Travel Guide To Portugal
Portugal is a popular holiday destination, located in South Western Europe
on the Iberian Peninsula. It is blessed by beautiful coastline, an excellent climate and picturesque towns and villages and the vibrant and cosmopolitan capital Lisbon. Lisbon lies on the north bank of the Tagus Estuary and is situated roughly in the centre of the country, about 300km from the Algarve in the south.
Lisbon provides a great variety of things to do including beaches, beautiful countryside and mountainous areas and historical places of interest all close to the city centre. The city centre itself is full of great bars, clubs and restaurants, not to mention museums, monuments and places of cultural interest.
200 miles north of Lisbon lies Porto, Portugal`s second city and the capital of the Norte region. A highway connection means the driving time from Lisbon to Porto is three hours. The historic centre of Porto was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996. Porto is famous for Port wine which is produced and shipped from the Douro area. Along the coast from Porto there are numerous excellent holiday resorts like Espinho, Povoa de Varzim and Matosinhos. Inland you can visit Amarante and its 17th Century mansions overlooking the river. There are many picturesque towns to visit, enjoying the view as you drive along beside the river or the beautiful and unspoilt coast line.
The Douro Valley has spectacular views with hills covered with terraces of
vines falling to the river banks. The Douro River originates in Spain and flows west in the north of Portugal, reaching the ocean in Porto.
Driving is a good way to appreciate the scenery in the hills, driving up the winding roads. The Valley produces Port and red and white wine which complements the local meat based cuisine. No matter what season you visit in the vines contribute spectacular colour to the region, red and gold in the autumn and white and pink in early spring. As well as Porto the Douro Valley has been awarded UNESCO World Heritage status and has plenty of interesting features such as castles and monasteries.
The Algarve, in the south of Portugal is a four hour drive from Lisbon and a sunshine paradise blessed with fine beaches and a fantastic climate. Whilst many people enjoy going to the Algarve for a relaxing holiday in the sun more active pursuits are easily available. Golf, tennis, outdoor bowls and of course water sports are easy to arrange in the area. Two motorway routes make for an easy and pleasant drive. Faro is the main city in the Algarve region and most flights arrive into Faro. Cheap flights to Faro are easy to find year round from the U.K. as this destination is popular in all seasons.
As the Algarve is such a popular tourist destination there is no shortage of accommodation ranging from budget apartments and hotels to more exclusive luxury hotels and private villa rentals. Moving on to explore the rest of Portugal is easily done by hiring a car and the distances are extremely manageable with stunning scenery to take in along the way.
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