In one month I will be heading to Portugal with my Mom (eek) with plans to visit Lisbon, Sintra, and Porto but always, as I am starting to book all of our adventures I love asking you all your tips for any of these cities to make sure I don’t overlook a hidden gem. We have a few days earmarked for each city so it will definitely be a highlights tour but with how small each of them are I think we will definitely be able to pack a ton in with maybe even a photo shoot or two! 🙂 So with no further ado here is what we have tentatively on the list of each of these three cities:
View from the Number 28 Tram in Lisbon (source)
Lisbon: If you are going to Portugal I think Lisbon is a given if for no other reason than that is where all of the international flights fly into. It is crazy to me that a capital city can have only half a million people but I am excited that this is our first stop and to check out some of the top sights including:
- Castelo de São Jorge (St George’s Castle)
- Chapel of St. John
- Elevador de Santa Justa
- Walk along the Pink Street
- Ride the Number 28 Tram
- Sip a Morangoska (a cocktail made with vodka and fresh strawberries)
- Take a Sunset Sail
- Taking a walking tour / wine tour
- Torre de Belém (Belem Tower)
The Pena Palace in Sintra (source)
Sintra: This beautiful coastal town was not even on my list until a few weeks ago when I learned about the gorgeous royal palaces and it’s close proximity to Lisbon. And while I had seen photos of the beautiful palace above I was totally unaware that was in Portugal and heck yes, I want to see it in real life! On our Sintra list:
- Castle of the Moors
- Monserrate Palace
- Park and National Palace of Pena
- Praia da Ursa
- Quinta da Regaleira
- Sintra National Palace
The São Bento Train Station in Porto (source)
Porto: If you have seen any of the family photos I have posted in the last five plus years you may have noticed my parent’s house has a lot of blue and white so when I saw the gorgeous tiles in my Mom’s favorite color pattern I knew a trip to Porto needed to be in the cards but it turns out there is a lot more than gorgeous tile. Here is what we have planned:
- Cais da Ribeira (the waterfront)
- Carmo Church
- Church of St Francis
- Clérigos Tower
- The Crystal Palace
- Dom Luis I Bridge
- Eat a Francesinha (a Portuguese sandwich originally from Porto)
- Funicular dos Guindais
- Palácio da Bolsa (the former Stock Exchange)
- Porto Cathedral
- São Bento Train Station
- Serralves Museum
So if you have been, please let me know what your favorite aspects are so I make sure not to miss them on our trip or even if they are recommendations from friend or family, I will take them!

Debbie P says
It looks like you had a really amazing time. I would love to do that!
Amanda says
I have never been but I think you are going to have the best time!
Allie says
What an amazing trip! I’ve never been to Portugal, but I know a few people who have recently and they all had a fantastic time. I can’t wait to see photos and hear all about it! xAllie http://www.theallthatglittersblog.com
Aimee says
I haven’t been there but from the looks of these photos I’m going to have to put it on my bucket list. I look forward to reading your blog post about it. Safe travels.
Linda says
Fantastic!! I have been to Lisbon and they have great Calcada Stone Pavement Lisbon Portugal Tile on the waterfront http://www.adventureflair.com/calcada-the-portuguese-pavement/ and there was a cool fort on the cliff.
But as I’m heading to Portugal myself in a few months, I just found Algarve a few hours south of Lisbon in Lagos and seems amazing! Here are some pretty spectacular images
https://www.google.com/search?q=Algarve+images&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj8-c2LlcbZAhXHzlkKHW_bADEQsAQIKA&biw=1280&bih=640
Cindy says
I have heard that Centra and Porto are not to be missed. There was even an article in the Wall Street Journal about some of the Palaces the other day. So jealous. Have fun.