Lisboa: Sintra and Cascais

Full disclosure, I'm massively biased as my wife grew up in Portugal, speaks Portuguese, and her sister lives there. Portugal is known for its olives/olive oil, cork wood, cod fish, leather, porcelain ceramics, cotton linens, pastel de nata pastries, almonds, and grilled octopus. Their fresh fruit is amazing.  Oranges, tangerines, lemons, kiwi, pears and apples should be in season in January. There are two suburbs which capture, for me, a different and marvel-inspiring aspect to Lisbon's allure: Sintra and Cascais.

There are hundreds of great shops in Cascais and Sintra, two neighborhoods we love. Walk, explore, breath the great air.

We like to grab a tourist Viva Viagem train/bus ticket at the local train station. You can hop onto almost any train or bus in greater Lisbon, including the airport. Here are a few places we keep going back to:

Restaurants & Cafes

• Casa Piriquita. Sintra. Pastry Shop. Ask for the travesseiros. Killer with a good coffee. 9:00 am-7:30 pm, M-W, 9 am-8 pm. Saturdays. 10am-10pm Sundays.
• Sintra Terrace. Sintra. Restaurant. Moderate prices. Good place for lunch, burgers, salads. Great views. 10am-10pm
• Tascantiga Restaurant. Sintra. Cool, relaxed light meals. Music. Outdoors. Younger crowd. Moderate price. 12:15 pm-4 pm. 7 pm-10 pm.
• Maria du Bosque. Sintra. Tourist Shop. Decent quality and prices. 10 am-2 pm. 2:30 pm-7 pm M-F. 2 pm-7 pm Sundays.
• Restaurante Sabores Do Mercado. Sintra. Posh Boutique quiet small restaurant. Reservations recommended. For special occasions. The other end of Sintra town. Sabores Do Mercado
• Incomum Restaurant. Sintra. Where Portuguese people go for a nice meal. A little pricey. 12 pm-12 am
• Boulangerie Paul Cafe. Cascais. Close to Rainha Beach. Fantastic fresh juices, coffees, pastries, breads, sandwiches. Amazing view next to the old fishing port and beach.

Shopping

• Downtown Lisbon. Shopping in the Chiado shopping district. Sightseeing the Praca do Comercio along the Tagus River.
• Centro Vasca de Gama. Large mall close to the airport.

Fun Stuff

• Cabo da Roca. Between Sintra & Cascais. Lighthouse, rough water beach, walking paths, and amazing countryside and beach views. The ride there and back itself is worth it.
• Praia da Rainha. Cascais. Beach waterfront. Keep walking along the many connected beach fronts. Beach volleyball, paddle board, jet skis, lots of sand. Behind the beach are lots of international restaurants, and shopping.
• Lisbon Aquarium (Oceanario de Lisboa). Not far from the airport.
• Sintra Tram to Praia das Maçãs. We love to take this leisurely 40 minute ride up the coast from Sintra to the wonderful Praia das Macas beach town. The beach is wide, the waves are rough, the restaurants are tiny but surprisingly good. The views are spectacular. The tram is close to the Sintra de Portela train station and next to the MU.SA museum.