Relax in South Portugal

A lot of people have already enjoyed our off-road trips. Now we offer something new for all people that like to travel stress-free and comfortably, a trip suitable for anyone interested in a holiday that brings you in touch with the country you’re visiting.

We have developed a trip with our Portuguese partner Dream Overland that is safe, fabulous and low-threshold, doable for everyone with a driving licence. It is an individual journey in a rental car from Lisbon through the Alentejo and Algarve with a virtual guide in the shape of an e-roadbook.

José Almeida, our Dream Overland partner in Portugal, is passionate about his country, its traditions and culture. He has contributed all his expertise, knowledge and love of Portugal to create this e-roadbook. We show you hidden villages, excellent restaurants, great hotels, gorgeous towns, scenery you would not want to miss.

Highlights

• Individual journey starting in Lisbon, then going through Alentejo and Algarve to give you a wonderful taste of Southern Portugal.
• Ten days to cover everything we have described.
• All accommodations included.
• Rental car included for six days.
• E-roadbook acting as a virtual tour guide.
• Lots of points of interest and restaurants.
• Clean & Safe certified accommodations.

Lisbon

Your holiday starts in Lisbon, one of the few European capitals with both a river and a coastline. The sea and climate that give Lisbon its peculiar energy. It is a lively city boasting many important Manueline monuments from the 16^th century such as the Torre de Belém and the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos. In contrast to this it has the picturesque mediaeval quarters of Alfama and Mouraria, above which stands the castle of St. George. This castle, matched by Bairro Alto on the other hill, leads down to the downtown city centre known as the “Baixa pombalina”.

Your roadbook contains a map with all the highlights, a selection of excellent restaurants and a suggested walk to lap it all up. You stay in a comfortable hotel in the city centre for three nights.

In the morning of your fourth day, you pick up your car at the airport and drive into the Alentejo.

Exploring the Alentejo

South of the River Tagus is the Alentejo, Portugal’s largest region, known for its endless plains peppered by cork and olive trees. The landscapes of the Alentejo are something to die for, together with the little villages and towns with their Moorish and medieval castles.

Small villages and historic towns show the big influence the Arabs had in the whole south of the country during their occupation for nearly five centuries until the late 1400s. This is the region where you’ll feel closest to northern Africa, just by looking at the landscape, the architecture, tasting the food or even getting to know some of the traditions or listening to the traditional music.

There’s also a huge number of walking routes if you want to go for a hike, and enjoy the wonderful landscapes, either inland or along the coast. If you like to taste a good wine, the Alentejo is home to some of the best wines in Portugal.

We have created an interesting route from Lisbon to the Alentejo and two beautiful round trip in the Evora area. Both take you to the most interesting places through fascinating scenery and a selection of great places to eat. You stay in an agriturismo or comfortable bed & breakfast for three nights.

Exploring the Algarve

The Algarve region is famous for its fantastic coastline, beaches, golden cliffs, virtually deserted islands and small coves sheltered by the rocks. The ocean, in every shade of blue and mostly calm and warm, invites you for swims and water sports.

Perhaps lesser known is that in the 15th century the Portuguese set off on journeys that led them to discover other peoples and cultures. Cities such as Silves preserve traces of its Arab past and Lagos from the time of the Discoveries. Portimão and Albufeira are bustling towns by night and day. Tavira is a showcase for traditional architecture and Faro, the gateway to the region, deserves a long stop to discover its beautiful historic centre.

And there are the mountains, where people live in harmony with nature and maintain traditions that they love to share.

We have developed a lovely itinerary from Alentejo to Algarve and two round trips in the Algarve, giving you much more than the traditional pictures of sun and sea. You stay in an attractive hotel either in or near Faro or Albufeira for two nights.

Everything organised

We take care of the organisation and bookings. The only thing we cannot do is book your flights. Our service includes:

• Ten-day trip, three days each in Lisbon, Alentejo and Algarve.
• Nine overnight stays in good hotels, agriturismo and B&Bs, including breakfast.
• Rental car for six days, comprehensive insurance.
• E-roadbook containing everything you need for doing the trip.
• 24/7 support in case you need assistance.
• Certified Clean & Safe accommodations.

Other meals and flights not included.

Starting price for this trip is from €1150 per person based on two persons.  Upgrades to even better accommodations and/or a bigger car are possible, as well as an extension of your stay. Please contact us with your wishes so that we can tailor the trip to meet your needs.

Overview of the itinerary

Click on the image to enlarge:

Clean and safe

We do our utmost to ensure that our guests are safe by adhering fully to the rules issued by the Portuguese health authorities. We ourselves and all local partners we work with, have  been certified to comply with the standards set in those rules.

More information and booking

You can book this trip now. Given the uncertainty about when it’s possible again to fly to Portugal, we don’t ask for a deposit at this moment.

If you like to have more information please write an email to info@4x4discoverytravel.com or use the contact form. Make sure you specify that you make inquiries about the on-road South Portugal trip.

If you want to book straightaway, we need to be in touch first to discuss your wishes. Please contact us as above.

This offer is covered by the STO Garant guarantee. You can find the conditions for this guarantee scheme on STO Garant’s website (www.sto-garant.nl/en/downloads).

Just the roadbook

As an alternative to this fully organised trip, you can simply order the e-roadbook and take care of everything else yourself. The e-roadbook is a thoroughly researched virtual guide that you download onto your smartphone or tablet (GPS receiver required – you know you have one if you can insert a SIM-card; the SIM-card itself is not necessary). It contains a vast amount of information for a perfect journey in the area:

• Nine-day trip, assuming three days each in Lisbon, Alentejo and Algarve.
• The itinerary with point-to-point directions.
• A detailed map.
• Lots of points of interest with information about what makes them interesting.
• Information about hotels and restaurants.
• The roadbook gives you directions to all points of interest, hotels and restaurants, even if these are not directly on the itinerary.

You book your flights, accommodations and so on yourself, giving you all the flexibility and independence you wish.

The roadbook costs €275.

Click here to view it.