing, some knockoff brands, cheap trinkets, etc. There was a cuter market in an indoor building nearby though, and we wandered there for a bit until heading back to our area.

Although I'd been needlessly worried about the weather, the main bummer of going in November ended up being how early the sun set. It was dark by the time we got back, but we headed to the Time Out Market for dinner. There are a few cities with these, but it was my first time at one, and I thought it was a cool concept. Basically a huge food court with long tables down the center, but it was a great way to sample various local foods all in one place, and one wall was all international cuisine. Obviously being our first day in Portugal, we wanted to eat Portuguese, which was not the easiest task as a vegetarian (so much fish).

We ordered wine and sangria from one of the first stalls, then walked the whole perimeter to gauge our options before making our final choices. I ended up with pumpkin risotto and a croquette sampler (half curry, half goat cheese), then we fought through the crowd until we found a couple of empty seats.

We were also right by Pink Street, the main bar and club strip, so we made our final stop of the night there after dinner.

One of the bars on my list also happened to be recommended by our hotel hosts, so we went to check out Pensao Amor, a former brothel turned cocktail bar. The place was such a vibe! There's the dark room with the actual bar in it, as well as a stage, an inn upstairs where you can rent a room (I had actually looked into staying here), and the red loungey sitting room with painted ceiling and portraits of topless women on the walls.

Also, the downstairs bathroom has a lobby with a disco ball and sex toy vending machine. My cucumber and Chartreuse cocktail was very refreshing. Recommend on all counts.

Day 2

Lisbon - Belem & Alfama

We walked uphill to the Flat Cafe near our hotel the next morning and had breakfast on the quiet cobblestone street. I tried syrniki - Slovak cottage cheese pancakes - for the first time and really liked them.

Once we were ready, we caught an uber to the Belem area to spend the day, starting with the Belem Tower. There was a long line out front to go inside, but I had looked into tickets beforehand and seen that reviews said the interior was nothing really to see, so we just enjoyed it from the small sand beach out back and the park to the side.

We walked back along the riverfront afterward and saw the Monument of the Discoveries, which I thought was a lot cooler than the tower. There are tons of explorers carved into either side, and it was just a neat (and gigantic) scuplture.

After that, we crossed the street to the Jeronimos Monastery, which also had a line down the path out front, but it moved fast and we decided to get tickets.

The inside was pretty, especially the archways around the green courtyard in the center, but there are also nice gardens out front to explore without buying tickets.

Before we left Belem, we had to stop into the Pasteis de Belem, supposedly the best shop to get the Portuguese specialty dessert, pasteis de nata. It was like an eggy custard in a soft pastry shell, and the shop also gave us packets of cinnamon and powdered sugar to sprinkle on top. It was delicious, and the subsequent pasteis de nata I had did not live up to the one from this particular shop.

After catching an uber back to the city, we spent the evening in the historic Alfama district. Jackie wanted to check out the large pedestrian shopping street in Baixa on the way (R. Augusta), so we wandered that, then headed east. My first choice of stop was a chip shop called The Potato Project. I'd seen people out front with fry cones the day before and been dreaming about it since. I got the piri piri one, but Jackie's Amsterdam chips were even better, not that you can go wrong.

It was many more steep hills before we reached the viewpoints in Alfama, but so worth it. The spot we stopped at for the sunset was Miradouro de Santa Luzia, a set of arched columns and benches with views over all the red-roofed buildings leading down to the water.

There was a park there, and we found some stairs up to a little cocktail area where we got drinks and watched the lights all come on over the city.

We chose a restaurant called Audrey's for dinner, which looked casual in the front area, but they told us they were about to swap from the day to evening menu and asked which we'd prefer. Jackie chose evening, and the dining area for that in the back was so fancy! Filmy curtains, white tablecloths, blue-cushioned benches, artwork and mirrors on the walls. The food was pretty good, but decor was better.

Back near our hostel, we ventured out once more to get craft beers at a place called Musa down the street, then went to bed.

Day 3

Sintra

We had breakfast the next day at Cafe Janis, a couple of blocks from our hotel. I had an awesome shakshuka and mango orange juice, then we headed to the train station.

Our walk took us past the Santa Justa Lift, a huge metal elevator that goes up to a viewpoint, and a decent look at Castelo San Jorge up on the hills.

The train station itself looked like something out of Harry Potter with these doors.

Tickets are cheap, and we got into Sintra in less than an hour, arriving in the afternoon. That was a mistake on our part, because while Sintra was probably my favorite location of the trip, I was too stressed to fully enjoy it because of how crunched we were on time.

There's an all-day bus pass that's the best way to see the castles. There are two different loops, and you ride hop-on/hop-off style. The first loop we took stopped at the Moorish Castle first, and not yet realizing we were going to be struggling with time, we jumped off to walk around. Without paying for a ticket here, we just wandered the outside sections of the grounds. It was all old, crumbling stone that reminded me of the castles in Scotland.

Our next stop was Pena Palace, probably the most famous of the Sintra castles and definitely the most colorful. We bought tickets from the automated kiosks out front, but our time slot wasn't for another hour because the place was packed. That gave us time to walk up the hill and explore the grounds, including the view over the hills out back and the little chapel.

The inside of Pena was nice, but the exterior is really the highlight.

Unfortunately, the next castle we wanted to see was on the other bus loop, so we had to ride all the way back to the front, then accidentally got off a stop too early, holding us up even more as we walked down a huge hill back to the train station. At least the road was lined with some cool art installations. Of course, we watched the bus we needed pull away just as we arrived, and it was about twenty minutes to the next one, but we did make it to Quinta da Regaleira while it was still daylight.

This castle was a gothic dream! Along with all of the grey spires and towers, there is a sprawling garden to walk through.

The coolest part is the Initiation Well, a deep stone cylinder with stairs winding down around it. You start at the top and walk to the bottom, where it lets out into a cave. There's a grotto with waterfall to see there before exiting.

I did unfortunately want to see this Moroccan-inspired palace, Monserrate, as well, but it was dark by the time the bus passed it.

Before leaving, we hit up a tapas spot behind the train station called Tasca Boutique das Tapas, and I'm not sure they understood what portion-size tapas are supposed to be. Everything we ordered was like a full-size meal! We shared a cheese board, and I had a caprese salad and a vegan wrap that had some of the best fake meat in it I've ever tried. Also, when they brought us our wine to taste, the guy asked if it was good or really good. We, of course, said really good, so he filled our glasses halfway, pointed at the level to say "good," then proceeded to fill it to the brim to show us "really good."

If the drastic overpours were not enough to make me love the place, it was also really cute and colorful with good music playing. Great dinner, highly recommend.

Back in Lisbon, we popped open another bottle of wine to sit in the common room and book a Duoro Valley tour before bed.

Day 4

Obidos

On our last Lisbon morning, we had breakfast at Cotidiano and stopped by the world's oldest bookshop, Livraria Bertrand.

After saying goodbye to our beautiful Lisbon Calling room (having nostalgic memories of it as I type), we found the bus station and took an hour ride to the medieval town of Obidos.

The bus dropped us off right outside the walls, but since we had suitcases, we tried to call an Uber. Unbeknownst to us, Ubers are not allowed in the city walls, so when nobody would pick us up, we decided we'd have to hike it. It was really only a 5 minute walk, but we had an entire audience standing at the top of the hill cheering for us as we dragged our ridiculous bags up the cobblestones.

We'd booked a place called Torre de Maneys inside an old castle storage tower, and this was such an experience. There was a code to get in, and ours was the first room on the right.

The common areas were amazing. Stone steps downstairs took you to the kitchen and dining area with a suit of armor giving a very medieval feel...

...and in the upper area were lounge rooms, including a two-story library and a small outdoor patio. We didn't see a single other person until breakfast the next morning, so it felt like we had an entire castle all to ourselves.

The town inside the walls is tiny and very easy to walk, but packed full of shops. We spent the whole day wandering in and out of them, doing Christmas shopping, and some of the shops were so fun. There was a sardine store that looked like Ollivander's (the elaborate sardine shops around Portugal seem to be a staple) and a cod cake shop that had a whole-ass violin player performing on the second-story balcony.

We interspersed our shopping with drinking, sampling the local cherry liqueur they sell on the streets, stopping for sangria in a wine shop, and getting more street sangria at a stall that included the ceramic medieval tower cup for only 5 euro total.

We walked around the outside of the castle and around the upper walls, and the whole town is just so cute. It was definitely a day-trip destination for most, because the streets totally cleared out around dark, and there were only a handful of tourists left around town.

Our evening was enjoyable though too! We had dinner at this place called Madok that was full of nerdy decorations. My favorite part was the wardrobe on the side of our room that I didn't realize was the bathroom entrance until the door opened and someone walked out.

I also loved my meal - I got the Portuguese vegetarian sausage and must find out what kind of fake meat industry they have in Portugal, because I need to start importing their products for real.

Afterwards, we went to a craft brewery called Letraria where we split shishito peppers and jalapeno cheese curds (I know we just came from dinner, don't judge) and each had a beer.

We ended our night enjoying our own wine in the library room of the Air BnB, which kind of felt like the start of a horror movie being the only people in the giant, silent castle. Especially when I spilled my wine and went down the pitch-dark stairs by myself to face the suit of armor and whatever other ghosts were wandering the halls. (They let me take my paper towels and leave, which was kind.)

Day 5

Travel to Porto

Made friends with aforementioned suit of armor during our hotel breakfast in the morning. Basic selection, but free and included kiwis.

After dragging our suitcases back down the hills again, we caught an Uber to the train station and started our journey up to Porto, with one transfer in Coimbra.

From there, we caught another Uber to our boutique hotel, M Maison Particulere, and this really felt like five star service. There was 24/7 reception where they would answer the front door when you rang, so anytime we went out, we were able to leave our keys with the desk. There was a well-stocked honesty bar in the very cute lobby, which was decorated for Christmas, robes and slippers in our room, and individual pitchers of water and a truffle each that was replenished every day.

We opted for a pricier room because of the balcony view, and it was so worth it. Look at this!

Every day, we also put in our breakfast order with the front desk, and there were options to choose from between how you wanted your eggs and coffee, what type of bread, optional cheese and fruit, what to mix into your yogurt, etc. After trying a different combo each day, I've got to shout out their scrambled eggs with cheese and onion on rustic bread.

After settling in, we went to get some sandwiches around the corner at Pragar Baixa, and I tried my first vinho verde. Although it's called green wine, it's not actually green. The name refers to the fact that the grapes aren't aged like normal wine, and it's meant to be drunk soon after harvest. Mine was a white and was absolutely delicious.

It was too dark to do much for the evening, but we were located on a main shopping street, so we just hopped around to buy more holiday gifts and also got to see the giant cat mural in an alleyway. Cristiano Ronaldo is in every football shop window, and I finally got my little brother one of his designer t-shirts and a World Cup trophy.

When we got back to our room, we were delighted to find two pasteis de nata and two glasses of tawny port had been left for us there, along with a nice note which reminded me that I'd booked this with hotels.com VIP perks. This was an ideal VIP offering, especially since I'd completely forgotten about it. Our treats were chosen by M Maison, so I'm putting this as another point in their column.

Day 6

Duoro Valley Wine Tour

If you're anywhere near the Duoro Valley and enjoy an alcoholic beverage, a wine tour is a must. It took us ages to pick one, because a lot of the itineraries sound pretty similar, but we ended up choosing based on a very quirky description through Air BnB Experiences and loved our group.

We met up with the tour at a meetup point about 5-10 minutes walk from our hotel, and they split us into different vans for the drive. Our driver, Ruben, was very entertaining and had us all involved in conversation on the way.

The first stop was Quinto do Beijo, a little stone winery where we started in a barn with huge casks. There were snacks out for us and a few wines to sample before we went to see the grape-stomping pits (if you go during harvest season, you'll get to actually stomp) then moved into the port cask room.

We tried tawny and white ports, and the white port was so good that I splurged on a bottle afterwards (actually one of the only things I bought for myself in Portugal). It tasted like butterscotch.

The most exciting part of the tour though was when they let us climb into the giant cask after the tastings, and I admit those promo photos also played a large part in our wine tour decisions.

Speaking of photos, our next stop was a scenic photo stop, and I think my favorite thing about the Duoro Valley views were how the vineyards are tiered over the hillsides.

A boat tour was next, and we drove down to the water to climb aboard and get wasted. There was bottomless spumante (Portuguese sparkling wine), and whenever I finished a glass, of which there were many, our guide was right there ready to refill.

We also saw some wineries on the shoreline, and a clear tarp around the sides kept us from the chill of the November wind. I'm pretty sure the lady leading our boat tour was drunk herself, because I mainly remember her catching giggle fits while pointing out the scenery.

The road we took to the last winery was apparently voted most scenic in the world in recent years, and I was impressed with the views even from a van window.

I wish I could remember the name of our final stop, but I was drunk and there are too many wineries in the Duoro Valley to narrow it down now. It was great though - views, a pool, a glass of port to welcome us, and three dogs on the property including a very friendly German Shepard.

Dinner was in a big, windowed room at communal tables, and along with about five to six courses that included soup, bread, ceviche, and dessert, they once again served us unlimited wine as we went, then came around with moonshine shots to pour directly into our mouths. It was a party, although I am also thankful for the espresso they gave us after the meal to sober up a tiny bit.

To end the day, they showed us how to heat up tongs to pull out a cork without it crumbling and also cut off the head of a wine bottle, then we all passed out for the van ride home.

It was, unfortunately, a little early for bed when we got back, so Jackie and I tried to find a non-alcohol related activity in Porto before calling it a night. The Clerigos cathedral does light shows, so we decided on that, and I'm very glad we went! The show was about a half hour with ambient music playing to match the projections on the church walls, including themes like clocks, nature, light grids, and a storm. Good end to a good day.

Day 7

Porto

Our last day in Porto was the only day we had bad weather on the trip, but one dreary day out of eight is pretty solid luck. We started at Livraria Lello, a bookstore that was way more famous than I anticipated. There was a whole line outside, and we had to sign up for a timeslot online.

It was gorgeous inside but an absolute madhouse. You could barely move, let alone get a decent photo without a dozen people in it. Still worth seeing, but damn. Be prepared.

Next up, we hit the Majestic Cafe with beautiful baroque architecture, plus really good coffee.

We checked out the outdoor market next before heading down to the water and crossing the bridge. It started raining by the time we reached the opposite side of the river, so we took shelter in a port tasting place. We were the only customers and had to shoo away the lady who worked there because we just wanted to drink rather than learn all the same facts about port we'd just heard the day prior.

There was an eerily vacant mall-type establishment near there where we did find a decent viewing platform at the top, then we went to have one more glass of wine by the river before crossing back over.

My one Portuguese food wish was to try a francesinha, a Porto specialty, but I had to search vegetarian versions since it's usually made with meat. We ended up at a vegan spot called Kind Kitchen, and this sandwich was everything I had hoped for. Does it look disgusting? Yes. But underneath that ocean of sauce, there's shredded seitan, Beyond sausage, portobellos, tomatoes, and cheese. Favorite meal of the trip.

Day 8

Coimbra & travel to Lisbon

On our way back to our hotel the night before, we had picked up ingredients for mimosas so that we could spend our last morning drinking on our gorgeous balcony and taking full advantage of those views.

We took an uber to the train station afterwards and stopped off in Coimbra to spend the day. The Coimbra station has luggage lockers, so we were able to dump our suitcases and backpacks there. We grabbed some lunch/dinner at an Indian restaurant, then went to climb the hills to the university.

I liked the vibe of Coimbra better than Lisbon or Porto! It was super clean and airy and uncrowded, with wide pedestrian roads, cute alleys, and views down to the river.

The university had a big plaza out front, and we had to buy tickets to get in. Unfortunately the main draw is the library, but the last time slot of the day only had one ticket left, and Jackie got hers before I did. I was still able to get entry to the rest of the campus, including the chapel and lecture halls, but when I went to ask if there was any chance of joining the library entry, I was told no. Super bummed, although I did get to peek through the exit door and see a little preview.

We also saw a group of students on the way out, and I was a little jealous of their capes. My school uniforms never had capes.

Our train got us into Lisbon late, and we had just booked a cheap room on the top floor of an Air BnB near the airport for our last night. It was all we needed before flying back to the US the next morning.

Overall, a really great week, and I would not let the fall season put you off from Portugal! If you're into wine especially, this is a destination to put on your list.