Add Sintra to Lisbon Day Tour?

For a first-time port of call in Lisbon, should we concentrate our one day in Lisbon itself or add Sintra to a tour? I know Sintra is wonderful, but also do not want to spread ourselves too thin.

We've been to Lisbon 3 times now (twice from a ship). A tour to Sintra will take at least 4 hours as they usualły stop off at Cascais. Both are lovely places and you need time to stroll around and visit the palaces. Queues can be long if it's busy. The arranged tour of Lisbon we did a few years ago (when we were travelling in Portugal and not limited to time) took about 5 hours to cover the highlights. It was a great tour and we stopped off at all the Lisbon hot spots including entry to the carriage museum and walking the Alfama district. If you decide on Sintra and the timing of your tour and ship departure allows, you may be able to do Alfama and St George's castle as well. I think you will need to visit Lisbon again to see everything !

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We were on a land trip to Portugal, staying a week in Vilamoura from where we did an overnight to Sintra after a visit to Fatima, and on the back end an overnight in Lisbon prior to our flight back to the states.

I would not try to combine both Lisbon & Sintra in a one day port visit. Each city has much to experience and IMHO it is better to focus on one or the other as each city is so unique.

Absolutely agree. Do one or the other. Not both...otherwise you will be cheating yourselves.

Besides, it will be a good excuse to return to Portugal.

Enjoy a custard tart.

We did a tour there a few years back and LOVED Lisbon. We did go to Sintra and absolutely loved it there. Our cruise ended in Lisbon so we were able to stay an extra few days post cruise and can't wait to return one day. If you are on a time constraint I agree...there is too much to see in Lisbon to go to Sintra too....because you will want to spend lots of time in both places!

Enjoy!

Sintra is best enjoyed as a full day sojourn (its easy to get to Sintra on your own via the train). Trying to mix both Lisbon in Sintra on a single day will leave you with too little time in both places.

Hank

Thank you all for your excellent advice.

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From the Conde Nast Traveler magazine earlier last month, they have this headline: “Sintra: The Perfect Day Trip from Lisbon” with these highlights: “Eighteen miles and a world away from Lisbon, it’s easy to see why Sintra—with its cool, lush hills and proximity to the Atlantic coast—is where Portuguese royals used to spend their summers. Today, the concentration of these former regal estates and equally fanciful gardens has turned this UNESCO World Heritage site into a popular day-trip destination. After seeing the 19th-century Romantic architecture, cobblestone streets, and dense forests, you’ll understand why Lord Byron once referred to the town as a 'glorious Eden.' ”.

With our time flexibilities in Lisbon prior to start our cruise on Wednesday, June 14, we hope to make it up to Sintra. Looks and seems great!! Any other experiences, tips, suggestions, etc., from those who have been to Sintra? Below are a couple of visuals from this magazine profile. Just five days till we depart for Lisbon. Looking forward to our first visit to the Portugal capital.

Full story at:

http://www.cntraveler.com/story/sintra-portugal-the-perfect-day-trip-from-lisbon

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

From our Jan. 25-Feb. 20, 2015, Amazon River-Caribbean adventure that started in Barbados, here is the link for that live/blog. Many visuals from this amazing river and Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, etc.):

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157696

Now at 51,239 views for these postings.

From Conde Nast Traveler, here are a couple of the visuals they featured in their article. Both really are attractive and effective in boosting my interest for visiting Sintra on a day-trip from Lisbon.:

(Open your screen/viewer wider to see these pictures larger!)