Portugal: The Trip That Started It All
As a gift to myself for my 40th birthday, I booked a flight to Lisbon. I had traveled for years for work, all over the world, and with friends across Europe and Asia, but this trip was just for me. I wanted to book the activities and tours that appealed to me, and only me. If I wanted to sleep in, I could. If I wanted dinner at my villa with a glass of port, a good book, and a view that did all the talking, I could do that too.
And on every small group experience I booked, whether it was the food tour in Lisbon, the surf lesson in Nazaré, or the wine tour through the Douro Valley, I met other women traveling solo and having the time of their lives, entirely on their own terms. Those connections, and seeing myself reflected back in every one of them, are what put the idea for A Trip for One in my head somewhere over the Atlantic.
So of course, this is where the blog had to start. Here is everything I loved about two weeks in Portugal: Lisbon to Porto to Nazaré and back to Lisbon again.
Lisbon
Where to stay
The Luster Hotel: such a cute little spot, with an outdoor pool and a small spa, perfect for city relaxation after a day of trekking up and down Lisbon's hillside streets.
Where to eat
Tapisco: order the fish rice and a Pisco Sour, non-negotiable. It is a small spot, so book ahead. I was lucky enough to snag a seat at the chef's bar and watch the whole thing happen in front of me. The hostess also sat me next to another solo traveler, and we hit it off immediately. We met up the next day at Feira da Ladra to shop the local artisan booths together, which is exactly the kind of thing that happens when you travel alone and stay open to it.
What to do
Alfama was my first stop, and I mostly just wandered. A lot of the shops along the main streets sell the cheesy tourist stuff, but wander off them and you will find real gems. One of mine was Wine Nerds, where the owner, a local woman, put together an impromptu tasting for me on the spot. That kind of thing seems to happen a lot in Alfama if you let it.
Feira da Ladra is the market I mentioned above, part flea market, part antiques fair, part open-air gallery of local art. It has been running in one form or another since 1272, which makes it one of the oldest continuously operating markets in Europe, and it still sets up in Campo de Santa Clara every Tuesday and Saturday. I could have spent an entire day there and nearly did.
The food tour was a highlight of the whole trip: Sagres beer and a pork sandwich, tawny port and cheese, a sour cherry shot called a ginjinha, fish rice, vinho verde, codfish cakes and flaming chorizo. I loved every bit of it except the ginjinha, but your girl was never going to love a cherry shot, and I still took it like a champion. The pork sandwich stuck with me the most, the meat slow-cooked all day until it basically falls apart, and the codfish cakes are salty in exactly the way that makes the crisp, cold vinho verde taste even better.
Kayaking in Parque Natural da Arrábida was one of those days I will talk about for years. I shared a kayak with a brand manager from Santa Monica, and the two of us paddled the coastline with three other solo travelers, then ate a homemade lunch together on the beach. It rained a little. It did not matter even a little bit. The park's limestone cliffs and hidden sea caves are stunning even under gray skies, and the water stays that impossible turquoise regardless of weather.
Porto
Where to stay
I stayed in a gorgeous two-story Airbnb, and I would not have left if I could have brought Lady Beefcake with me. If you are looking for a hotel instead, I would book Tivoli Kopke Porto Gaia Hotel or Vinha Boutique Hotel, both on the Gaia side with views back across the river to Porto's colorful rooftops.
Where to eat
Bilha Nova is a cute little local spot, perfect for lunch. For evenings, Puro 4050 is a mozzarella bar with outdoor seating, ideal for a chill night of local music and a break from all the Portuguese food, as good as it is.
What to do
Take a ceramics workshop. It is the perfect rainy day activity and a genuinely authentic way to spend an afternoon rather than just another museum stop.
Livraria Lello has been called the world's most beautiful bookstore, and honestly, it earns it. The neo-Gothic building opened in 1906 and still has its original crimson staircase and stained glass ceiling. The catch is that it has become extremely popular, so even with a timed ticket, expect to wait in line to get in.
The absolute must-do is a wine tour of the Douro Valley. My guide kept comparing it to crossing into Narnia, and he was not exaggerating. I have visited wine regions across the United States and Europe, and there is genuinely nowhere else like it. The Douro is the oldest demarcated wine region in the world, established all the way back in 1756, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001. The wine does not disappoint either: reds, whites, ports, and even a grappa. Two stops worth calling out: Quinta do Beijo, where I climbed inside a massive wine barrel, and Quinta da Bela, for a family-style lunch and a grappa toast that felt like the whole valley was in on the celebration.
A sunset sail was the perfect way to close out my time in Porto. We cruised into town to see the bridges up close, then out toward the ocean to watch the sunset with a glass of port in hand and dolphins showing off nearby. A magical evening, no notes.
Nazaré
Such a small town that there is not even a train station, so plan on a private transfer if you are coming from Porto or Lisbon. It has a kitschy little beach town feel, but Nazaré is also world famous for the 100-foot waves that roll in during the fall and winter storm season. Praia do Norte holds the Guinness World Record for the largest wave ever surfed. An underwater canyon just offshore acts like a funnel, amplifying the swells into genuine monsters. I was there in the calmer months, and the coastline was still stunning.
Where to stay
I stayed in another charming little Airbnb, a block off the beach. This is genuinely a small town, so do not expect much beyond that kitschy, sun-bleached beach vibe. The coastline views more than make up for it.
Where to eat
Taberna d'Adélia is a Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand restaurant, and you must make a reservation or you will not get in. It is worth every bit of the planning. Fresh oysters, octopus, and so many other small plates that added up to one of the best meals I have ever had.
What to do
A surf lesson at Nazaré Surf School is great for every age, and the staff genuinely wants you to keep trying. It felt a little wild to finally take an actual lesson more than twenty years after I first stood up on a board at Cocoa Beach, FL.
After nearly two weeks of sightseeing through cities, some chill beach days were well deserved. There is a fruit stand nearby that makes incredible fresh daiquiris, worth planning your afternoon around. The Big Wave Museum inside the Forte de São Miguel Arcanjo is a quick but genuinely cool visit, right on the cliff above Praia do Norte where the record waves break. I also wandered uptown for an afternoon and found beautiful, unique art, along with some of the actual boards ridden during the biggest swells.
Back to Lisbon, and the start of something new...
By the time I landed back in Lisbon to fly home, I already knew this trip was different from every other one I had taken. Not because of any one meal or view, incredible as they all were, but because of how many women I met along the way doing the exact same thing: showing up for themselves, on a trip built entirely around what they wanted.
That is the whole idea behind A Trip for One. If Portugal has been on your list, or if you are ready to plan a trip that is entirely, unapologetically yours, I would love to help you build it.
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