From Lisbon to Alentejo: Évora and Megaliths Full-Day Tour
Description
Explore more of Portugal by getting out of Lisbon and heading to the Golden Plains, visiting the walled UNESCO-listed town of Évora and an ancient Roman farm in the countryside. This day trip is an entertaining and educational experience where you’ll get the opportunity to see another side of Portugal. Explore centuries-old cathedrals and spend some time in the mysterious Chapel of Bones (Capela dos Ossos). Then, visit and wonder at the Neolithic stone circle of Almendres Cromlech.
Tour Options
Itinerary
A few facts about the town of Évora: it has 55,000 inhabitants; it is more than 2,000 years old; and it is under the designation of UNESCO. Within the walls of the wonderfully preserved town center are ancient Roman temples, medieval cathedrals, and narrow cobblestoned streets.
Begin your day trip with a pickup from your central Lisbon hotel, and then hop inside a comfortable minivan with your private guide. During the hour-long drive, gaze out at the Portuguese countryside and learn about the history and culture of the places you’re about to visit.
Start by visiting the Temple of Diana, the famed Roman temple that was dedicated to Augustus, emperor of Rome, and learn the changes it suffered through time.
Visit the grand Gothic Cathedral, built in the 12th century, and the medieval cloisters. Climb to the roof of the building to get a great view of the town and the surrounding countryside.
Check out the Chapel of Bones (Capela dos Ossos) inside the Church of St Francis. As the name suggests, the mysterious chapel is made up of human bones.
Enjoy some free time to explore the streets and city center of Évora, and have lunch in the excellent restaurants available.
Make your final stop of the tour at the Almendres Cromlech, a Neolithic stone circle, which is aligned with the Summer Solstice. Wander around the ancient circle, said to be the largest existing group of structured menhirs in the Iberian Peninsula, and hear how the stones were likely used for sacred rituals.
Return to Lisbon crossing the iconic 25th April Bridge, from where you can see the most amazing vies over Lisbon.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We'll pick you up at your Hotel or Apartment, or even the Port or the Airport. Please note that you may need to join us at a nearby meeting point, in some areas of the city where we can't reach your address. Please contact our team previously to assure all necessary arrangements.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- A moderate amount of walking is involved, comfortable shoes are recommended
- Operated by a multi-lingual guide
Reviews(159)
Diogo, our guide, was very knowledgeable and had a wonderful droll sense of humor. He is fascinated by birds, and we had fun scoping out stork nests on the way to Évora. He gave great background on both the megalithic site and the town of Évora. He was also open to our questions about other part of Portugal. On the way to the cromlech, over very bumpy dirt roads, he displayed excellent driving skills. We came upon a team harvesting cork (unusual for June), and Diogo enthusiastically filled us in on the techniques involved. We enjoyed our time in Évora very much. Keep in mind that many of the restaurants have very slow service; we would like to have spent more of our lunch break walking around the sites!
Renaldo was a fabulous informative and friendly guide, easily one of best tours we’ve ever done. The history of Évora is amazing and easily accessible from Lisbon, well worth a visit.
Nino (Ze) was awesome tour person. Very knowledgeable and personable. He was always communicating with us and told us a lot about our tour. We do another one with him!! Thank you
This is a great tour. Not as busy as some of the others and was Very enjoyable seeing the countryside and interesting history of Evora. Our tour guide Nunadiaz was fabulous and very passionate about His job. He was very knowledgeable and a great guy. Recommended
It was an amazing experience. Our guide Nuno was amazing and very knowledgeable and helpful. Thank you.
Really lovely and relaxed day exploring Evora. Had door to door service which was amazing and so welcomed. Great sights in Evora and the countryside, the tour was relaxed, comfortable and friendly
We had a fabulous tour and learned so much from our knowledgeable guide, Nuno. The megaliths are impressive, and we enjoyed getting up close and having a hands on experience there. The city of Evora is lovely and historic. Nuno guided us along as we walked through the city, and recommend a great local restaurant for lunch. The Chapel of Bones was a very interesting site. It was a full and fun day with a great and personable guide
The megaliticos were underwhelming at best! Our guide was not a real/professional guide. Typically, guides have a narrative for the tour, which he did not. Often he could not describe scenes or history of what we were looking at. He himself confessed that he had another job and he doesn’t do the tour too often! He would drop us off at sites and then pick us up. He did not give a talking tour of anything!
Wonderful experience and a very informative tour guide. Évora was beautiful and the chapel of the bones was very unique and fascinating to see. It’s a full day tour over 8 hours but well worth it. Highly recommended!
Our guide was excellent, very knowledgeable and personable. The tour size, with 8 tourists plus the guide was a good size and the van very comfortable even in the rear seat. We highly recommend oit
