An enterprise that turned the underground, the arcades and what nots of the vintage bull fight arena, into a self called leisure center. The indoor venue was already known for rock shows. Also a place for some quality time, on weekends. People riding on top of sightseeing bus will always hold their cameras up.

www.campopequeno.com/ campo pequeno Campo Pequeno, 1000-082 Lisboa, Portugal
+351 217 998 450
Google map: bit.ly/sx7PbG

via lisboainteractiva.cm-lisboa.pt/

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The eastern, Indian, moorish, whatever. Since the fascist tests on Tibet, it can all be, in a nut shell, trendy. So everybody can be inspired by the lifestyle, whether in the shopping center or in the museum, near Lisbon's founding castle outskirts and gothic monastery surroundings.

www.lojamuseuoriente.com
Avenida de Brasília, Doca de Alcântara, 1350-352 Lisbon, Portugal
+351 213 940 531
Google map: bit.ly/vEebs4

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On the south east corner of the island of Graciosa in the Azores, the Furna do Enxofre lies beneath the Caldeira. I walked and hitch-hiked from the village of Praia (also known as Sao Mateus).
A winding stairway of 183 steps partly cut into a volcanic chimney leads down to a domed volcanic cave where there is a sulphurous lake. It's best to go between 11am and 2pm as sunlight beams through a shaft and casts light in a spectacular way.
It's even wiser to phone ahead as the CO2 levels are closely monitored and the cave closes when levels are dangerous. It's a bit disconcerting to say the least, when you're peering into the boiling mud pool and the alarm sounds!
There is an eeriness and stillness in the subterranean world enhanced by knowing you are 100m below the earth's surface inside a volcano.
A little rowing boat sits at the lake edge, though when I visited, the lake was out of bounds. Bring a torch to explore the darker areas and to admire the numerous stalactites. Finally, bring a packed lunch as the food offered is only a few chocolate bars and drinks from a vending machine. There are a few picnic benches outside to enjoy a well deserved snack and a rest.
If you have the energy, you can walk around the edge of the volcano where there are stunning views into the Caldeira and explore lava tunnels as you continue to hike.
All in all a great work for the thighs and bum!

Ilha Graciosa, Portugal
+351 295 712 124
Google map: bit.ly/rbUFyt

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This gorgeous little theatre is central to Funchal - its proper name is the Baltazar Diaz Theatre (named after a Madeiran poet).
The auditoreum is a minature Albert Hall and we saw the Madeiran Youth Mandolin Orchestra give a magnificent concert. The whole thing was absolutely charming but one could sit for ages in the empty auditorium and admire the atmosphere and architecture - large numbers of boxes surround the stalls and all the curtains and seats are a sumptuous crimson. Well worth a visit if ever in Funchal - both a musical performance or a play would be a joy.

www.cm-funchal.pt
Avenida Manuel de Arriaga, 9000-060 Funchal, Portugal
+351 291 215 130
Google map: bit.ly/qqbd5i

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Located five minute's walk away from the main square (Praça da Liberdade)is this Porto institution (which is due to celebrate its 50th anniversary this November).
The speciality of the house is BBQ food – meat, fish and the star of the show as the name of the restaurant insinuates is the chicken (frango being the Portuguese for chicken). The food is delicious, the standard portions are really meant for two, but many a hearty diner seemed to be giving it a go. For the not so hungry, there are half portions.
It’s a pretty simple place full of locals (which is always a good sign). Downstairs you will find a bar filled mostly with local gentlemen at the counter socializing while having their meal and upstairs a simply decorated dining room filled mainly with families and couples.
The service from the waiters is professional, efficient and friendly.
Also worth a mention is the local beer, the refreshingly crisp and fizzy Super bock.
Upon leaving, the smile on your face will not only be from the delicious meal you just ate, but also from the reasonable price you just paid.

Rua Bonjardim 223, Porto 4000-124, Portugal
+351 222 008 522
Google map: bit.ly/qslqxR

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A lovely, relaxed restaurant in a former convent fuses incredible food with a warm atmosphere. Very romantic, reasonably priced and inventive; you're presented with an assortment of incredible starters for 12 euros - don't be scared.
Some of the best food we've eaten abroad, well worth the effort to find it, even if it took our cabbie four stops to ask for help!

www.atravessa.com/indexuk.html
Travesso do Convento das Bernardas, 12 Bairro da Madragoa, Santo 1200-638 Lisboa
+351 213902 034
Google map: bit.ly/qAYgtk

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This hostel is like an oasis in a desert of busy surf hostels. It's tucked away from the main road and the vibe is relaxed and friendly. Facilities are fantastic with a huge common room with pool table and volleyball courts - great fun after surfing. It is possibly the best spot to watch the sunset I have ever been too. They also do free pick up from Peniche Bus Station

www.paradise-baleal.com
+35351960207149
Google map: bit.ly/khAClC

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The ultimate lodge/hostel/posh backpackers, in the ultimate year round surf capital for all levels from beginner to expert: sea view, free pool, free internet, sunset views, amazing vibe, indo board etc ... The local area is almost as amazing, from Obidos to Peniche to Berlenga island etc

www.paradise-baleal.com
+351960207149
Google map: bit.ly/kQOovF

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I grew up in Portugal and one of my fondest memories is escaping the crowded beaches around Lagos and heading inland to Bravura. The summer months bring thousands of tourists to the coastal areas of the Algarve, desperate for sunshine and a chance to sample the local cuisine and culture. For those who cannot stand a packed beach and want a place to swim where you aren't diving to avoid over-enthusiastic children on their boogey boards, I suggest taking the drive up to the reservoir. Once there you are presented with quite literally a plethora of dirt roads leading into the unknown but which invariably end up taking you to some deserted cove that for a day you can claim as your own. During the summer months the waters catch the light and are often a vivid green. You can swim to your heart's content surrounded by Eucalyptus forest and the smell of the local 'sticky bush'. You won't hear cars or shouting but instead the occasional splash of a black bass or carp playing in the shallows. Once you have satiated your desire for seclusion you can continue along the mountain roads all the way to Monchique, the extinct volcano and eat piri-piri chicken in one of the many restaurants and watch the sun drop over the horizon.

Approx 15-40 minute drive from Lagos depending on the time of day and how lost you want to get.
It is sign posted although once of the main roads you are on your own.

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Best bar in Portugal without a doubt! Alex is the greatest barman out there and makes the best cocktails known to man, prices are good. All in all a friendly and lovely place to spend the evening

Rua da 25 Avril, Lagos

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The family-run Ramires is the spiritual home of piri-piri chicken. A large, bustling restaurant in the tiny town centre of Guia in the Algarve. Order the 'standard' combination of one (or more) whole chickens, fries and tomato salad. You will not be disappointed in the food or the price.

Guia is located off the main A22 road between Albufeira and Portimao. Ramires is in centre of town and easy to find..there is not much else here.
Tel +351 289 561 232
Google map: bit.ly/eGtFN2

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A tranquil green oasis where you can float indolently in the soft translucent waters of the Rio Ceira. Explore up stream beneath the overhanging trees in the deep water above the weir or slosh in the shallows at its foot. Cross a plank bridge and spread your picnic blanket on one of the small shady islands and snooze in the heat of the day. Later, wander along the riverside boardwalk to the small town to find a cafe or an ice-cream.

Gois, 20km west of Lousa in the Beira Baixa region of Portugal
Google map: bit.ly/g1PVg9

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Cacela Velha is a very small village on top of a hill in the Eastern Part of Algarve, 20km from the city of Tavira. A beautiful place with a white church on top of the hill, with magnificient views towards an unspoilt beach to which you have to get a fisherman's boat in order to reach it.

Google map: bit.ly/eV5lX6

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This ship was built in 1955 in the Viana shipyard and for many years served as a hospital ship to Portuguese fishermen on the cod banks Newfoundland. But in 1984 it was taken out of service and spent several years languishing in Lisbon harbour. In 1997 it was sold for scrap, but fortunately she was rescued in 1998 by the community of Viana and is now moored in the town's harbour, the property of the Gil Eannes Foundation. Repair work is ongoing but it is already open to the public for a very reasonable sum - a fascinating part of Portugal's maritime past. There is also a youth hostel in part of the hull.

Doca Comercial, 4900-321 Viana do Castelo, Portugal
+351 258 809 710
www.fundacaogileannes.pt/engine.php?cat=1
Google map: bit.ly/gXhNBb

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An old fortified town on the beautiful estuary of the River Minho, the frontier between Portugal and Spain. It has two fabulous beaches, a small, sheltered one on the Minho and a huge expanse of windswept golden sand on the Atlantic. A few kilometres' drive further down the coast takes you to Praia de Afife, one of the best surfing beaches in Portugal. From Caminha a small car ferry takes you across the river to Spain where you can visit the ancient Celtic settlement on Mount Tecla.

North west Portugal, on the estuary of the River Minho.
Google map: bit.ly/gTUA4s

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This is the largest complex of megalithic monuments in the Iberian peninsula. It includes the huge Zambujeiro dolmen, the Almendres menhir and the Almendres cromlech, a circle of 92 standing stones built around 4000 BC as an astronomical observatory. One dolmen in the area has even been made into a chapel, Nuestra Senora do Livramento.

Evora is in the Alentejo, 130 km south of Lisbon.
www2.cm-evora.pt
Gooogle map: bit.ly/eAiG9E

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Coimbra, built on a hilly site overlooking the River Mondego, was the country's capital in the Middle Ages, and has Europe's second oldest university, with Baroque and Manueline buildings clustered around a central quadrangle. The students wear traditional black capes decorated with ribbons coloured according to their faculty. The city has two impressive and very different cathedrals, the Romanesque Old Cathedral and Baroque New Cathedral. The extensive ruins of the original Roman city of Conimbriga have magnificent mosaic floors in an excellent state of preservation.

195 km North of Lisbon.
www.golisbon.com/portugal/cities/coimbra
Google map: bit.ly/i796zo

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About the size of the Isle of Wight this area is 38km south-east of Porto. Rivers in deep ravines cater for adventure sports and mountain summits rise to over 1000m. The walking opportunities are outstanding with over a dozen clearly marked walks varying from one and a half to six hours duration, all including visits to special features within the park - cultural, landscape and gastronomic. Exceptional are the monster fossil trilobites (over 70cm long!) and rocks 'giving birth' to stones. Arouca has a museum and the convent made famous by Mafalda, beatified in 1793.

www.geoparquearouca.com
Rua Alfredo Vaz Pinto, 4540-118 Arouca
+351 256 943 575
Google map: bit.ly/fRb7WT

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The area a few miles west of the attractive World Heritage city of Evora (70 mls SE of Lisbon) is well worth a visit for its amazing megalithic sites – precursors of the better-known ones in Brittany and the United Kingdom. Best of all is Os Almendres, where 92 stones are spread over a sloping hillside; it's the Iberian peninsula's largest and most impressive stone circle. Nearby is a single standing stone (Menhir) and in the same area are caves that were lived in 50,000 years ago, complete with rock art (Grutas do Escoural), and a large dolmen, or burial chamber, the Anta Grande de Zambujeiro. All are hidden away down tracks in this remote unspoiled countryside, adding to the sense of isolation and magic. Further south there are also good remains of Roman villas at São Cucufate, and at Pisoes west of Beja.

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A small town of major historical importance in the Peninsular War, Torres Vedras, just 50 km north of Lisbon, was where the Duke of Wellington based his armies, thus preventing Napoleon from overrunning Portugal. Previously 150 hilltop fortresses stretching for 40 km, now just a few ruins survive. There is a small cemetery for the British Officers still tended by locals. Up on the hill overlooking Torres Vedras is an old windmill.

Torres Vedras
Google map: bit.ly/gQieaT

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