Portugal
Top Tips
Beaches
From the islands and lagoons of the south to the endless sands of
the wild west coast.
Towns of the Algarve
Pretty Tavira, Queen of the South; Lagos, for its historic centre
wrapped up in 14th-century walls; seafaring Sagres, the
south-western tip of the country; Monchique, an old spa town up in
the mountains.
Golf
Courses all along the southern coast. Portugal is blessed with a
gentle climate, golfers can play almost every day of the year in
spectacularly scenic surroundings.
Setúbal and the Tróia peninsular
For a 30-mile beach, Roman ruins, lagoons rich with bird life,
dolphins in the Sado estuary, and old villages in the
Arrábida Hills above.
Évora
A walled town with a Roman temple that was conquered by the Moors,
now a World Heritage site.
Estremoz
One of the great marble towns, for its Saturday market and for the
road south to Redondo over the eucalypt forest of the Serra de
Ossa.
Vila Viçosa
The country seat of the Dukes of Bragança, the last ruling
family of Portugal. The palace here is the Portuguese equivalent of
Versailles.
Obidos
A walled city that dates to 12th century, which belonged to the
queens of Portugal.
Cascais
Portugal’s Riviera, with the sands stretching across to
Estoril and the Palace at Sintra hiding in the hills behind.
Lisbon
For its rattling trams, its 12th-century castle, historic
Belém and the suspension bridge over the River Tejo.