1 Day in Sintra – Classic Itinerary
I always say Sintra is Lisbon’s best day trip and encourage anyone visiting me here in the Portuguese capital to take at least a day to explore. Fairytale palaces, dense mystical forest, charming villages, oversized mossy boulders and a wild,
The best pastéis de nata in Lisbon – 2023 Edition
How many pastéis de nata could you eat on a holiday? Our friend Jayden smashed 30 on his trip to Portugal, but I will say that not all of them were prime pasteis. The man was on a mission to
29 things to do in Sintra
Sintra is Lisbon’s best day trip, for sure. Each year millions of visitors flock to the UNESCO World Heritage Sintra village to explore enchanting 19th-century palaces and eat a travesseiro. But there’s much more to do here than tick off
36 hours in Coimbra
You won't see the inside of Coimbra's most stunning building on this blog, or almost anywhere. So concerned is the leadership of Portugal's oldest — and for hundreds of years only — university with protecting the bibliophilic treasures enshrined on
Explore Monsanto, Portugal’s magical rock village
Wind whips my face and bells toll as I look out over the plains towards Spain, wondering what it was like to wait here endlessly for an attack. High on this rocky mountain top, standing on the walls of a
How to spend 48 hours in Porto
Porto is the ultimate weekend city. In two days you see and taste it all – from the tile-covered churches to port wine tasting to the city’s famous hearty sandwiches. The architecture and tiles are different to Lisbon, the city
9 best things to do in Figueira da Foz
Have you ever been ice skating on the beach? For Jorge’s birthday in January I wanted to get away somewhere north of Lisbon, ideally where his family in Aveiro could meet us for lunch and Jorge could enjoy a winter
13 best things to do in Olhão
Fisherman, locals and tourists move at the same slow pace through the narrow, whitewashed streets of Olhão. Charming and full of character, this town perched on the edge of the Ria Formosa feels as though time has paused. Ornate chimneys and
11 best viewpoints in Lisbon
They say Lisbon is the city of seven hills, which is a lie. There’s more than seven, a fact you quickly learn while walking up what feels like non-stop staircases on your first day in the city. But many hills
Where to eat in Lisbon: 28 best restaurants and tascas
A perfectly salted fish cooked over coals. A juicy tomato plucked in the peak of summer. The crunch of a pastel de nata, still warm from the oven. Portuguese food is a lesson in perfectly executed simplicity.
