Portugal Discovered

Like Rome, Lisbon was born among seven hills at the head of the Targus River, making it a most strategic port for centuries. In 1755 much was destroyed after a massive earthquake. Evidence of the wealth accumulated during the Age of Discovery can still be seen at magnificent UNESCO sites such as Jerónimos Monastery and the nearby Tower of Belém, Today, its hilly, cobblestone streets are divided into districts: lively Baixa, bohemian Chaido and Bairro Alto, and coast hugging traditional Alfama.

Check into your boutique hotel and meet your fellow travellers over a welcome dinner.

Today’s highlight is a curated visit to one of the world’s greatest private art collections, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation & gardens.
Of Armenian origin, Calouste Gulbenkian was born in Turkey, in the middle of the Ottoman Empire. In 1896, due to the persecution suffered by the Armenian community, Gulbenkian left Turkey with his family for a brief stint in Cairo, before establishing himself in London, then later in Paris. With the outbreak of the WWII, Gulbenkian moved to Lisbon, where he was given safe haven and stayed until his death in 1955.
With guidance from Kenneth Clark, he amassed one of the worlds most impressive private collections. Six thousand pieces are divided into groups corresponding to Egyptian, Greco-Roman, Mesopotamian, Islamic Oriental, Armenian, Far East and Western art and a remarkable collection of works by René Lalique.

Located on the shores of the Tagus river, Belém is Lisbon’s culturally most significant precinct with wide open spaces. parks and gardens, the city’s most famous pastry shop and many monuments in Manueline – style. Belém Tower, the original fortress and the palatial elaborate Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, stand as testaments to the prosperity of Lisbon at the height of the Portuguese Empire. The Navy Museum brings to life its nautical achievements throughout the ages. The Museum precinct houses MAAT - Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology - a gently curved building, designed by the British architect Amanda Levete, presents the relationship between art and new technologies, through exhibitions of national and international artists.
The Centro Cultural de Belém arts complex plays host to concerts, performances and art exhibitions. The standout section is the Berardo Collection of modern and contemporary art, which showcases work from the likes of Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Francis Bacon
There is also the one-of-a-kind Coaches Museum filled with royal fairytale vehicles, the MAC/CCB showcasing a world-class collection of international modern and contemporary art;

At the end of the day enjoy a private sunset river cruise with tapas

Long the seat of royals, Sintra’s lush forests and exotic gardens are a perfect background for fairy tale extravagant palaces and private mansions that represent the first wave of 19th C European Romantic architecture in the use of Gothic, Egyptian, Moorish and Renaissance elements.

Once a fishing village, Cascais in the 19th C became the seaside playground for royals, aristocrats and the well-heeled as mansions, theatres, hotels and thermal spas were built.

Not only can you visit some of the significant sites but also have the opportunity to walk in nature and go off road in a 4x4.

Today you embrace the beautiful, sparsely populated rural interior of the Alentejo that overlooks the Serra da Estrela Mountains. This stunning region is characterised by SLOW, by endless fields of wheat, olive and cork trees, ancient dolmens, historic fortified villages, unique cuisine and fabulous wine and olive oil.

You stay two nights at a 2,000-acre property, which has stayed with the same family for eight generations, home to 24 spacious rooms with shaded terraces and cottages, all subtly decorated with found objects and soaking tubs. There’s a vegetable garden, a vineyard for the estate’s in-house wine production, and cattle grazing on the property.

En route, a stop for a walking tour of Évora, the famous UNESCO World Heritage Site. Set to be the European capital of culture in 2027, Évora’s attractions include the Roman temple of Diana, São Francisco Church, with its curious Chapel of Bones (Capela dos Ossos), and Cromeleque dos Almendres, the largest megalith of the Iberian Peninsula.

Today’s highlight is to meet with distinguished winemaker, David Baverstock, either at Ravasqueira where he was recently appointed as Chief Winemaker or at his own Howard’s Folly in Estremoz.
Originally hailing from the Barossa valley, David has been in Portugal since 1982 making award winning wines for the Symington Group, Quinta do Crasto and Esporão where we first met him. His mission at his new posting at Ravasqueira is to consolidate the company as one of the most ambitious and modern projects in Portugal, producing wines of distinctive quality.
At Howards Folly, the first urban winery, lawyer Howard Bilton has invested more of his time and money in three of his most treasured passions: wine, art and philanthropy, the three pillars upon which Howard’s Folly was built, in partnership with award-winning winemaker David Baverstock.

David is a forerunner of modern oenology in Portugal and responsible for wines that combine nature with winemaking tradition and knowledge and innovation, was awarded the title of 'Portuguese Oenologist of the Year” and was one of the 'Flying Winemakers' immortalized in a Time magazine article about Australian oenologists revolutionizing wine production techniques around the globe.

This morning visit Terramay, nestled by the shores of Alqueva - a bold regenerative farm project initiated in 2018 by David de Brito who spent most of his professional life in Germany and Switzerland, with his wife, Anna de Brito, and his Swiss friend Thomas Sterchi
On the 562-hectare organic farm they aim to combat desertification and build an ecological, social and economically sustainable business. Their farm has a cork oak forest, biological vegetable gardens, pastures, and arable land, Mertolenga cattle, Pata Negra pigs, Serpentine goats, Merino sheep, chickens, ducks, Lusitan horses, and beautiful quails.

After lunch settle into your beautifully restored convent built in 1182 that still perfectly preserves some of its original features, particularity museum quality walls of Azulejos and Florentine fountains.

Marvão, a fairytale medieval walled village close to the Spanish border is located on the highest peak of the Serra de São Mamede; - boasting a castle, narrow streets, wrought iron balconies, windows with Manueline decorations, Gothic arches and the remains of the original Roman roads.
Close by is another Alto Alentejo jewel, the hill town of Castelo de Vide which has one of the best preserved Jewish areas in Portugal, when in the late 15thC Jews fled here as the result of persecution by the Catholic church's Inquisition in Spain.
This area provides stunning vistas over the plains and has one of the largest and most interesting collections of architecture from the Gothic period. Below the medieval part of town are 17th and 18th century buildings and the narrow winding streets are replaced by wider avenues and squares.

Today is a most scenic drive through Serra da Estrela where you stop of a mountain lunch with shepherds and a tasting of the country’s most famous Serra cheese. For the energetic the chance for a gentle trek.

Your destination is one of the oldest and largest working quintas in the glorious Douro valley, the oldest demarcated wine region in the world. The farm estate runs along the edge of the Douro River through woods, valleys and streams and boasts 29 rooms dotted throughout various buildings and villas. There are gorgeous nature trails, a winery, beautiful herb gardens, an olive press, chapel and outdoor pool.

Long famous for the country’s beloved fortified Port wines, grown on dry, steeply terraced vines interspersed with cherry trees, her sun-baked slopes plunge down to the wide, slow-flowing Douro river as it winds towards the great Port houses in Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia.
The Douro Valley is increasingly also known for exciting table wines. Today enjoy tutored tastings at some of the best houses and explore some its picturesque historic villages.

The day ends with a peaceful traditional Rabelo boat ride

A city of architecture, music, literature and theatre; history and culture; river and sea; gastronomy and wine; sports; days and nights; of strong accent and fierce feelings; of and for all ages... One of the oldest in Europe, Porto’s old town in the city center is a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1996, rich with history and culture.

This morning enjoy a ‘foodie walking tour of the city sampling some of its unqie cuisine.|
This afternoon visit the Serralves Foundation, the foremost museum for contemporary art in Portugal, uniquely sited in the grounds of the Serralves Estate, which also comprises an 18 hectare Park of formal gardens, woodlands, and a traditional farm, and a Villa that is a unique example of Art Deco architecture, built in the 1930s.

Like Spain, Portugal also reveres the conservation of fish, considered a luxury product. This morning visit Conservas Pinhais, one of the last tinneries from 1920 to understand how and why they preserve this long tradition of artisanal excellence.

A brief history:
Porto has been inhabited by different groups throughout the ages, making it a melting point of heritage and history. The city was first inhabited by Celtic people. During the Roman occupation it was transformed into a commercial port. Subsequently it was taken by the Visigoths then the Moors. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the city centre increased dramatically in size and became an industrial center, before becoming a major city in the struggle for the end of the monarchy.

Taylor's, considered by many connoisseurs of the wine world as the best producer of Port wine, has its famous port wine cellars in Vila Nova de Gaia where you will visit this afternoon for tastings.

Two of Portugals greatest monuments:
Former seat of the Order of the Knights Templar, Tomar is a city of artistic and cultural wealth, whose greatest expression is in the Convent of Christ, one of the chief works of the Portuguese Renaissance.
This Templar chapel was built in the 12th century, inspired by the fortifications of the Holy Land. It was converted into a Chancel in the 16th century, when the complex gained the architectural splendour, kept intact to this day, which earned it World Heritage Site status.

The Palace and Royal Convent of Mafra is the most monumental Baroque and Neoclassical palace-monastery constructed under King John V of Portugal between 1717 and 1755, the magnificence of which was only possible due to the Brazilian gold that poured into the country, allowing the King to carry out his patronage of the arts and the strengthening of royal authority.

Close to Lisbon but proximate to the country’s most famous surf beach reserve in Ericeira is Immerso, your home for the last two nights – a small concept hotel surrounded by nature, scented by pine and citrus trees, nestling in a green valley with stunning, soothing sea views. It has a spa, contemporary restaurants, gym and yoga facilities, an outdoor pool and balconied rooms for ocean breezes.
A perfect haven to relax before your onward travels and to consolidate the memory of a magical journey.
This evening enjoy a farewell dinner.

This morning you will be transferred to the airport for onward flights.

“Portuguese is cheerful and sweet, like a language of birds.” – Paulo Rónai, Brazilian philosopher and critic.

“Wet or fine, the air of Portugal has a natural happiness in it, and the people of the country should be as happy and prosperous as any people in the world.” – H.G. Wells, English writer.