All the guides were fabulous. We really enjo...

Portugal | May 6 - May 19, 2023

All the guides were fabulous.
We really enjoyed the food, wine walking tour in Lisbon. Marta did a wonderful job.
We liked Caiscas and walking along the beach, in addition to a marvelous lunch at Nortada.
Our hotel, Palacio Ludivice Wine Experince Hotel, had a great location, attentive staff, and every night a different treat was left in the room, from candies, pastry, port, etc.
Great breakfast and very nice bar.

Our guide for the 2 tours we did in Evora, Telma was super. Very knowledgeable and gave us a wide variety of experiences, including visit to Cork Farm, Olive Oil tasting and lunch with the owner of Blinded by Love, wine tasting and visit to her family’s watermelon and melon farm.
Staying at the 15th Convent was unique, but the coffee was horrendous and breakfast was just average.

We enjoyed our cruise of the Douro river with Paulo and Barb.
The visit to Croft for a Port tasting was average. The picnic lunch, although with an abundance of food, was below average in quality.
We had a delicious dinner at Quinto Nova and enjoyed their pool. We were disappointed that coffee was not available early in the morning prior to excursions.

Our hotel in Porto was wonderful. Gift of champagne and fruit on arrival. Breakfast was excellent with numerous options and eggs to order. Our guide Michael was excellent. Very knowledgeable about the history and took us to a jam tasting in addition to our walking tour of the town. We enjoyed our antique car tour down by the river at the tour’s end.

Azores
Hotel Marina Atlantico Ponta Delgado
Very good location, had ocean view, accommodating staff, enjoyed the bar area. Rooms were average, they could use some refreshing, especially the availability of outlets that can accommodate chargers.
Our sunset cruise with Louis and Marco was wonderful. We saw not only a beautiful sunset but a large group of dolphins. Our host did supply wine, although we also brought our own.
The whale watch we did through Terra Azulejo was a highlight. We saw dolphins, numerous, and a sperm whale who we actually saw do a dive.
Our food and wine tour with the Hungry Whale was fabulous. The stop at the restaurant Tasca us a must when in Ponto Delgada.
We did 2 days of tours with Natacha covering the island from end to end. She thoughtfully set up lunches for us at places that had original Portuguese food. She was also very knowledgeable and able to flex our tour to meet our requests. She did a wonderful job.

All in all our trip was a wonderful experience. The people in Portugal and Azores were open and welcoming.
Thanks to Marta for doing such a wonderful job!