Home › Portugal › How many days
How many days in Portugal? 8 days: Lisbon, Sintra, Porto, the Douro and the Algarve
By Tony Panopoulos · travel-agency planner in Greece · Updated
Portugal is long and narrow, and fast trains link its two great cities in under three hours, so eight days goes a long way. Spend three days in and around Lisbon, take the train north via Coimbra to Porto, ride the riverside line up the Douro Valley among the port vineyards, and fly south for two days on the cliffs of the Algarve. No car needed until the coast.
Short answer
Six days covers Lisbon, Sintra, Porto and the Douro. Eight adds the Algarve, the right ending from May to October.
The 8-day plan, day by day
Day 1: Lisbon: Alfama, the castle and Baixa
Morning. Climb to the Castelo de São Jorge (about €15) at opening for the view over the red roofs to the Tagus. Walk down through the lanes of Alfama to the Miradouro de Santa Luzia and the Sé cathedral.
Afternoon. Continue to Praça do Comércio, rebuilt after the 1755 earthquake, and up Rua Augusta through the grid of Baixa. Take the Santa Justa lift or walk up to Chiado and the Carmo convent ruins (about €7).
Evening. Hear fado in Alfama or Bairro Alto; small houses such as Tasca do Chico have free amateur fado, while dinner-and-show venues cost €40-70.
Tram 28 is a scenic but packed route; ride it from the Martim Moniz end early in the morning. A single on board costs about €3, much less with a Viva Viagem card.
Day 2: Belém and the riverfront
Morning. Take tram 15 about 25 minutes to Belém. Visit the Jerónimos Monastery (about €18), built with spice-trade wealth, where Vasco da Gama is buried.
Afternoon. Eat a pastel de nata at Pastéis de Belém (about €1.50), then walk to the Padrão dos Descobrimentos and the Belém Tower. The MAAT art museum lies along the river.
Evening. Stop at LX Factory under the 25 de Abril bridge, then dinner at the Time Out Market in Cais do Sodré.
Jerónimos is closed on Mondays and queues are long; book a timed ticket online.
Day 3: Day trip to Sintra
Morning. Take the train from Rossio to Sintra, about 40 minutes (under €3 each way). Bus 434 climbs to the Pena Palace, the yellow-and-red Romantic palace on a peak (about €20 with the park; timed entry).
Afternoon. Walk down to the Moorish Castle walls, then visit Quinta da Regaleira with its Initiation Well, a spiral staircase into the earth (about €12-15).
Evening. Try a travesseiro, the local almond pastry, at Piriquita before the train back.
Sintra is crowded from 10:00. Book the first Pena slot and go on a weekday.
Day 4: Coimbra and on to Porto
Morning. Take the Alfa Pendular train to Coimbra, about 1h40. Visit the University of Coimbra, one of the oldest in Europe, and its baroque Biblioteca Joanina, home to a colony of bats that eat the insects (about €15 combined).
Afternoon. Continue by train to Porto, about 1 hour.
Evening. Walk down to the Ribeira waterfront and across the top deck of the Dom Luís I bridge at sunset.
Book trains on the CP website up to 60 days ahead for cheaper fares.
Day 5: Porto: São Bento, Lello and the port lodges
Morning. See the blue-and-white azulejos in the hall of São Bento station, then climb the Clérigos Tower (about €10). Livraria Lello, the neo-Gothic bookshop, needs a timed ticket (about €10-15, deductible from a book).
Afternoon. Cross to Vila Nova de Gaia for a tour and tasting at a port lodge such as Graham's, Taylor's or Sandeman (about €20-35).
Evening. Eat a francesinha, the meat-filled sandwich covered with cheese and beer sauce, at Café Santiago.
Porto is hilly. The Guindais funicular saves the climb from Ribeira to Batalha.
Day 6: The Douro Valley
Morning. Take the regional train from São Bento along the Linha do Douro to Pinhão, about 2h30, with the river beside the track for the last hour (about €12-15 each way).
Afternoon. Visit a quinta for a tasting among the terraced vineyards of the Alto Douro, a UNESCO site. A 1-hour river boat trip from Pinhão costs about €15-20.
Evening. Return to Porto by train, or stay at a quinta overnight.
Sit on the right-hand side going up for the river views. The harvest is in September.
Day 7: Fly to the Algarve: Lagos
Morning. Fly from Porto to Faro, about 1 hour, and take a train or bus about 1h45 west to Lagos.
Afternoon. Walk the clifftop path to Ponta da Piedade, with its golden rock arches and grottoes.
Evening. Dinner in the old town, where grilled sardines or cataplana cost €15-25.
Kayak tours from Lagos explore the grottoes from the water, about €30-40.
Day 8: Benagil and departure
Morning. Take a boat from Portimão or Benagil to see the Benagil sea cave and its round hole in the roof (about €25-40); rules since 2024 restrict landing inside, so check what your trip includes.
Afternoon. Walk the Seven Hanging Valleys Trail above the cliffs, about 6 km.
Evening. Return to Faro for your flight.
Most of the Algarve is quiet from November to March; many boat trips stop.
Only have 6 days?
With 6 days, drop the Algarve: three days in Lisbon and Sintra, Coimbra on the way north, and two days in Porto with the Douro.
Got extra days?
Add Évora and the Alentejo wine country, Óbidos and Nazaré between Lisbon and Coimbra, or fly to Madeira or the Azores.
Where to stay in Portugal
| Budget | Area | Why | Typical double/night |
|---|---|---|---|
| Budget | Lisbon Anjos / Porto Bolhão | Cheaper guesthouses close to the metro. | €70-110 |
| Mid-range | Lisbon Baixa / Chiado | Flat, central, walk to Alfama and Bairro Alto. | €140-230 |
| Mid-range | Porto Ribeira / Baixa | Near São Bento, the river and the bridge. | €120-200 |
| Comfort | Douro quintas / Lagos cliffs | Wine-estate hotels, or resorts above the beaches. | €250-450 |
Getting around
Lisbon and Porto have metros; a Viva Viagem (Lisbon) or Andante (Porto) card cuts fares to about €1.80-2. CP trains link the two in about 2h50. From Lisbon Airport, the metro reaches the centre in 25 minutes; from Porto Airport, metro line E takes 30 minutes. In the Algarve, a rental car helps.
What to eat in Portugal
Order bacalhau (salt cod), grilled sardines in summer, polvo à lagareiro (roast octopus with olive oil) and arroz de marisco. In Porto, tripas à moda do Porto gave locals their nickname, 'tripeiros'. Coffee is a bica in Lisbon, a cimbalino in Porto, about €1. A set lunch (prato do dia) costs €10-14, dinner €25-40. The bread and olives brought to the table are charged if you eat them.
Best time to visit
April to June and September to October, with highs of 20-28°C. July and August are hot inland and crowded on the Algarve. Lisbon's Santo António festival on 12-13 June fills Alfama, and Porto's São João on 23-24 June is the biggest night of the year.
Month-by-month weather for Portugal →
What a day costs
| Budget | Mid-range | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bed (per person, sharing a double) | €35 | €75 | €150 |
| Food & drink | €25 | €45 | €85 |
| Sights & tickets | €12 | €25 | €45 |
| Local transport | €10 | €20 | €40 |
| Total per person, per day | about €82 | about €165 | about €320 |
Approximate 2026 prices; Lisbon charges a tourist tax of about €4 per person per night and Porto about €3, and some Algarve towns charge €1-2.
Before you go
Common questions
Is 8 days enough for Portugal?
For Lisbon, Porto, the Douro and a taste of the Algarve, yes, if you use trains and one short flight. It is not enough to add the Alentejo, Madeira or the Azores. With ten days, add Évora and a slower Algarve.
Should I rent a car in Portugal?
Not for Lisbon, Sintra, Porto or the Douro by train; parking in the cities is difficult and expensive. A car is useful in the Algarve and the Alentejo. Motorways have electronic tolls, so ask the rental company for a Via Verde transponder.
Lisbon or Porto?
Both, if you can. Lisbon is larger, with more museums, Belém and day trips such as Sintra and Cascais. Porto is smaller, more compact and cheaper, with the port lodges and the Douro Valley. With only a few days, choose Lisbon; with a week, give each at least two days.
What should I book in advance?
Pena Palace slots, Jerónimos Monastery, Livraria Lello and fado dinners in summer. Book trains a few weeks ahead for better prices, and Douro quintas or boat trips in September during the harvest. Hotels in Lisbon and Porto fill early around the June saints' festivals, and Algarve rooms in August are best booked months ahead.
How this guide was made
Compiled by TonyPlan from official tourism, transport and attraction sources and on-the-ground travel knowledge. Prices are approximate for 2026 and change with season; anything we could not confirm is marked as approximate.
Some links on this page are partner links. If you book through them TonyPlan may earn a commission; the price you pay is the same. How we make money.