10 Portuguese Experiences Worth Planning Your Trip Around

Some experiences are worth shaping a whole trip around. Here are ten of our favourites across Portugal.

1. **Watching the sunset from a Lisbon viewpoint.** The city's hills turn gold in the evening light. 2. **Pena Palace in Sintra.** A colourful palace on a forested hilltop, unlike anything else in Europe. 3. **Standing at Cabo da Roca.** The westernmost point of mainland Europe, with cliffs dropping into the Atlantic. 4. **A pastel de nata, still warm.** Simple, inexpensive and one of the best things you will eat in Portugal. 5. **Walking Óbidos's walls.** A small medieval town you can see in a morning. 6. **The big waves of Nazaré.** In winter, the surf here is among the largest in the world. 7. **A port wine cellar in Gaia.** Learn how port is made and taste it across the river from Porto. 8. **The Douro Valley vineyards.** Terraced hills along the river, especially beautiful at harvest time. 9. **Évora's old town.** Roman temple ruins and whitewashed streets in the heart of the Alentejo. 10. **The Algarve's cliffs and coves.** Golden rock formations, sea caves and quiet beaches.

## Putting them together Most of these fit naturally into one 8 to 12 day route: Lisbon and Sintra first, the coast and Óbidos on the way north, then Porto and the Douro, with the Alentejo and the Algarve for longer trips.

Which ones would you choose? Tell us, and we can suggest a route built around them.