Portugal

As with all our VBT experiences Portugal did not disappoint. The trips are planned well from the time you take off from home until you land back at home. The transfers, the accommodations, and the in between are well thought out and planned. Any necessary changes are planned for. Portugal is tourist friendly, they are ahead of the curve with the pandemic, follow the rules. It is tough to find a bad meal, the weather was great; there is a lot of history. The cycling was easily doable for all who cycle 25 miles with some wind or hills. If you take only a few trips, make this one.

Enjoyed this trip to Portugal. Good mix of easy and moderate riding to work off the fantastic food/beverages.

We have done 4 VBT cycling trips before we decided to do this self-guided trip as we wanted to spend some time in the part of Portugal - the Silver Coast. All of the hotels, places we stayed and the cycling was wonderful. Despite this, and being a self-guided trip VBT has plenty of room to step up and make improvements. Most guests noticed within the first couple of days that the tire pressures were low and the little hand pumps VBT supplies are completely inadequate. Our VBT support people finally provided a proper foot pump at the end of the trip but the foot pump is something that should be provided and move along with the luggage each day. We also had a mishap and a leg injury and was surprised that a first aid kit was not provided with the bike supplies. And, finally there were 2 dinners provided on the trip mainly because the hotels were in more remote places. I guess because there is no VBT rep there for the dinners to provide feedback the one dinner seemed somewhat inadequate being a buffet style and not too appetizing. All in all, this was a wonderful trip - the Atlantic coast of Portugal is beautiful and the many cities, towns and villages we visited were spectacular.

Overall, the bikes were great and routes were good…..the hotel accommodations were hit or miss, some good, some bad. Breakfast as well was hit or miss. VBT staff was attentive and friendly.

We loved this trip! Beautiful and varied biking routes; knowledgeable, competent and engaging guides, top-notch hotels, delicious food and interesting cultural activities. I wish I could do it all over again!

We thoroughly enjoyed our first VBT experience. The tour route was very well laid out and we cannot not say enough about how impressive our tour leaders, David and Frederico, both of whom are natives of Portugal. Kudos to VBT for the way they planned and conducted our tour!

Very enjoyable trip. Guides were excellent. The meals on the River Boat were also excellent. Would highly recommend this trip.

Good route, and the ship, with unpacking once, makes it better. The guides were very good, and the food on the ship was excellent. The group of 18 were very enjoyable people.

The trip was fabulous, we explored northern Spain along different parts of the Camino. The local guides were fantastic; friendly, knowledgeable, confident, concerned for our well being and safety. Everyone got along really well. The tours of the towns with the pottery and goat cheese tours with lunch was a highlight. Food was abundant, we actually agreed that after the luncheons we only needed a very light dinner. Hotels were amazing. Absolutely loved this trip and our guides. I went into this trip thinking we were walking enough distance to obtain the Camino certification, we went to get one and the official man behind the counter told us “ impossible “ This was a disappointment for me. I would have liked that in the description of this trip. I was not the only one with this expectation. I called the office of country walkers when I realized it was not an official walk a few days prior to the trip and was told to just walk another 15 miles to reach the criteria. This was not possible on this tour. I am planning to return and walk the Camino as a pilgrim and obtain the Camino certificate. That is important to me and from this trip I realize it is doable. The trip was more than just the walk and I got so much out of this trip that I can say was well worth it and will be life changing.

Enjoyed the trip. leaders were great as always with Country Walkers.Just the right amount of hiking and difficulty. scenery beautiful.

The sights were beautiful. The tour was very well organized with well thought out stops for snacks and bathroom breaks. Our tour guide, Helen and Luis, were both wonderful. They were very knowledgeable about the history, culture, plants and all the surroundings. I would love to travel with them again.

This walking tour was so well organized and well executed! I was very impressed. The guides, Ana and Helen, were probably the best I have ever encountered on tours. They worked well together and were very knowledgeable on the history and culture of the area we were traveling in. They always had a "can do attitude". And they were fun!! I was surprised on the amount of time we spent traveling on the bus. But after traveling to the area, I can understand that the distances between the 3 areas we walked in was too vast to have traveled any other way. The good news was we had a very luxurious bus that was comfortable, and we could spread out and enjoy the scenery as the bus traveled. My other surprise was the food. I did not find it very good. I am sure this is regional. The area is not by the sea. The people of the region eat a lot of meat. Country walkers did a good job to make sure that there were food options for everyone. There was always a fish option (cod) and a vegetarian option. But again, in my opinion, the food to the region was plain and simple. Not a lot of flavoring is used. I thought the food in Porto and Lisbon was different, there you can find some very savory palate pleasing meals. The walking part of the tour was well planned, and the length options were good. My favorite walking days were on the first and last days. I loved walking through the National Park. Most of the walks were downhill and on uneven surfaces. I would not recommend this tour if walking down hill or on uneven surfaces is an issue for you. The guides always discussed the walks the day before hand so one could make a decision to walk or not. And the guides were very safety conscious about the walks keeping everyone under a watchful eye. The other activities such as the boat ride and Port wine tasting were much appreciated and interesting! I would recommend this tour with a whole heart if you came in with knowing that the food may not be the best tasting. Go for the adventure of walking in beautiful areas where the history of long ago is still standing and to brush elbows with the local people who are lovely, friendly and very proud of their region and country. You will not be disappointed!