Portugal · 1 tour
Custard tarts in Belém, petiscos and ginjinha in Lisbon’s old streets, francesinhas and port cellars in Porto, then the terraced vineyards of the Douro. One eight-day tour north from Lisbon, with a host from Porto.
Douro Valley terraces
Overview
Portuguese food is honest and generous: bread, olive oil, garlic, pork, salt cod, fish grilled over charcoal and some of the best-value wine in Europe. It changes as you travel north. Lisbon eats in small plates, standing at counters and sitting in family tascas. Porto cooks heavier and is proud of its tripe and its francesinha. Up the Douro, everything turns around the vines that make port and a new generation of serious red wine.
Our tour follows that line from the Tagus to the Douro by fast train and van, with three nights in Lisbon, two in Porto and two among the vineyards near Pinhão. Rui Magalhães, who grew up among the port lodges of Vila Nova de Gaia, hosts.
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1 tour · prices per person
Lisbon · Porto · Pinhão · Douro Valley
WineSeafoodFood walks
From$3,790per person, double room, most meals
View tour3 places
01
Lisbon is a city of hills, trams and small plates. The day starts with a bica, the short coffee, and a pastel de nata, best in Belém by the Jerónimos Monastery, where monks first made the custard tart. At lunch, workers eat a bifana, pork marinated in garlic and wine on a soft roll, or petiscos in a tasca: pica-pau beef, clams with coriander, fried green beans called peixinhos da horta. From June to September sardines smoke on street grills, above all during the Santo António festivals in Alfama. The Mercado da Ribeira by Cais do Sodré has been the main market since 1882, and ginjinha, the sour cherry liqueur, is poured by the glass near Rossio.
Best monthsApril to June, September and October
Tours that visit Lisbon
02
Porto sits on steep granite banks above the Douro, and its food is built for a cold Atlantic winter. The people of Porto are called tripeiros, tripe eaters, after tripas à moda do Porto, a stew of tripe and white beans. The francesinha, a sandwich of steak, ham and sausage under melted cheese and a beer and tomato sauce, is the city’s favorite lunch. The Bolhão market reopened in 2022 after years of restoration and is again the place for cheese, sausages and cornbread. Across the Dom Luís I bridge, the port lodges of Vila Nova de Gaia still age the wine that comes down from the valley, and most open their cellars for tastings.
Best monthsMay, June and September
Tours that visit Porto
03
Two hours east of Porto, the Douro cuts through hills of schist that have been carved into terraces by hand over three centuries. It became one of the first demarcated wine regions in the world in 1756, and the Alto Douro is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Port is still made here, much of it trodden in stone lagares at harvest, and the same grapes, Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca among them, now make Douro DOC reds and whites. Pinhão, a small river town with tiled panels in its railway station, is the base for boat trips and visits to family quintas, where lunch is roast kid and the estate’s own wine.
Best monthsSeptember and October
Tours that visit The Douro Valley
Ways to go
01
Portugal: Lisbon, Porto and the Douro Valley starts with three nights in Lisbon, takes the train to Porto for two, and ends with two nights among the vineyards near Pinhão. Rui hosts throughout, with market walks, a port lodge, a quinta lunch and a boat on the river.
02
Lisbon rewards an extra day or two before the tour starts. Rui sends every guest a list of bakeries, tascas and viewpoints, and Lena can book an extra night at the tour hotel so you do not have to change rooms on day 1.
03
Groups of six or more can run the tour on their own dates, add a night in the Douro for the harvest or start in Porto and finish in Lisbon. Write to Lena Ortiz in reservations and she plans it with Rui.
What’s included
The tour includes hotels in Lisbon, Porto and the Douro with breakfast, every tasting and the meals listed day by day, the train from Lisbon to Porto, a port lodge tasting, a quinta lunch and wine tasting, a boat trip, wine and port for guests 18 and over, airport transfers at group times and Rui or another host.
Not included: flights to the start city, travel insurance, the meals not listed, tips. Alcohol only for guests 18 and over, the legal drinking age in Portugal. Full list
When to go
Portugal is mild for most of the year, and our departures run from March to June and September to November. Spring brings green hills, fava beans and the first warm evenings in Lisbon. June is the month of the Santo António and São João festivals, with sardines on every grill. September is harvest in the Douro, when the quintas pick and tread, and October is quieter with autumn colors on the terraces. Midsummer in the Douro is very hot, often above 100°F, which is why we skip July and August.
Before you book
Ask Lena directly
Lena Ortiz in reservations replies within one working day, Monday to Friday.
By the Alfa Pendular fast train, a little under three hours, which is quicker and more relaxed than the drive. Your bags travel with you, and the host carries the tickets.
Far from it. The Douro now makes serious dry reds and whites from the same grapes, and you taste both at the quinta. With meals in Lisbon and Porto we pour vinho verde, Alentejo and Dão wines too.
On the September departure of Portugal: Lisbon, Porto and the Douro Valley, the group picks for an hour with a quinta crew and watches the grapes go into the lagar.
Very. Both cities are built on steep slopes with cobbled streets that are slippery in the rain. We use trams and funiculars where we can, but bring good walking shoes.
Yes. Seville is a short flight from Lisbon or Porto, and Andalusia: Seville Tapas, Jerez Sherry and Granada runs in several of the same months.
An evening of fado in Alfama is offered as an option on the Lisbon free night. It runs late, so it is not on the main program.
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Dates and seats
Tell us which tour, roughly when and how many of you. Lena Ortiz in reservations replies within one working day with dates, seats, the price and how we can handle any dietary needs.
Lena, Grant and Priya, Charleston
SubjectPortugal: Lisbon, Porto and the Douro Valley: dates and seats
Please include
Lena Ortiz in reservations replies within one working day. No payment now. A $300 deposit per person holds seats on a multi-day tour; day tours are paid when you book.
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