Portugal -- a captivating, beautiful experience
Portugal
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May 21 - Jun 3, 2025
We could write a book about our wonderful trip to Portugal -- but, don't worry, I'll just give you a summary of the experience.
First our specialist, Tiago: Smart, responsiveness, and knowledgeable. That would be enough. But he was also really warm and personable. Just plain nice. We had the good fortune of getting to know him a bit better because he served as our driver and guide on a day tour to Sintra and Cascais. When I am working with people in business, I sometimes run across a person who has "sparkle" -- a brightness and an intelligence that makes ever interaction great. Tiago has "sparkle".
Second our trip: Too many wonderful moments to mention -- but here are just a few:
Porto: Walking around this wonderful city was charming and great exercise (lots of steps and hills). We absolutely adored the views, the history, the shops. Had a wonderful dinner nearby at 5 Oceanos.
Douro Valley (drive and river tour): Simply gorgeous. We were late arriving for our scheduled boat departure -- but Tiago hopped right on it and rescheduled us. Problem solved. Unparalleled views of the vineyards along the river.
Tomar: What a beautiful and charming location. The accommodations were delightful and the main square was a postcard come to life.
Evora: More Portuguese friendliness and charm. We particularly enjoyed our hotel here -- the MouraSuites -- and the visits to the Chapel of Bones, the Palace Gardens, and again working are way around the city streets.
Olive Oil Making Tour: A true highlight of the trip where Joao took us through the history of his families small olive oil business that he is keeping alive through passion and ingenuity. A master class in a tour that was educational, engaging and well worth the time. If you enjoy intelligent people with incredible passion and storytelling skills, please go!
Lagos: Bustling and fun. We spent time in the Algarve looking for property -- and may have found something right in Porto de Mos in Lagos. That says it all!
Benagil Caves boat tour: Visually stunning with amazing crew, including "Lady Di" and the boat captain. Fun! Do it!
Sagres and Salema day trip: Wonderful history and views.
Lisbon: Truly a diverse, friendly and beautiful place. We could not have been more pleased with the staff at our the Hotel Britania -- shout outs to Omar, Jose, Patrick as well as all of the people who made and served us the incredibly breakfast daily.
Day trip to Sintra and Caiscais: While it was crowded, we were treated to a day with Tiago -- who was full of knowledge and knew exactly how to maximize our time to get a flavor for this amazing place. The specialty pastries in Sintra were absolutely delicisious.
OK -- perhaps I did right a book. But that is because we were captivated by Portugal -- it's beauty, charm, friendliness.
Muito obrigado!
Hotel Reviews
Great central location and comfortable suites. A few minor maintenance issues with bathrooms that were quickly addressed by staff.
Charm, charm, charm. Friendliness galore.
Probably our favorite hotel during our 2 week visit. Beautifully designed, wonderful breakfast, gracious staff.
Perfect location on the Marina for our time in Lagos.
The staff was amazing -- and this old hotel has character dripping from the walls. LOVED IT!
Activity Reviews
We loved the tour for seeing the beautiful scenery. Only thing keeping it from five stars was the lack of any narration of the experience by the tour operator.
Joao was amazing in telling the very special story of his family's olive oil estate. The discussion encompassed a lesson in the making of olive oil, the challenges of retaining a small traditional business vs when competing with the super large agriculture firms, how to taste olive oil (aroma, flavor, etc.) From my perspective, as a marketing professional, the branding of the product was fascinating! A highlight of the trip!
Great to appreciate the history and importance of tiles in Portugal and truly appreciate the craft. Loved that we walked away with tangible, self-made tiles that will forever serve as reminders of this memorable experience.
In Portugal I actually only spent one day with Tom and his family in a tour to Cascais and Sintra. All of them were truly sweet people. However Tom is from another league. He's one of the sweetest persons I've ever met. And I could witness this not only... Read more