Lisbon - Tavira advice

A few years ago, my husband and I took a bus from Lisbon to Evora to Lagos (via Albufeira, I think). Went to Monchique by bus from Lagos, then took the little train along the coast to Tavira (it stops in Faro and you have to wait a bit).

We had no trouble finding public transportation to get around -- lots of locals used buses. The train is a bit more picturesque and slower, so it wasn't very crowded.

Self and Gf did a trip around Portugal last September using public transport to get around.

We used local trains and buses for the side trip to Sintra, but the rest was as follows; Lisbon to Evora by train, Evora to Tavira by bus (changing at Faro), Tavira to Sagres by train and bus, Sagres to Lisbon via an overnight in Lagos by bus and train.

Main train journeys were booked in advance at Rossio station in Lisbon (advance ticket office is next to Starbucks) or at Tavira station. The five hour (still comfy!) bus trip to Tavira was booked in advance at the bus station in Evora.

If you're landing at Lisbon, there are ATM's to your left when you get out into the main terminal building. Taxi last year for two carrying hand luggage from airport to Principal Real area was 15 euros (no bags in the boot!).

Metro into central Lisbon is a lot cheaper as you can buy a travel card and then load it up for the number of journeys you think you're going to make on the Metro, buses or trams.

Eating out in Lisbon varied in price. We ate well with a good bottle of wine at Lost In... and the next night at Terra, but they both came at a cost... Eating out at Esplanada in Principal Real park was much cheaper as we went for the specials - meal and beer deal.

Main place visited in Tavira was Bica. Small and busy, but good food that's worth waiting for. We also visited a curry house and whilst we asked for a medium strength, it was a case of hey, babe, take a walk on the mild side - we're used to Bradford curries where a medium does make your mouth tingle a bit!

Good ice creams from one of the kiosks near the bridges over the river with plenty of flavours to choose from. If you're wanting to do a bit of self catering, then there's a branch of Lidl almost next to the railway stations.

We only used a hostel in Lagos - other choices ranged from hotels to guest houses and a couple of nights in a Pousada at Sagres. We didn't get full night's sleep in any of our choices bar the Pousada and Cafe Piela's in Sintra, but we did get our own back on a couple of well-bevvied guys in one place when we slammed our room door shut as we went for breakfast and once again when we went to check out!!!

Best advice? Look out for meal deals when eating out, go on Tram 28 in Lisbon first thing in the morning before the hordes arrive and start pushing in, sample gingha whenever you can and take a good pair of walking shoes or sandals with you as Lisbon, Evora and Tavira are all best explored on foot. Ilha Da Tavira too...

Travel light too - easier to get around and everything that you're likely to need is readily available. My camera packed up on day 3, but I managed to pick up a new Nikon Coolpix for equivalent of £65 (was @ £120 back at home) in Lisbon. Bottles of water available almost everywhere and iced coffee or fruit juice does come into its own when the temperatures rise (as do Lemon Cornettos...).

Go and enjoy - we did last year!

My wife and I spent 6 nights in Tavira earlier this year and liked it a lot - if you can afford a few nights at the Pousada, you'll probably find that the peaceful and relaxing place you're looking for. Aquasul and Churrasqueira O Manel are both recommended for their excellent food.

We hired a small car (Fiat Panda) for 7 days through Auto Europe (www.autoeurope.com) with full insurance for around €100 - deals as low as €25 were available for the car, but those came with a personal liability of around €1200 in case of damage or theft.

bjd and scribblersback, thanks so much for your input. Certainly feel more confident now bussing and training rather than renting a car....thanks so much again!

Hi..

Didn't even consider a car given the comments I'd seen about driving in Portugal.

Already planned a return trip at some point in 2014 or 2015 to head north to Porto and it's also going to be arranged around train and bus travel...

You can get some discounts on stays in Pousadas - our came about because we're over 55! Staff at Sagres mentioned that deals were advertised online. Quite quiet and good breakfasts, but one evening meal with dessert, coffee and wine was just over 60 euros. By contrast our Sunday lunch at Bica in Tavira was 22.50 and our evening meal at Espalanda in Lisbon was 23.40 - two chicken specials with beer plus an extra beer, two fruit juices and then coffee.

Just want to say that Lisbon's airport has a metro station since 2012. You are in Lisbon, so you can buy a travel card and then go anywhere in the city by the same price, depending only on the type of transports.

scribblersback - I really don't know where you have read the comments about car driving in Portugal. Portugal built a great new highway network in the past 20 years, and car accidents are steadily decreasing as years have gone by. You should read Eurostat official data, where it's clearly visible that all regions of Portugal decreased their numbers by 10 points in the last decade (actually Algarve's numbers decreased by more than 20 points), and in some regions, the figures are coming closer to the best in Europe. For instance, the region of Lisbon has already lower accidents than some regions in Belgium, Germany, and Austria. And the North of the country too.

Using car or transports it's all a matter of taste and money.

Info on car driving was from from Lonely Planet Portugal in the section on Safe Travel in both the 2011 edition and the 2014 edition of the guidebook... Has also been mentioned in a couple of other books on the country too.. inc. Rough Guide 2014 edition of their guide to Portugal which made reference to Portugal accident statistics and also to drink-driving.

bjd and scribblersback, thanks so much for your input.

I guess you considered my reply useless then. Good to know, In that case I won't waste any more time on someone as ill-mannered as you. Bye Gary!

Info on car driving was from from Lonely Planet Portugal in the section on Safe Travel in both the 2011 edition and the 2014 edition of the guidebook... Has also been mentioned in a couple of other books on the country too.. inc. Rough Guide 2014 edition of their guide to Portugal which made reference to Portugal accident statistics and also to drink-driving.

My experience with driving in Portugal is limited to one week around the Algarve, but to be honest I think the scaremongering in LP (which dates back to at least my 2005 edition) is more than a bit exaggerated.