Portugal Tour with Friends: April 2024 Itinerary

We had an amazing time with friends who came to visit. In all, we were 4 couples. My husband and I planned the entire trip. March weather in Portugal was horrible. It was cold, windy, and wet, and we anticipated that April was going to be the same because the saying here is "em Abril, águas mil" meaning "in April, waters one thousand." We planned for rain and reminded our friends that good, non-slip footwear is a must on the cobblestones of Lisbon and Porto. But, the weather was glorious! It was a little cloudy at first in Lisbon and rained the day of our train travel to the Douro Valley. The rest of the days were fabulous.

This is a quick summary of our 2-week tour, with links to our hotels and highly recommended restaurants:

Lisbon: 3 nights (and our last night)

• One couple stayed with us in our apartment and the other 2 rented a beautiful VRBO apartment in the Parque Eduardo VII neighborhood.

• Dinners were at:

  • Cantinho do Avillez 

  • O Vinhaça

  • Kefi Greek Bistro

  • Salta

• During the days we explored the city, visited beautiful vistas, and buildings, eating and stopping for refreshments at small kiosks along the way. Their favorite stop for a nightcap was at Gin Lovers Bar & Restaurant.

Douro Valley: 2 nights

• We hired a van to take the 8 of us to the Douro Valley. On the way, we stopped in Aveiro, to explore the salt mines and for lunch.

• We stayed at Quinta do Pego, a hotel and wine estate close to the town of Piñhao. The first evening we did a wine tasting and had a delicious dinner at the hotel.

• The next day, we took a 1-hour boat on the Douro from Piñhao and ate lunch at Cardaño dos Presuntos, a small wine bar.

• After a walk in town, we went to the wine estate and hotel Quinta de Ventozelo for a wine tour and tasting, and then dinner.

Porto: 3 nights

• We took the train from Piñhao to Porto, and stayed at Village by Boa, in small apartments complete with small kitchens.

• The best dinner was at a fish restaurant in Matosinhos called Meia-Nau. We don't really know all of the restaurants in Porto and the other two dinners we had were okay - but nothing fabulous.

• During the days we walked the city, crossed the bridge and back, visited the outdoor craft markets, enjoyed river views, toured the Porto Cathedral (Sé do Porto,) and celebrated a birthday!

Algarve: 4 nights

• We spent an entire day traveling by train from Porto to Lagos.

• We stayed at Cascade Wellness Resort.

• During the days, we walked the many connected boardwalks along the cliffs and sometimes ventured off the cliffs onto the beaches.

• Besides the hotel, dinners were at:

  • Ristorante Pinocchio, Portimao

  • Artistas Restaurante

  • Monte Mar Lagos