We spent 2 weeks in Portugal. It was great, but our trip would've been way better if we'd avoided these 6 mistakes.

My hubby and I precocious spent 2 weeks successful Portugal. We had a awesome time, ate awesome food, and drank a batch of wine, but it was besides our least favourite European vacation to date.

As outdoorsy travelers, we missed the hiking and escapade activities we usually prioritize. We besides made immoderate readying and packing mistakes that affected the trip.

Arriving later successful the time would've been better

On past European trips, we ever had a scheme for our luggage aft landing, whether that meant a rental car, precocious arrival, aliases early edifice check-in.

Our Portugal formation sewage successful astatine 9:45 a.m., and we were heading consecutive to Porto, nary rental car. But we were renting an flat pinch nary beforehand table and nary elasticity connected check-in time.

That meant we were stuck carrying our luggage for hours earlier the housekeepers could shop it, and we couldn't nap until astir dinner.

We stayed successful Lisbon excessively long

Usually, we walk a mates of nights successful a metropolis and usage it arsenic a location guidelines to sojourn adjacent wilderness areas and smaller towns.

At the urging of our friends — who are large foodies and emotion getting mislaid successful cities — we decided we'd effort a much metropolitan-focused picnic successful Portugal.

We stayed successful Lisbon for 4 nights. For us, that was 2 nights excessively many. The metropolis has plentifulness to offer, but overmuch of our sightseeing felt obligatory.

We loved exploring São Jorge Castle and took an astonishing nutrient circuit successful the Alfama neighborhood, but otherwise, we recovered Lisbon's streets were packed pinch visitors shuffling from 1 landmark to another.

Worse, successful immoderate crowded parts of town, we were regularly offered narcotics by random strangers, often successful beforehand of families pinch kids. And unfortunately, during our visit, galore of the museums were closed for restoration — important work, but unlucky timing.

I wish we'd spent much clip successful the Douro Valley, the Algarve, and adjacent mini towns

The Douro Valley is the most beautiful vino country I've seen, acold amended than Napa, Tuscany, and Germany's Mosel Valley.

We took aggregate vino tours complete 2 days, but we hardly scratched the aboveground of what this region has to offer. While here, we only toured 2 mini towns — Amarante and Pinhão — but location was truthful overmuch much to see.

We stayed successful Carvoeiro successful the Algarve and utilized it arsenic a guidelines for exploring adjacent towns, a zoo, and a sea-kayaking circuit astatine Benagil Beach, but honestly, I could've utilized different mates of days planted connected the formation pinch a bully book.

Most regrettably, we didn't dedicate overmuch clip to hiking successful Portugal.

Sure, we walked portions of the Seven Hanging Valleys Trail (a coastal hike on the Algarve coast), but we wholly missed Peneda-Gerês National Park, which offers astonishing hiking amid lush forests, cascading waterfalls, and rolling mountains.

We shouldn't person booked a car

For the astir part, we relied connected nationalist proscription successful Portugal. Although each train we took ran a spot precocious and we had to hire a backstage driver 1 time because of a strike, I deliberation renting a car is simply a mistake.

We'd booked a car for the last limb of our journey, the Algarve, truthful we could recreation to each the small coastal towns. But a time earlier we were owed to prime it up, we canceled the preservation — for 2 reasons.

First: Throughout our trip, I saw firsthand why Portugal's considered among the astir dangerous countries to drive in. I've driven successful six different European countries and felt confident, but watching the brazen, chaotic maneuvers immoderate section drivers pulled had maine reasoning doubly astir getting down the wheel.

Second: Rideshares were reliable and affordable successful Portugal. We saved money by Ubering astir the Algarve alternatively of renting a car and paying for fuel, and we had nary problems getting anyplace we wanted to go.

This is 1 correction I'm gladsome we yet avoided, but it was still stressful to cancel the car and book train tickets astatine the past infinitesimal erstwhile we changed plans.

Somehow, we made rookie packing mistakes

My hubby and I pridefulness ourselves connected our packing abilities. Even connected monthlong trips, we don't cheque a bag. We cram our lives into 2 backpacks and 2 carry-ons, which makes train recreation and stepping done European streets easier.

But we made immoderate major packing mistakes successful Portugal. First, I packed moving shoes and guidance bands because I planned to support exercising connected vacation. I didn't usage them once.

Portugal's hills and our packed itinerary provided much than capable exercise. For the full trip, those shoes and bands took up abstraction we could person utilized for much apparel (we had to do laundry twice).

We besides forgot to battalion American acold medicine, a instruction we learned years agone connected our world travels, but wholly forgot. And of course, I sewage sick adjacent the extremity of the trip.

We sewage medicine from the pharmacy, but it was much costly than American meds, and, successful my opinion, European meds are often not arsenic effective.

For context, the medicine a pharmacist ended up trading maine was single-ingredient, only targeting symptom and fever. My go-to acold medicine backmost location is simply a operation supplier that tackles aggregate symptoms, including nasal congestion, cough, pain, and fever. I decidedly wish I'd had it pinch me.

Unaccustomed to prioritizing museums and eating complete hiking, we besides packed measurement excessively galore "fancy" outfits. Of each the European countries we've visited, Portugal seemed to person the astir laid-back attire, moreover astatine bully restaurants.

We would've been good pinch a mates of polos and a brace of dressy shorts each.

Despite the mistakes, we had a awesome clip — and will course-correct connected adjacent year's trip

We loved our clip successful Portugal. The group were truthful friendly, the architecture and landscapes were stunning, and the nutrient was delicious.

We conscionable needed to do a small much investigation and amended planning. For our adjacent trip, we'll return what we learned and set the itinerary to amended meet our needs.