Portugal · Private and tailor-made
Portugal in a Week, Palaces to Vineyards
Have the National Palace of Sintra to yourselves after closing, from its tiled halls to its great kitchen.
By arrangement · How private access worksSuggested length
7 days
Price guide
From $6,188 per person, excl. international flights, based on two sharing
Includes hotels, private guiding, experiences and transfers
When
April to June and September to October
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American precision with local expertise · Planned from Europe since 2002 · Nearly 17,000 American travelers · Never cancelled a journey
Mouraria, the old Moorish quarter below Lisbon’s castle, is where your first walk begins. This 7-day private tour of Portugal runs from Lisbon to Porto, with Alfama and Belém before a day at Queluz, Sintra and the Cascais coast. In Sintra, by arrangement, you have the National Palace to yourselves after closing, from its tiled halls to its great kitchen, and you try a travesseiro at Piriquita, a puff-pastry pillow of almond and egg cream. Évora shows you its Roman temple. Coimbra has the gilded Biblioteca Joanina, and Porto the tiled Capela das Almas. A day in the Douro Valley ends at a family quinta. Private guides and drivers handle every day. Nothing is fixed until it suits you.
Taste a warm pastel de nata at the bakery beside the Jerónimos Monastery, Belém, Lisbon.
Walk the old town of Sintra with Luisa and try a travesseiro at Piriquita, Sintra.
Visit the Roman temple and the Capela dos Ossos, Évora.
Step into the gilded Biblioteca Joanina at the university, Coimbra.
Walk from the tiled Capela das Almas down through Barredo to the river, Porto.
Taste port at a family quinta above the river, Douro Valley.
“We love to tailor-make trips you’ll talk about for years, built on our local relationships & story-worthy experiences.” – Magical’s American founder, in Europe since 1998, culinary enthusiast & world traveler.
A Journey Designed Just for You
Our resident experts wrote this itinerary as a starting point, and your planner shapes every day around your interests, pace and travel style.
What do our American travelers say?
The 7-day Portugal itinerary at a glance
The route uses two bases and six nights: three in Lisbon and three in Porto. From Lisbon, day visits reach Sintra and the Cascais coast, about 30 minutes away by road, and Évora in the Alentejo, about 1 hour 35 minutes east. From Porto, the Douro Valley sits about 1 hour 15 minutes inland. Every day trip returns to the same hotel, so you pack only on the arrival and departure days and on day four.
Day four links the two cities by road and turns the transfer into a touring day. Lisbon to Coimbra takes about 2 hours, Aveiro lies about 53 kilometers further north, and Porto follows about an hour later. Our note on travel times and stops between Lisbon and Porto sets out the other options for the same drive.
April to June and September to October suit the route best. IPMA, Portugal’s weather institute, gives Lisbon a mean daily high of 25.7°C (about 78°F) in June and 26.6°C (about 80°F) in September, on its 1981 to 2010 averages. Porto runs cooler on the Atlantic, at 22.6°C (about 73°F) in June and 23.4°C (about 74°F) in September. July brings about 28°C (82°F) in Lisbon and 24°C (76°F) in Porto, and our team plans summer touring around the cooler hours.
Licensed guides we work with on this route include Luisa and Anabela in Lisbon, Isabel in Sintra, Elsa and Nuno in Évora, Susana and Tania in Porto, and Bruno in Coimbra. Each is a highly educated local expert who cares about the people in their group. We request your guides by name, and your planner confirms who leads each day once your dates are set.
Why the route runs from Lisbon to Porto
The route starts in Lisbon because its airport, the main hub of TAP Air Portugal, sits about 7 kilometers from the historic center and offers the wider choice of transatlantic flights. Our note on flying into Lisbon or Porto weighs the two airports in more detail. From there the journey moves north and never doubles back. Sintra and Évora fit as day trips from Lisbon, the drive to Porto passes Coimbra and Aveiro on the way, and the Douro closes the touring days within reach of Porto airport, about 11 kilometers from the center.
The angle is two bases and no one-night stops. A week in Portugal often turns into four or five hotels. Here you sleep three nights in each city, and the only full travel day carries two of the most rewarding stops in central Portugal. The route as written is a starting point, and our team shapes it around your dates and interests.
Journey at a glance
Length
7 days
From
$6,188 per person, double occupancy
Route
Lisbon, Sintra, Cascais, Évora, Coimbra, Aveiro, Porto, Douro Valley
Your planner adjusts every day to your dates.
Day One
Arrival in Lisbon: Mouraria, Alfama and Belém
Your licensed driver meets you at Lisbon airport, about 7 kilometers from the historic center. In the afternoon, where your dates allow, Luisa, one of our licensed guides in Lisbon and Sintra, starts in Mouraria, the quarter below the castle where Lisbon's Moors lived after the Christian conquest of 1147, and climbs to the Graça viewpoint, with benches under the pine trees and the castle walls across the rooftops. Alfama takes its name from the Arabic al-hamma, hot springs, and its lanes drop past the cathedral, the oldest church in the city, begun in 1147. The afternoon ends in Belém, where King Manuel I began the Jerónimos Monastery in 1502 and the bakery next door has sold pastéis de nata, warm from the oven with a dusting of cinnamon, since 1837. A fado evening or a dinner reservation follows on request. Logistics: Lisbon airport to your hotel by private vehicle with a licensed driver, then an afternoon with Luisa and the driver.
Day Two
Queluz, Sintra and the Cascais Coast with Luisa
Where your dates allow, Luisa leads the day with a licensed driver alongside her. Peter of Braganza, later King Peter III, began the palace at Queluz as a summer retreat in 1747, and its Rococo rooms and a canal whose walls carry tiled seascapes earned it the nickname of the Portuguese Versailles. On request, Pena Palace takes its place, the red and yellow castle King Ferdinand II finished above Sintra in 1854. UNESCO listed Sintra in 1995 as the first center of European Romantic architecture. In the old town, Piriquita has baked since 1862, and its travesseiros, pillows of puff pastry around an egg and almond cream, date from the 1940s. The afternoon follows the coast to Cascais, the royal summer resort from 1870, and the sea chasm of Boca do Inferno, where Atlantic swells break against the rock. A sunset sail on the Tagus with drinks ends the day where it suits your party. Logistics: Lisbon to Sintra by road, about 30 minutes, with Luisa and a licensed driver, then on to Cascais and back to Lisbon.
Day Three
Évora and the Alentejo
Today your licensed driver-guide heads east into the Alentejo. UNESCO inscribed the historic center of Évora in 1986. The Roman temple at the top of town dates from the first century and most likely honored the emperor Augustus. Medieval Évora built it into the castle, and it served as a butcher's shop from the fourteenth century until 1836, which kept its granite columns and marble capitals standing. The cathedral, consecrated in 1204 and finished in 1250, ranks as the largest medieval cathedral in Portugal, and its terrace looks over the white town. In the Igreja de São Francisco, Franciscan friars lined the Capela dos Ossos with the bones of about 5,000 people, under the words Nós ossos que aqui estamos pelos vossos esperamos, we bones here wait for yours. Lunch brings Alentejo cooking such as migas, a dish of bread, garlic and olive oil, beside black pork from acorn-fed pigs. Logistics: Lisbon to Évora by road, about 1 hour 35 minutes each way, licensed driver-guide.
Day Four
North through Coimbra and Aveiro to Porto
Day four is a long road day, about three and a half hours of driving in all, with two stops on the way. King Denis founded Portugal's university in Lisbon in 1290, and in 1537 it settled for good in the old royal palace on the hilltop of Coimbra. UNESCO inscribed the University of Coimbra, Alta and Sofia, in 2013. Builders worked on the Biblioteca Joanina from 1717 to 1728 for King John V, and a colony of bats still eats the insects among the gilded shelves at night, while staff cover the tables with leather each evening. Coimbra keeps its own fado, which university students adopted and male voices carry to the Coimbra guitar. In Aveiro, painted moliceiro boats once raked seaweed from the lagoon and now carry visitors along the canals past Art Nouveau façades. Ovos moles, sweet egg yolk in wafer shells shaped like fish and clams, come from the old convents of the town. Logistics: Lisbon to Coimbra by road, about 2 hours, then about 53 kilometers to Aveiro and about 1 hour on to Porto, licensed driver-guide.
Day Five
Porto: Tiles, Lello and the Barredo Quarter
UNESCO inscribed the historic center of Porto, with the Luiz I Bridge and the Monastery of Serra do Pilar, in 1996. Your licensed driver-guide starts at the Capela das Almas on Rua de Santa Catarina. Its walls stood plain white until 1929, and today Eduardo Leite's 15,947 blue-and-white tiles show the lives of Saint Francis and Saint Catherine. Next comes Livraria Lello, which the Lello brothers opened in 1906, with a forked wooden staircase under a stained glass skylight, and our team books the entry tickets. At the cathedral, where King John I married Philippa of Lancaster in 1387, the terrace looks over the roofs to the river. The walk ends in Barredo, whose stairways drop from the cathedral to the Ribeira waterfront. For lunch, try a francesinha, the layered sandwich under melted cheese and a beer and tomato sauce, which the restaurant A Regaleira first served in 1953. Logistics: a full day in Porto on foot with your licensed driver-guide, no hotel change.
Day Six
A Day in the Douro Valley
UNESCO inscribed the Alto Douro Wine Region in 2001, recognizing about 2,000 years of winemaking, and port has followed defined quality rules since 1756. Your licensed driver-guide follows the river east, past terraces of schist walls stepping up every slope. At Pinhão station, 24 tile panels from 1937 show grape treading and rabelo boats carrying wine downriver to the cellars of Gaia. The center of the day is a visit to a family quinta, where available, with a walk through the vines, the cool of the lodge where the port ages, and a tasting of the estate's wines. In the afternoon, a short boat ride on the Douro or a drive through the river villages, as you prefer. Logistics: Porto to Peso da Régua by road, about 1 hour 15 minutes each way, licensed driver-guide, back in Porto by early evening.
Day Seven
Departure from Porto
Francisco Sá Carneiro airport lies about 11 kilometers northwest of the Clérigos Tower, so a midday flight leaves the morning free for a last coffee and a walk along the Ribeira, with the rabelo boats moored below the Luiz I Bridge. VIP fast-track assistance at the airport is available by request, and our note on VIP airport services in Portugal explains how it works. Logistics: hotel to Porto airport by private vehicle with your licensed driver-guide, at an hour to suit your flight.
What does a 7 day Portugal itinerary look like?
A 7 day Portugal itinerary covers Lisbon and Porto at three nights each, with day visits from both cities. This one gives Lisbon its old quarters and Belém on arrival, a full day for Queluz, Sintra and Cascais, and a day east in Évora. The fourth day moves north by road through Coimbra and Aveiro. Porto then gets a full walking day and a day in the Douro Valley before the flight home. Six nights, two hotels, and every day planned around one region.
Is one week enough for Lisbon and Porto?
One week is enough for Lisbon, Porto and the classic day trips around them, at an easy pace. It covers Sintra, Cascais, Évora, Coimbra, Aveiro and the Douro without a single one-night stop. A week does not stretch to the Algarve, the Alentejo countryside or a night among the Douro vineyards. Each of those adds two or three days, and our longer Portugal routes include them.
Should you fly into Lisbon or Porto for a week in Portugal?
Fly into Lisbon and home from Porto for this route, because Lisbon offers the wider choice of transatlantic flights and the journey then runs north without doubling back. The route also works in reverse, from Porto to Lisbon, with the same nights in each city. Our note on Lisbon or Porto as the arrival airport sets out both options, and our team matches the direction to your flights.
Seven days, or a shorter or longer Portugal trip?
Seven days suits American travelers who want Portugal’s two great cities and the best day trips around them in a single week. A shorter or longer route serves you better in three cases. With five days, our team trims this route to Lisbon, Sintra, Coimbra, Aveiro and Porto on request and leaves out Évora and the Douro.
With ten days, the 10-day Portugal Signature journey starts in Porto, adds Braga, Guimarães and the Douro, then runs through Lisbon, Sintra and Évora to the Algarve coast, and the 10-day Active Portugal journey follows the same line with walks, a kayak or e-bike morning and the Seven Hanging Valleys trail.
If you want Spain on the same trip, the 10-day Madrid, Seville and Lisbon tour pairs Madrid, Toledo, Córdoba and Seville with Lisbon and Sintra. Every Portugal route sits on our Portugal destination page.
Who this journey suits
First-time visitors with one week of leave, who want Lisbon and Porto both and only two hotels.
Couples on an anniversary or a first trip abroad together, with a sunset sail on the Tagus and a quinta lunch in the Douro as options.
Families with teenage or adult children, since the days mix palaces, tiles, boats and food, and each city has three nights to settle in.
Food and wine travelers short on time, with custard tarts in Belém, Alentejo cooking in Évora, ovos moles in Aveiro and port in the Douro.
Travelers adding a week of Portugal to a trip in Spain, who want the two cities and the Douro without a long road loop.
The people behind the route
Luisa, one of our licensed guides in Lisbon and Sintra, leads the Lisbon and Sintra days where your dates allow. She works alongside a licensed driver, so the walking parts of the day start where the car drops you, from Mouraria and the Graça viewpoint to the old town of Sintra. She knows the order of palaces, gardens and pastry shops to suit the day and the season, and she shapes the Belém afternoon around the hours of the monastery.
What the 7-day journey costs and what it includes
This 7-day journey starts from $6,188 per person, double occupancy. The from-price covers six nights in deluxe four-star properties selected for comfort, location and service. Five-star luxury properties are available by request. It also covers licensed guides and driver-guides on touring days, private vehicles for every transfer and excursion, and the planning and in-country support of our team.
What moves the price: travel dates and season, hotel category, the size of your party, single rooms, and added private experiences such as a sunset sail on the Tagus, a fado evening in Lisbon, Pena Palace in place of Queluz, a boat on the Douro or a night at a quinta. Our team prices each journey to your dates and party.
When the route looks close to the week you have in mind, speak with our team about your dates, your party and the pace you want.
Questions about the 7-day Portugal itinerary
How many days do you need for Lisbon and Porto?
Six nights, three in each city, cover Lisbon and Porto with the main day trips around them. Three nights in Lisbon give you the old quarters and Belém, a full day for Queluz, Sintra and Cascais, and a day east in Évora. Three nights in Porto give you a full walking day in the old city and a day in the Douro Valley. The drive between the two cities takes about three and a half hours with stops in Coimbra and Aveiro, so the transfer doubles as a touring day. Two nights per city also works, with the loss of Évora and the Douro. Four or more nights per city leave room for Óbidos, Nazaré, Braga or Guimarães as extra day trips.
Is seven days enough for Portugal?
Seven days is enough for the north and center of the country: Lisbon, Sintra, the Cascais coast, Évora, Coimbra, Aveiro, Porto and the Douro Valley. It leaves out the Algarve, the deeper Alentejo, Madeira and the Azores, each of which needs at least two or three more days. This route keeps the week calm by using only two hotels and placing the long drive on day four, with two stops on the way. If the Algarve matters to you, our 10-day and 12-day Portugal routes add its cliffs and coves, and our team builds a single week around the south instead when the beach comes first.
What is the best time of year for a 7-day Portugal trip?
April to June and September to October suit this route best. IPMA, Portugal’s weather institute, gives Lisbon a mean daily high of 19.8°C (about 68°F) in April, 25.7°C (about 78°F) in June and 26.6°C (about 80°F) in September, on its 1981 to 2010 averages. Porto runs a few degrees cooler on the Atlantic, at 17.6°C (about 64°F) in April and 23.4°C (about 74°F) in September. July and August bring about 28°C (82 to 83°F) in Lisbon and 24 to 25°C (76 to 77°F) in Porto, and our team schedules the walking hours early and late in the day. September and early October fall in the Douro harvest season, when the quintas pick and tread their grapes.
How do you get from Lisbon to Porto on this route?
A licensed driver-guide drives you north by road on day four, with your luggage in the car the whole way. Lisbon to Coimbra takes about 2 hours, and you spend the late morning at the university and the Biblioteca Joanina. Aveiro lies about 53 kilometers further north, with its canals, moliceiro boats and ovos moles, and Porto follows about an hour later. The day carries about three and a half hours of driving in all, so you reach Porto in the late afternoon in time to settle in before dinner. Our team sends the full schedule, with every time and contact, before you leave home.
Should we choose Queluz or Pena Palace on the Sintra day?
The route as written visits the Queluz palace on the way to Sintra, and Pena Palace takes its place on request. Queluz, begun in 1747 as a royal summer retreat, shows Rococo rooms and formal gardens with a tiled canal, on level ground close to Lisbon. Pena, finished in 1854 for King Ferdinand II, stands on a hilltop above Sintra in a park of more than 200 hectares, with red and yellow façades and views to the coast. Pena suits travelers who want the Romantic Sintra of the postcards. Queluz suits those who prefer a calmer, more formal palace and an easier walk. Luisa helps you choose before the day.
Who guides and drives us on the 7-day tour?
In Lisbon and Sintra, where your dates allow, Luisa, one of our licensed guides, leads the touring days and works alongside a licensed driver, two separate people. From Évora northward, through Coimbra, Aveiro, Porto and the Douro Valley, a licensed driver-guide looks after you, one person holding both licenses who drives the car and leads the visits. Every transfer runs by private vehicle for your own party, from the Lisbon airport pickup to the Porto airport drop-off. Our team plans the whole route, books the site entries such as Livraria Lello, and stays in contact through the week.
Should we sleep a night in the Douro Valley instead of a day trip?
Many travelers do. The route as written visits the Douro as a day trip from Porto, about 1 hour 15 minutes each way by road to Peso da Régua. They choose one or two nights at a quinta hotel among the vineyards, with the river below and a slower lunch. Swapping one Porto night for a Douro night keeps the trip at seven days, and adding a night makes it eight. Our 10-day Portugal route includes two nights in the Douro, with a river trip and a family quinta visit, and our team adapts this week the same way on request.
How much walking does the itinerary involve?
Several quarters on this route sit on hills with cobbled lanes and steps, including Alfama and Mouraria in Lisbon, the old town of Sintra, the upper town of Coimbra and the Barredo quarter of Porto, whose stairways drop from the cathedral to the river. Your driver drops you at the top of a quarter where the roads allow, so most walks run downhill, and your guide sets the pace to your party. Pena Palace, if you choose it, sits high above Sintra in a large park, and Queluz offers an easier visit on level ground. Your guide is glad to advise on suitability before booking.
Is the 7-day route fixed?
The route as written shows one balanced order of bases, and our team shortens, extends or reorders it around your dates, interests and pace. Common changes include running it from Porto to Lisbon, adding a night in the Douro Valley, adding Óbidos or Nazaré to the drive north, or extending south to the Algarve. Each change keeps the same principle of few hotel changes and one long road day at most. Guides, drivers and site entries all move with the change, so you receive a revised day-by-day plan and price before you commit.
Who do we contact if something goes wrong or we want a change?
Your planner designs your journey with you and stays in touch after you land. For the fastest response at any hour, message your private WhatsApp group, where our 24/7 support team works alongside Rachel or Dan. Because we begin no more than five journeys per country each week, peak spring and fall dates fill early, and that limit is what lets us stay this close to every trip.
We keep a list of vetted four- and five-star hotels, well located and enjoyed by our past travelers and by our own team.
Examples for each overnight stop on this route. Choose a deluxe boutique hotel or a five-star stay, and your travel advisor matches each night to your wishes, the season and availability.
Lisbon
Boutique: Memmo Alfama. A design hotel on an Alfama lane, with a pool beside its wine-bar terrace over the Tagus.
Five-star: Four Seasons Hotel Ritz Lisbon. A 1959 landmark beside Eduardo VII Park, filled with mid-century Portuguese art and tapestries.
Porto
Boutique: Torel 1884. An 1884 palace near São Bento station, with rooms themed on Portugal’s voyages of discovery.
Five-star: The Yeatman. Terraced into the Gaia hillside among the port lodges, every room with a terrace facing Porto.
What's Included
A Very Personalized Itinerary, Just For You and Your Schedule
Hand-Picked Ultra-Luxury & Boutique Hotel Options
Insider Experiences + Inspiring Sightseeing + Magical Upgrades
Private Touring with Your Own Personal Expert Guide
Private Airport & Train Station Luxury Transfers
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Our Unforgettable Trips Are Tailored Just For You
Hi from Europe,
Along with our local partners across Portugal, Spain, Morocco and beyond we believe that our clients deserve the truly tailor-made private luxury trips, not generic "one-size-fits-all" plans.
Get inspired with our sample trips then get in touch about an expert-made personalized custom luxury itinerary, just for you.
Kind regards,
Dan O'Beirne & the MPT team
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