Portugal

70
SUGGESTED PORTUGAL ITINERARIES
4
PORTUGAL IN 2 WEEKS
Maria (p. 215), once one of the richest
and most prestigious monasteries in
Europe, dating from 1178. Seek out, in
particular, its lavish Gothic tombs.
After a visit, continue northeast to Batalha,
spending an hour and a half exploring
its Mosteiro de Santa Maria da
Vitória (p. 222). Still celebrated for its
royal cloisters to this day, in the 14th century
this was the most luxurious and
grandest monastery in all of Portugal—
much of its former glory remains.
Accommodations are limited in both
Alcobaça and Batalha. If you didn’t make
reservations in advance in summer, you
might have to continue to our final stop, the
city of Coimbra, for the night (see below).
Day 7 Coimbra: The
University City
Outside of Lisbon and the second city of
Porto, Portugal’s most romantic and his-
toric city is Coimbra, lying 198km (123
miles) north of Lisbon. It can be easily
reached from Óbidos, Alcobaça, or Batalha,
if you stopped at either of these
places on Day 6.
In 1 full day of sightseeing, you can take
in Coimbra’s major monuments, including
Sé Velha, the old cathedral (p. 300),
and Universidade de Colmbra (p. 300),
the university that was founded here in
1537. Also of interest are the Biblioteca
Geral da Universidade, the
university library (p. 301), established
in 1716, and Igreja e Mosteiro da Santa
Cruz (p. 300), dating from the
12th century.
Overnight in Coimbra before making
the 1 1 ⁄2-hour drive to Lisbon in the morning
for transportation back home.
2 PORTUGAL IN 2 WEEKS
With 2 weeks to explore the country, you aren’t as rushed, of course, as you might have
been with the agenda proposed above. With more breathing time, you can visit the second
city of Portugal, Porto, as well as some of the more intriguing destinations in the
plains, especially the historic city of Évora.
Days 1 to 7
Refer to the 1-week itinerary outlined
above.
Day 8 Porto: Port Wine & the
Gateway to the North
After leaving Coimbra, continue north to
the city of Porto, a distance of 116km (72
miles). Plan on arriving in the late morning,
so you’ll have time to take our walking
tour (p. 331) of the inner core of this old
city on the water.
Porto is known, of course, as the main
distribution center of port wine. Sampling
port and touring the wine lodges is the main
reason to come here. If you have time to visit
only one lodge, we recommend Caves
Ramos Pinto (p. 329), one of the most
famous and one of the best. If you have time
left over for a second visit to a lodge, we suggest
Porto Sandeman (p. 330).
After touring some lodges, plan a festive
dinner at one of the city’s highly rated
restaurants, such as Restaurante Portucale
(p. 341). If that is beyond your budget,
you’ll find plenty of local taverns
serving good-tasting and affordable fare.
Day 9 Nazaré & Fátima
If you have another week, the north of
Portugal, lying above Porto, awaits you.
But if you have to confine your schedule
to 2 weeks, we suggest a return south to