Today is day twenty-seven of our latest travel adventure. In the previous post, I wrote about the first two weeks of our repositioning cruise to Europe aboard the SilverRay. Friends accompanied us on the cruise, and they traveled with us for five days after we docked in Lisbon. We split the time in Lisbon and Porto between planned tours and impromptu outings, while dashing through rain showers and even a hail event in Porto. We used public transportation, Uber, and Bolt while staying in Porto and Lisbon. Our goal was to hit the highlights in five days. Sintra, Pena Palace, Quinta da Regaleira, Cascais, the Douro Valley, and Gaia made our list of must-see destinations. We accomplished all that and more, and our friends flew home certain they would return. Malcolm and I spent the final week of April and our time in Portugal, in the Algarve, enjoying glorious sunshine and perfect temperatures.
The month has passed quickly, and we have enjoyed revisiting Lisbon and Porto and discovering the Algarve for the first time. Picking up a rental car in Lisbon for the three-hour drive to the Algarve was a good decision. Although public transportation is available, having a car enables easy day trips in any direction while based in a central location.
Lisbon
Sintra
Porto, Gaia, Douro Valley
The Algarve
The map below should give some perspective regarding where we were in the Algarve. The appeal of visiting here is old world charm, cobblestone streets, stunning beaches, dramatic golden cliffs, and azure waters.
We chose the Tivoli hotel in Carvoeiro for its central location, proximity to the Benagil caves, and stunning beaches. While the hotel is a bit dated, our room was comfortable, and the hotel has a killer view from the 5th-floor restaurant and the rooftop bar.
Carvoeiro
Silves
That’s all for now. Tomorrow we are off to France.
Picture Retirement 
I’m happy to see you enjoying Portugal so much 🙂 Lisbon is one of my favourite European cities, and I really liked Silves too. I’ve never been to Porto but would love to get there one day.
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Hi Sarah, Silves was a special surprise and new to us. We went there based on a restaurant recommendation and ended up going back the next day for a closer look. Porto has a lot of sides to it, not all pretty, but definitely worth a visit.
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The photos and the weather look very attractive! It sounds like you had an amazing time so far. Keep enjoying it! Strangely enough, I’ve never been to Portugal, but it is on “our list” once we travel around Europe and beyond in a future camper. 🙂
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Liesbet, I am a little surprised that you haven’t been to Portugal. You would love it here. We are having a great time, especially since the rain ended and we have had a week of sunshine. Take care.
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Wow! So beautiful and your photos are magnificent! No wonder Portugal is on most people’s list of places to visit💕
Deb
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Deb, Portugal is a beautiful country and so different from other European destinations. Worth looking into for a future visit. Glad you enjoyed the photos.
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Wow! Beautiful! What’s after the France?
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Italy!
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Nice!!!!
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I’m glad you’ve enjoyed revisiting Portugal. Your beautiful photos brought back memories of my visits to Portugal. Have a wonderful time in France!
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Natalie, we love Portugal, evidenced by the fact that we keep coming back. It was fun to serve as tour guide for our friends. Wish they could have stayed longer. Thanks for complimenting the photos.
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I’ve never been on a cruise, but I do love Portugual. What’s not to love?!
Your photos are fabulous!
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Hi Donna, the cruise was a lot of fun, and a good way to avoid a long flight! Stopping in Bermuda and the Azores was just icing on the cake. I’m glad you enjoyed the photos. It was challenging with all those rainy days.
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Killer view! That’s amazing. So happy to see a happy blue ocean. Your photos are, as always, stunning.
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Awww, that’s so kind. Thank you.
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This sounds like a fabulous experience. Portugal is definitely on my bucket list!
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Hi Gerri, Portugal is an amazing destination and worth a visit. I hope you will make it a priority destination. Thanks for the visit and have a great week.
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I really hope I make it to Portugal some day! It looks so beautiful!
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Hi Ann, Portugal is a delightful destination and one I highly recommend for many reasons. I hope you will make a point to visit here. It is one of the most welcoming countries we have ever visited. Have a great week.
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Hi Suzanne, I so enjoyed the beautiful photos. They brought back some lovely memories, particularly of those divine pastel de nata treats. All I can say is that it is a good thing they aren’t sold anywhere around here or I’d be in big trouble!
The bluff top hotel looks stunningly beautiful. I would imagine it was difficult to leave views like that, but I’m sure heading next to wonderful France is helping! May you and Malcom continue to enjoy!
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Hi Tamara, I just found this in my Spam folder. Like I said, ‘our blogs don’t like each other.’ Hopefully, we are back on track. I left a comment (successfully) for you yesterday. Take care.
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Your photos took me back to when we visited Portugal in 2023. We saw many of the same sights as you did. I would love to return one of these days. Off to France now… enjoy! Just in time to miss the power outage, too. My brother and SIL are in Portugal right now and spent some unplanned time in darkness. 🙂
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Hi Janis, I hope your brother and SIL fared well during the outage. We felt lucky with the timing of our flight. Returning to some familiar places and discovering new destinations made our two weeks here pass quickly. Thanks for visiting.
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You captured all of the charm of Portugal and Old Europe. I found the pictures of the castles in Sintra fascinating. What camera do you use for travel? I’m loving your trip, can’t wait for the next chapter! Enjoy! Joe
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Joe, I alternate between my phone and my Panasonic LUMIX with a 35 mm wide angle lens. Mostly, it depends on the situation. The castle with the well and tunnels was very interesting and fun to photograph. Peña Palace is joyful with its bold colors. We are having a wonderful trip. Thanks for following along. Take care.
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My husband and I visited Porto in 2003 and I made a return visit in late April. I was amazed at how much we saw during our 1 day visit in 2003. Back then, it hadn’t been discovered.
Looks like you are having a fantastic trip!
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Hi, I’ve tried multiple times to post a nice long message, but they keep failing. So just wanted you to know I’ve tried!
Tamara R
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Thanks for trying. WP can be a pain regarding comments.
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Suzanne, your photos are stunning! Each one could be a postcard. It has been many years since I was last in Portugal, but your photos are making me want to plan a return trip. It seems as though you’ve been busy, but your photos paint such a tranquil picture!
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Hi Laurel, I’m still catching up with comments. This post represents ten days of travel and happened during the height of our energy level. Plus, the weather was amazing (dry and cool), so we took advantage. Hope all is well with you guys.
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