Lisbon's Best Road Trips Reveal Vineyards, Beaches, and Ancient Castles

25.07.2024 - 00:35 / cntraveler.com

One of the oldest cities in the world, Lisbon is an enchanting place—but let's face it, once you've seen the ceramic tiles, ridden the trams, and tasted the Pastéis de Belém, you might be ready to broaden your horizons. Portugal's treasures are well worth venturing beyond the capital city, and all you need is a rental car for the southern half of the country to open up to you. If it’s charming villages, stunning beaches, verdant mountains, and ancient castles you’re after, you'll find them all within a three hours' drive from Lisbon.

Whether you’re traveling with kids, a design-conscious companion, a gourmand, or simply venturing forth on your own, here are three famed road trips that will lead you into a variety of Portuguese scenery and stories.

Start your Lisbon retreat at Palacio Principe Real, a 19th-century palace hotel in the trendy Principe Real neighborhood, where the lovely antique-furnished suites offer yoga mats, handcrafted candles, and Smeg fridges filled with local treats, smoothies, and juices. Guests can relax in the wellness zone, the lush garden with its infinity pool, the living room or the library, and enjoy modern cuisine at EVOO restaurant.

The culinary adventure continues in Alentejo, the largest and most rural region of Portugal and a land of contrasts where you can find whitewashed towns, cork forests, and dreamy vineyards. Just over an hour on the way from Lisbon to Évora is the small town of Montemor-o-Novo, which doesn’t draw a horde of tourists but offers curious visitors the chance to wander around the remains of a medieval castle perched on a hill, and the Convent of São Francisco with its interesting frescoes and sculptures. Not far is L’And Vineyards, a hidden gem of a hotel (a Relais & Chateaux property) that will delight foodies and wine lovers—and a perfect base to explore this corner of Alentejo.

L’And combines modern architecture with nature, offering 22 suites with private terraces, some of which have bedrooms with retractable roofs that allow you to sleep under the stars. The hotel also has an outdoor saline pool, a tennis court, a library, and a wine club where you can taste and blend your own wine during a guided experience with the winemaker. Other highlights include the spa and the restaurant, both of which are inspired by Alentejo products. The spa offers treatments based on grape extracts, olive oil, honey, and herbs, as well as vinotherapy sessions that promise to rejuvenate your skin and body. Meanwhile, Mapa Restaurant leads diners on a culinary journey, with each dish taking cues from a destination, such as the Mozambique-inspired Algarve coast shrimp served with matapa, peanuts, and coconut.

About an hour from the hotel is Évora, a UNESCO World