Topic: Where in Europe to spend 5 days?

[Claw]

We're going on a cruise in November that finishes up in Lisbon on Nov 22. We have until Nov 27 to get back home.

Where's a good place to sightsee or spend some time for the 5 days? My wife is thinking 2 nights in Lisbon then to London or something like that.   I don't have any suggestions to offer..

I haven't been on a cruise much less Europe before, so any suggestions will be appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

[pistachoo]

Don't spend your time travelling between cities. There is too much to see so close together to waste time in transit!

[boiboi9]

I would be parking my assay in some b&b in the Austrian country side.

As pistachoo said, dont spend your time traveling, pick some where are enjoy it as long as you can! 5 days will go fast.

[Claw]

Hmm, maybe just spend it all in Lisbon?

[soulvaccination]

You're much better for a couple days to stay there or in Spain.  I spent a week in Istanbul doing the same thing and it was much more fun and relaxing than trying to pack in tons of visits to a bunch of places in a short time frame. 

Unless of course you want to visit as many countries in the shortest time possible and you're going for that experience.  If that's the case, Europe rocks.  You can easily hit 10-12 in a five days period with a rental car staring in Portugal.  After a cruise you may be tired of being "cooped up" and may want to go for a nutty road trip instead. 

Different strokes, right?

[Claw]

Cool, thanks sv.

Is it difficult not knowing the local language?  Do you get taken advantage of by the locals?

[Zaider]

I was just in Portugal. Lisbon is good for about 2-3 days. While you're there, head to the neighbourhood of Belem for some Pasties de Nata. They're these amazing pasteries. The best ones are found in Belem. Do NOT get on the tram without a proper ticket... and dont assume you can use your metro pass... I had a nice trip to the Police Station and a not-very-nice chief of the station yelling at me to tell me that. Good times.

A quick trip from Lisbon is Sintra. GO THERE. Trust me. It was one of my favourite places. Its a town of about 10,000 people and the whole thing is a UN Heritage Site. It takes about 45 mins by train and is amazing. Its overlooked by two hills, each of which has a Castle on it: One a Christian Castle and one a Moorish Castle. There are also some incredible Palaces there with very unique architechture. Some Pictures:






My girlfriend and I were just wandering around the streets when we found this place: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinta_da_Regaleira and spent the entire afternoon there.

While you're out that way, visit Cabo De Roca which is the Western Most Point in Europe. Dont go there too late though, cause it gets very dark and very windy.

If you dont feel like hanging out in Lisbon, head North to Porto which is the home of Port Wine. Another of my favourite cities, you can go on tours of the Port Wine Caves, do tastings... etc.

In summary, there is plenty to see and do in the immediate area of Lisbon... dont waste time travelling to another country.



edit:

Is it difficult not knowing the local language?  Do you get taken advantage of by the locals?

I didn't find that at all. The language is very confusing and doesn't sound like Spanish even though it looks similar. Most of the people we met spoke at least some english... and even if they didn't, were very nice.

[STI_Crazy]

I'd say go to Greece but November is not one of the best months to visit there. It's not too cold but you won't be able to go to any island. If you like museums and site seeing that there are tons of those in the main land.

Keep in mind though that it can get pricy if you don't know where to eat/drink etc.

[Claw]

Heh, that would be awesome Stamos..  maybe in another time though.

This all stemmed from a discussion with some of my wife's family friends waiting for the clock to count down on New Years' Eve.  Sort've a spur of the moment thing.

http://www.crystalcruises.com/VoyageDetail.aspx?CID=0327&RK=MED

The cruise company (Crystal Cruises) is having their 20th anniversary this year, and as a result all of their cruises are half price.

Still, it's all pending manager approval.  With one other guy being gone from Oct 15 to Nov 22, my plans might get ixnaayed after all.

How is that area in November anyways, is it brutally cold already?

[Zaider]

How is that area in November anyways, is it brutally cold already?

Ummm.. in the beginning of November, Lisbon wasn't bad. Definitely want a jacket, but... nothing Heavy... think Vancouver in November without as much run. 10-12 degrees was what we saw... Porto was a little colder... and then on Nov 7, we were in Tavira in the South where it was 26 degrees everyday and we chilled on the beach.

[Claw]

Thanks Z

Still crossing my fingers, management will let me know by noon if they give me the thumbs up or veto.

[pistachoo]

Great. Now *I* want to go to Portugal.

Thanks a lot, Zaider!

[Prelude]

My Vote is Barcelona. the city is beautiful, food is great, people are good, lots of art, and if you decide you want to just relax go to the beach.

Skip anything with a Train they are a great way to travel but they also take longer to get to your desitination

first thing i would recommend is to check RYANAIR website. when i was in Europe i paid 0.50 Euros to get from Rome to Barcelona. Other flights were 30 Euros. i am not sure if things have changed ( i was there in 2004) but the flight were good and short. the problem with RyanAir is they fly to smaller airport so factor in a 10-12 Euro Bus ride.

[Zaider]

Great. Now *I* want to go to Portugal.

Thanks a lot, Zaider!

Yeah, looking through my pictures, now I want to go back...


*Zaider daydreams about quitting his job and flying to Europe*

[SulfurLad]

My Vote is Barcelona. the city is beautiful, food is great, people are good, lots of art, and if you decide you want to just relax go to the beach.

Exactly what I was gonna say.  A few days in Barcelona is fantastic, the Gaudi architecture is amazing.  That Sagrada Famillia will quite literally slap you across the face, it's awesome.  You can also do some easy day-trips by train from there to some really cool places like Monserrat (monastery on a cliff) and Girona (one of the best Medieval city cores you'll find).

All that said, the stuff in Portugal Zev's pointing out looks amazing.  There's also easy striking to Madrid, which would be phenomenal.

Whatever you do, DO try to get tickets to a soccer match, you will not be disappointed.  We did that in Rome, but have been unable to make schedules for games match up with our plans on subsequent vacations (but we do try).  We seriously considered finding a fan bus to go see Barcelona play in Villa Real down the coast when we were in Barcelona. 

Train is okay, as long as you're on an express train.  We did Antibes (Nice area) to Paris via TGV, and it was lickity split fast.  Antibes to the Cinque Terre in Italy could only be done on local trains:  it was shorter distance and took twice as long.  Bleh.  Worth it though, that place is also awesome.  Still, with the short amount of time you're there, try to limit your big jumps to... one? 

[Zaider]

Yeah. We spent 6 days in Barca... saw them play vs a smaller club... Almeria or something... quickly went to 5-0 and then they just played around. It was an awesome experience though. The stadium was only 75% full and had about 90,000 people in it.

Barca as a city was amazing. If you go there, you have to go to a restaurant called Origins. They get 99% of their ingredients from the Catalan region (around Barcalona) and it was some of the best food on the trip... not expensive either.

In Lisbon, hit up a restaurant... i forget what its called... but if you're walking up the hill to the castle, you can't miss it. Its got a big wooden menu outside and one of the things on the list is "slices with things"... no other description... we had to try it... it was fantastic.

Madrid is a great party city, but we quickly got bored of the museums there.

ahhh! So much to do... i have to go back.

[Claw]

Man, all this talk is getting me excited.

If my boss nixes my travel plans I'm gonna have to tell him "eff it, I'm going with or without your permission!"

Then I'll come back and look for a new job.

[Claw]

Oh uckfay...  it's a nay.

What do I do now, plan B?  haha... 

Damn.

[pistachoo]

http://www.workopolis.com ?



Seriously though, sorry to hear that. It sucks to have the rug pulled out from under you!

[Claw]

Plan B is underway.

[Prelude]

yeah when i was there i caught a match too. it was the old captains last game. i  like soccer before that but watching it live it became a love. on TV it is very hard to see plays develop watching it live you can see thing develop and when you go back tot the TV you realize that there is someone way off the screen doing something. plus for having such a huge staduim everyone was very polite, proper and organized. plus one thing i noticed was everyone was talking to each other. old and young alike.

but everything SulfurLad 100% true. and if you can go down to Valencia. that city is awesome and is a train ride from Barca.