Visit an incredible country by way of Private Small Group Touring. Portugal is one of the most popular European destinations. This trip will be fairly active with a good blend of fast-past activities and personal downtime. This group will be hosted by the lovely Jennifer Herrera and will have a local private guide for the entire time.
The map on the left shows our proposed route.
Arrive in Lisbon this day, and check into your hotel. This is an included pre-tour hotel stay to help you settle in. You have the day free to adjust to the time zone and possibly take a food tour if you're interested. Please note that normal check-in times apply at our start hotels, but you can usually store your luggage for the day if you arrive early.
The tour starts this evening! You'll have most of the day to yourself. Make your way to the hotel for an evening welcome meeting.
You will meet your Tour Guide and fellow travelers, and learn more about your tour. This will last about 1 hour, and then the group will go out for dinner.
Fado Night with Traditional Portuguese Meal
Sit down to a traditional meal and lend your ears to the sound of a performance by Portuguese folk music artists.
Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Travel back in time to the fairytale castles and hills of Sintra, a 19th-century resort town and UNESCO World Heritage site. Explore the colorful manors, medieval palaces, and lush gardens that enchanted English Romantic poet Lord Byron as well as Portuguese royalty. Enjoy a short orientation walk followed by a free afternoon to discover Lisbon’s pastel-hued architecture and lively plazas. Opt to soar over Lisbon on the historic Santa Justa lift, an engineering marvel that ascends 147 feet to an epic viewing platform.
Meals included: Breakfast
Head to medieval Évora, in the heart of the bucolic Alentejo region, for a fascinating foray into the past. Be mesmerized by the haunting Chapel of Bones, erected by 16th-century Franciscan monks. Then pay a visit to one of the best preserved Roman temples on the Iberian Peninsula, known as Diana’s Temple, assumed to have been constructed in 1 AD.
Meals included: Breakfast
Venture into the Alentejo countryside, home to centuries-old cork forests. Join a local expert at a traditional farm, and learn about cork harvesting and production. Then sit down to a traditional cork stripper’s lunch at the cork farm. This afternoon, return to Évora and explore its UNESCO World Heritage–designated city center on your own, walking past whitewashed houses decorated with azulejos and wrought-iron balconies.
Your Journeys Highlight Moment: Cork Farm Visit and Lunch
Since this is the region where most of Portugal's cork is grown you'll learn about cork harvesting and production from a local expert at a traditional cork farm in the Alentejo countryside, home to centuries-old cork forests and about 30 minutes from Évora. After the guided walk of the farm sit down for a traditional cork stripper's lunch at a local restaurant in town.
Meals included: Breakfast | Lunch
Spend the day in Tomar and delve into the Crusades era in Portugal. Go on a guided walk with a local expert around the vast medieval complex of the Convent of Christ, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the Templar Castle, founded in 1160 by Gualdim Pais—grand master of the Knights Templar. Continue on to Coimbra for the evening.
Your Journeys Highlight Moment: Knights Templar Historic Tour
In Tomar, 14th-century Portugal’s headquarters for the Knights Templar Order, take an expert-led walk to learn about the country during the time of the Crusades. Visit the impressive Templar Castle and Convent of Christ, both UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Meals included: Breakfast
In the morning, enjoy a tour around the centuries-old University of Coimbra, Portugal's most prestigious university and a UNESCO World Heritage site. Enter through the 10th-century Porta Férra, the old entrance to the citadel of Coimbra. Following mosaic cobblestone paths around campus, stopping to see the baroque stylings of the Joanina Library, elaborate azulejo wall tiles adorning the Chapel of São Miguel, and the 18th-century Botanical Garden. Later, catch the train to Porto on the coast.
Meals included: Breakfast
Board a boat down Portugal's Douro River, or "river of gold." Float on the typical Rabelo Boat along the riverbanks of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia and marvel at the historical bridges connecting the two cities. Famous for centuries as a port wine shipper's centre, discover the rich tradition of port making at a local wine cellar, then cap off the day with a tasting of this distinct regional specialty.
In your free time, explore the cobblestone streets of Porto’s medieval Ribeira district, marvel at the baroque São Francisco Church, and admire the palatial Palácio de Bolsa, a one time stock market.
Meals included: Breakfast
Our tour ends this morning and you are welcome to catch a flight home anytime you'd like or stay for another night or two and continue to experience this vibrant city.
Meals included: Breakfast
- Your Journeys Highlight Moment: Cork Farm Visit and Lunch, Évora
- Your Journeys Highlight Moment: Knights Templar Historic Tour, Tomar
- Your Foodie Moment: Fado Night with Traditional Portuguese Meal, Lisbon
- Port Wine Cellar Visit, Porto
- Lisbon orientation walk
- Guided tour of Palace of Pena in Sintra
- Chapel of Bones visit in Évora
- Diana's Temple visit in Évora
- Guided tour of Coimbra University
- Porto orientation walk
- Douro River boat cruise
- Free time in some of the cities
- Incredible experiences with great people
- All transport between destinations and to/from included activities
- All accommodations
Accommodations
Hotels (7 nts)
Meals
7 breakfasts, 1 lunch, 1 dinner
Transportation
Train, bus, boat, walking.
Intercity transport on this trip will be mainly by public bus and train. The bus and train systems in Portugal are generally very good, most offer seat reservations, some buses have toilet facilities and others don't, but drivers often stop en route for service station breaks.
Please note that we use public transport such as metro and taxis to get to train and bus stations. It is important that you are able to carry your luggage comfortably and that it can be packed into a relatively small space.
Between transport and hotels you may be required to carry your luggage short distances (up to 15mins walk), occasionally the group will take taxis to and from hotels.
Staff & experts
Professional guide for the entire trip.
Please Note: We are inviting people on this trip that will be good travel companions. The group be spending the week together so flexibility in attitude and a "go-with-the-flow" mindset is crucial. The group will be on the move everyday and some of the days will be long. My ideal scene is that it's a supportive group that can have fun together.
Click here to schedule a consult with me about the trip after you've read through the information below:
$3,000 per person, not including flights to Portugal.
This is based on double occupancy. If you're traveling solo and want to book a room alone, the single traveler supplement is $979/per person. There are 4 single spaces left.
Space is first come, first served and no space can be held without a deposit.
The deposit is $350 to hold your space. It is non-refundable, but it is transferrable or you can apply it towards a future tour.
Final payment is due on or before Jun. 1, 2025.
This tour will sell out. I have 14 spots left of 16. Then I'll start a waiting list.
We need at least 8 people for the trip to go, so please do not purchase flights until you hear from me. This trip is for people who are 18 years old and over only.
Optional Pre-trip and Post-trip hotel nights to add in Lisbon and/or Porto will be posted here as soon as I have that information.
Travel Insurance is required for this trip. I have 2 companies that I can recommend or you can purchase on your own.
A U.S. Passport with at least 6 months validity is required for this trip. If you don't have a passport, please start the process now. The passport office is receiving record numbers of applications, and your application can take longer than anticipated.
Please talk to your doctor about any possible medical considerations or vaccines needed for traveling to Portugal.
Fitness Level: 2 out of 5. There will be walking and hiking suitable for most fitness levels. You must be able to climb stairs with your luggage without assistance. Portugal is very hilly and many of the roads and streets are paved with cobblestone. If walking up a flight of stairs or a few miles a day is a struggle for you, this trip may not be for you.
Cancellation Policy
- Cancellation 60 days or more prior to departure = Loss of deposit
- Cancellation between 30 and 59 days prior to departure = 50% loss
- Cancellation within 30 days of departure = 100% loss
While it is our intention to adhere to the route outlined here, there is a certain amount of flexibility built into the itinerary and on occasion it may be necessary, or desirable to make alterations. The itinerary is brief, as we never know exactly where our journey will take us. Due to our style of travel and the regions we visit, travel can be unpredictable. The Trip Details document, which I will email you upon registration, is a general guide to the tour and region and any mention of specific destinations or wildlife is by no means a guarantee that they will be visited or encountered.
Additionally, any travel times listed are approximations only and subject to vary due to local circumstances.
I'm partnering with National Geographic and G Adventures for this trip and they support Planeterra International Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to turning travel into impact by helping local communities earn an income from tourism. Planeterra connects underserved local communities to the benefits of tourism by developing and supporting small community-owned businesses. These businesses support Indigenous people, empower women, grant youth access to employment opportunities, and protect the environment. Planeterra also works to ensure these businesses have a thriving customer base by integrating their projects into G Adventures’ itineraries globally.
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