Portugal 6 Day Itinerary (No Tourist Traps)
Six days runs Lisbon, Sintra, Porto, and the Douro, then south to one honest day in the Algarve, the shortest version of the full loop actually worth attempting. Euros throughout, CP’s Alfa Pendular covers Lisbon-Porto in 2h35 to 3h15, and the Algarve leg means a rental car on the now toll-free A22. Summer packs the Algarve’s coast solid; spring or autumn is calmer everywhere. Our 5-day stays north of Lisbon and Porto; 7-day gives the Algarve a second day instead of rushing it.
Book these before you go:
- Your Lisbon hotel : Alfama or Baixa keeps you walking distance from Day 1 and 2
- A Sintra day tour with Pena Palace entry : the ticket on this trip that sells out first
- A Vila Nova de Gaia port-lodge tour : book one lodge properly rather than three rushed ones
- A Benagil cave boat tour : July and August slots genuinely sell out
| Day | Focus | Getting there | Rough daily cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alfama, the miradouros, Belem | Metro plus walking | EUR 60-90 |
| 2 | Baixa, Chiado, a fado dinner | On foot | EUR 50-80 |
| 3 | Sintra: Pena Palace, Quinta da Regaleira | CP train from Rossio, about 40 min | EUR 70-100 |
| 4 | Porto: the Ribeira, Livraria Lello | CP Alfa Pendular, 2h35-3h15 | EUR 60-90 |
| 5 | Vila Nova de Gaia, Douro Valley day trip | Linha do Douro train, about 1h Regua-Pinhao | EUR 90-130 |
| 6 | Algarve: Lagos, the Benagil sea cave | Rental car, toll-free A22 | EUR 90-140 |
Day 1: Alfama, the miradouros, and Belem
Land at Humberto Delgado Airport and take the metro’s red line into the centre, 20 to 30 minutes for under EUR 2 a ride. Spend the morning in Alfama, Lisbon’s oldest district, which survived the 1755 earthquake intact because it sits on solid bedrock while most of the rest of the city didn’t. Ride Tram 28 once, early or late, never at midday; it’s genuinely useful and also a documented pickpocket line.
In the afternoon, head to Belem for the Jeronimos Monastery (around EUR 18) and the Belem Tower (about EUR 8), then Pasteis de Belem, the only bakery legally allowed to call its custard tart a “pastel de Belem.”
Day 2: Baixa, Chiado, and an honest fado dinner
Baixa is the grid rebuilt after the 1755 earthquake; walk it before the heat and the tour groups arrive. Skip the fado houses sitting directly on Alfama’s main tourist lane; the better rooms charge a modest cover instead of running a free show for a captive audience.
Day 3: Sintra, on Pena Palace’s schedule, not yours
The train from Lisbon’s Rossio station takes about 40 minutes; fare is around EUR 2.30 each way. Pena Palace’s interior needs a pre-booked, timed ticket (EUR 20 combined with the park, EUR 14 park-only, via parquesdesintra.pt ); take the first slot of the day and the crowds stop being a problem. Quinta da Regaleira, a short walk away, is worth its own hour (around EUR 15, regaleira.byblueticket.pt ).
Day 4: Porto, on the fast train
The Alfa Pendular runs Lisbon to Porto in 2h35 to 3h15 with 15 to 19 direct departures a day. Spend the day on the Ribeira waterfront, then Livraria Lello, a paid, timed-voucher entry now (Silver around EUR 8-10, Gold around EUR 15.90-15.95, both credited toward a book), worth fifteen focused minutes and no more.
Lisbon or Porto: which city actually wins?
Porto, if you only get one. It’s smaller, cheaper, and calmer than Lisbon, with a genuinely comparable riverfront and easier same-day access to the Douro Valley than Lisbon has to any comparable wine region. Lisbon wins on sheer scale of things to do; Porto wins on not fighting a crowd for most of them.
Day 5: Port lodges and the Douro Valley
Cross the Dom Luis I bridge to Vila Nova de Gaia, a separate municipality from Porto proper, where the port lodges actually sit. Book one lodge tour (Sandeman runs from around EUR 23 per person) rather than hopping between three.
Is a Douro Valley day trip worth it from Porto?
Yes, if you pick one format and stick to it. The scenic Linha do Douro train out to Pinhao, about an hour from Regua, plus a short river cruise (roughly EUR 30-77 per person) covers the terraced vineyards properly in a single day. Don’t try to also fit a wine-estate tasting tour into the same day; that’s the actual trap here.
Day 6: The Algarve, on one day
Fly or drive south; the A22 motorway across the Algarve went completely toll-free for cars in 2025, which genuinely changes the math on renting for this leg. Base in Lagos and book a Benagil sea cave boat tour ahead of time (shared tours run from around EUR 10-17 per person out of Portimao, from around EUR 43 out of Lagos); July and August slots sell out for real, not just as a booking-page scare tactic.
Is one day in the Algarve worth the drive down?
Barely, and only as a coda, not a destination in its own right. One day buys a rental car, a Benagil boat tour, and a few hours of beach, which is a real taste of the region but nowhere near enough to justify the logistics of getting there and back. If you can’t spare a second day here, consider giving that extra day to Porto and the Douro instead, our 7-day itinerary is the version that gives the Algarve the two days it actually needs.
Before you go
Portugal runs on the euro, and the language is Portuguese, not Spanish. Lisbon’s municipal tourist tax runs about EUR 4 per person per night. Check current Alfa Pendular schedules before locking in a tight schedule, and confirm current opening hours on visitportugal.com before you go.