Exploration Portugal

Basic Inclusions

Detailed Itinerary

Days 1-2: Arrival Lisbon, Transfer to Porto

Arrival Lisbon, Transfer to Porto
It's a short night's sleep as you fly across the Atlantic to awaken with the dawn. Beneath you, glimmering in the early morning sun, is the wide and generous delta of the River Tagus, once Europe's main point of departure for the New World. This is Portugal and her capital city, Lisbon.

Travel to Porto
Set out for Oporto, the city on the "River of Gold" (Douro) that gave its name to the world-famous Port wine.

Day 3: Porto City Sightseeing

Half-day city sightseeing in Porto
On a city tour, explore the city the Romans called Portus Cale and discover why its historic center has been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Set along the estuary of the Douro River, the second largest Portuguese city holds within its ancient walls a maze of narrow streets and picturesque staircases. Landmarks include the 12th-century cathedral, which is one of the country's best Romanesque monuments, and the Church of São Francisco. In contrast, you'll see the 19th-century metal bridge engineered by Gustave Eiffel, designer of Paris' famous tower, and, in Waterfront Plaza, the giant sculpture She Changes, created in 2005 by the American artist Janet Echelman. A half-day local guide, well-educated and specially-trained on the history and culture of Porto, will accompany your group.

Ascent of the Clérigos Tower
For the best overview of Porto, you will climb the 225 steps to the top of the
Belltower of Clérigos. Built in the 18th-century, the monumental steeple of the Clérigos Church is the highest steeple in Portugal and the symbol of Porto.

Visit to Porto Cathedral and Cloister
Enter Porto's Sé, the 12th-century cathedral that's a superb example of Romanesque architecture. It's also known for its Gothic Cloister built during the 14th and 15 centuries.

Visit to the Arabian Room at Palacio da Bolsa
On a visit to the former Stock Exchange Palace, built in the late 19th century, you will marvel at the Arabian Room, the most beautiful of its ornate halls, which was inspired by Granada's Alhambra Palace.

Day 4: Aveiro, Fátima, Lisbon

Travel to Lisbon via Aveiro and Fátima
Sightseeing stop in Aveiro
The "Venice of Portugal" was a seaport during Portugal's Age of Discovery, long before its harbor silted up. In the Old Town traversed by canals, landmarks evokes Aveiro's Golden Age, notably the Cathedral, which houses the tomb of a lady celebrated in verse by the poet Camões (Portugal's Shakespeare), and the Convento de Jesus, where the Infanta Joana, daughter of King Afonso V, retired in 1472. Ceramics and porcelain shops represent and an industry that has thrived in Aveiro for centuries.

Travel to Fátima
Travel to one of the most important Marian shrines. Tour director-led visit to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fátima Discover the town where three young shepherd children reported seeing six apparitions of the Virgin Mary between May and October of 1917. Nowadays, the most noticeable landmarks in Fátima are the Basilica of Our Lady of Fátima, begun in 1928 near the site of the Chapel of the Apparitions, and the Church of the Most Holy Trinity, consecrated in 2007 for the 90th anniversary of the Apparitions. The latter is currently listed among the world's 10 largest churches.

Visit to the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary
Soaring over the Shrine of Fátima, the white steeple of the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary cannot be missed. Inside, pilgrims may pray at the tombs of the children: Francisco Marto, his sister Jacinta Marto, and their cousin Lúcia dos Santos.

Travel to Lisbon
Travel to Lisbon, Portugal's capital city. Located on the wide estuary of the River Tagus, Lisbon was one of Europe's main points of departure for the New World. Get settled into your centrally-located hotel. Soon you're out enjoying the narrow streets, markets and squares of the city that was called Alis Ubbo ("pleasant bay") by its early settlers, the Phoenicians.

Day 5: Lisbon City Sightseeing, Fado Performance

Half-day city sightseeing
Discover historic and contemporary Lisbon on a city tour past iconic sights:
St. George's Castle, the Belém Tower, the Vasco da Gama Bridge, the historic Alfama district, the popular cafés of the Praça do Rossio, the Monument to the Discoveries, and Lisbon's cathedral (Sé), which houses the baptismal font where a local baby who became St. Anthony of Padua was baptized in 1195. A half-day local guide, well-educated and specially-trained on the history and culture of Lisbon and its surroundings, will accompany your group.

Visit to the Jerónimos Monastery
Visit one of Lisbon's great landmarks, the beautiful convent built of all white marble which was founded in 1502 to give thanks for the successful return of Vasco da Gama's fleet from the Indies. Said to be "built by pepper" (monies from the spice trade), the Jerónimos Monastery displays a profusion of marine motifs: seashells, ropes and anchors typical of the Manueline style that peaked during the reign of Manuel I (1495-1521).

View the Belém Tower
You'll see the Belém Tower, which is regarded by the Portuguese as a symbol of their country's glorious past and as a monument to the Age of Discovery. It was built in 1515 to stop pirates from sailing up the Tagus River.

Day 6: Excursion to Sintra and Cascais

Excursion to Sintra and Cascais

Enjoy an excursion to Sintra, a beautiful town classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Lord Byron called Sintra a "glorious Eden," for its enchanting setting and its lush gardens adorned with trees and plants brought back from the far reaches of the Portuguese empire. Several palaces are located in town, including the Palácio Nacional de Sintra, a royal residence recognizable by its two conical kitchen chimneys.

Local Guide
A full-day local guide, well-educated and specially-trained, will accompany you today.

Visit to the Palácio Nacional da Pena and its park
Discover the fanciful national palace commissioned in 1840 by the Germanborn Prince Consort, a relative of "Mad" King Ludwig of Bavaria.

Castle of the Moors Ruins with Sintra Tourist Bus 434
Visit the ancient Castle of the Moors (Castelo dos Mouros), built high on a ridge in the 9th century and conquered by the Portuguese in 1147. Though in ruins, the castle makes a formidable impression with its watchtowers and the crenellated defensive walls that follow the ridge and offer splendid panoramic views of the coast.

Sightseeing stop in Cascais
Enjoy a sightseeing stop in a fishing village that became a fashionable resort in the 19th century. Nowadays, tourists still come for its sand beaches and marina, as well as its Manueline church with Baroque paintings by the artist Josefa de Óbidos (1630-1684), one of the rare female painters of her time. Set out for the Costa de Lisboa, a rugged coastline which has attracted in turns Phoenicians, Romans, Age of Discovery explorers, privateers, aristocrats, spies and sun seekers. It's known for its rocky seascapes, beaches and natural park.

Sightseeing stop at the Mouth of Hell seaside chasm
Less than two miles from downtown Cascais, you'll come across the spectacular Boca do Inferno, a grotto carved by the surf in the rugged coastline, best seen at high tide when thundering waves crash against the rock.

Day 7: Lisbon

Free time in Lisbon
Enjoy some free time in Lisbon today.

Day 8: Evora, Algarve Coast

Travel to the Algarve Coast via Evora
As you leave Lisbon, you'll get a good view of the gigantic stone monument, Christ in Majesty, which overlooks the River Tagus, and a spectacular panorama of the city from the 25th of April Bridge, a suspension bridge nearly a mile and a half long that was completed in 1966. Your destination is the rich Alentejo Province, known for historic towns as well as its large farms and plantations.

Half-day city sightseeing in Evora
A city tour introduces a beautiful city classified by UNESCO as one of the world's great architectural treasures, reflecting its Roman, Moorish, medieval and Renaissance splendor. Kings lived in Evora and attracted the Portuguese Renaissance intelligentsia. Landmarks include the fortress-like cathedral (Sé), which dominates the Old Town, the Royal Church of São Francisco with its Chapel of the Bones, and the 16th-century Palace of Dom Manuel, where Vasco da Gama was given command of the fleet he would lead to India. A half-day local guide, well-educated and specially-trained on the history and culture of Evora, will accompany your group.

Visit to the Chapel of the Bones
Visit the Igreja Real de São Francisco, a church famous for its Capela dos Ossos, an ossuary adorned with monks' skulls and bones.

Sightseeing stop at the Roman Temple
View the the ruins locally known as Templo de Diana, a monument which dates back to the 1st century AD and is believed to have been built in honor of the emperor Augustus.

Travel to the Algarve Coast
Proceed to Portugal's most beautiful coast. The Algarve (Arabic for "the West") is indeed Portugal's westernmost province on its southern coast, fringed with eerie rock formations and white-sand beaches. Traditional fishing villages with pastel houses color the shoreline.

Day 9: Excursion to Lagos, Sagres and Cape St. Vincent

Excursion to Lagos, Sagres and Cape St. Vincent
Explore the hub of the great Portuguese navigators of the Age of Discoveries. Head to the attractive port of Lagos, still surrounded by 16th-century ramparts. A walking tour introduces the town from which the ships of Prince Henry the Navigator sailed off on their voyages along the western coast of Africa, back in the 1430s. You'll see the statue of Prince Henry gazing out to sea. Landmarks include the ornate Church of San Antonio, also called the Golden Church, and the Slave Market built in the 15th century, when, as a result of the expeditions to Africa, Lagos became Europe's first slave trading post.

Sightseeing stop at Prince Henry the Navigator's Sagres Point
Twenty miles east of Lagos lies Sagres Point, a barren peninsula the Romans called the "Sacred Promontory" as it was near the edge of the known world. Centuries later, this inspiring site and its challenging horizons led Prince Henry the Navigator to build there his famous school of geography and navigation, where cartography was reinvented and a state-of-the-art ship, the Caravel, was designed. This initiative gave Portugal an empire and changed the rest of the world by opening up trade between Europe and the East around Africa.

Visit to Sagres Fort
During your visit to the Fortaleza de Sagres you will walk in the footsteps of the enlightened Prince as well as other bold explorers such as Vasco da Gama, Bartholomeu Dias, and Christopher Columbus. See the enormous navigational wind compass etched into the ground as you marvel not only at the reddish cliffs set against the turquoise sea but also at mankind's relentless quest for knowledge, power and wealth.

Sightseeing stop at Cape St. Vincent
Proceed to Portugal's southernmost "land's end," as did ancient Mediterranean mariners who thought that the windswept cape was the place where the sun fell off the face of the earth. Nowadays, Europe's most powerful lighthouse stands there, casting its beam forty miles out to sea. The cape still affords splendid views of the ocean crashing below, at the foot of cliffs 200 feet tall.

Day 10: Algarve Coast

Free time on the Algarve Coast
Enjoy some free time on the Algarve Coast today.

Day 11: Departure

Depart the Algarve Coast
Most good things must come to an end. Faro's airport recedes and you're 500 miles closer to home for every hour in the air. Your suitcase full of memorabilia and of photos ready to be processed, you'll arrive home later today, eager to share your discoveries with family and friends.

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