Porto to Lisbon Atlantic Ride

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My 4th Exodus trip did not fail to impress.
Great scenery , good hotels , felt a little harder than the 2/7 rating
Fantastic Guide in João Colaco

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The trip was unavoidably very wet indeed due to unseasonable weather! The wind direction was also coming the wrong way the whole time which meant that instead of blowing north to south giving us a tailwind all the way it was actually blowing south to north giving us a headwind all the way!! This made cycling very difficult for those of us on standard bikes! As a result the tour guide said it was the hardest conditions that he had ever known. Act of God! On saying that, it was an extremely well organised trip and the time we had cycling was fun and full of good humour even though we were soaked to the bone most of the time!

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What a great trip. Two fabulous cities. Really nice hotels. Great cycle routes on quiet roads past beaches and villages. And a fab local team to guide us through.

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Although my fitness level is high my cycling prior to this trip was limited to Spin classes so I was a little nervous that the 55-60K per day would prove too demanding. I need not have worried - the pace was leisurely and extremely pleasant, mostly cycling on quiet roads and cycle paths beside the sea, and inland through villages and woodland passing rivers and lakes and always with plenty of time to appreciate and enjoy the often breathtaking scenery. I was impressed with the route planning and the timing/locations of coffee, lunch and viewing stops each day, and with the variety of our overnight hotel stops - and the fact that our bikes were always checked over, cleaned if necessary, and lined up outside the hotel ready for us to hop on each morning after breakfast, whilst our suitcases were spirited away to the next hotel and lined up ready for us to collect with our room keys on our arrival, with checking in all done. Excellent service! This was my first experience of holidaying with Exodus - it will definitely not be my last!

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A brilliant trip all round. The cycling, accommodation, food, bikes - all excellent. Variety of coastal roads, forest paths, villages. Good road surfaces. Liked the hotel to hotel cycling nature of the week.

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The ride, accommodations, and dining were superb. Armando Nava is an excellent guide who provided many insights along the way. Beautiful ocean towns and ocean sights. There was a nice north to south tailwind for the whole ride; you would not want to do it in the other direction! The Level 2 designation is appropriate. Porto, Lisbon, and Nazare are fascinating towns (cities) . Highly recommend.

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This was my third cycling trip with Exodus but the first one that is more or less hotel-to-hotel cycling, with only a bus transfer at the end to get to Lisbon. I loved that the focus was very much on cycling (as opposed to other trips that combine the cycling with lots of sightseeing) and the pace was nice and relaxed. I'm a pretty fit 40-year-old and, yes, I could've cycled faster and further and I still would've enjoyed it but for an active holiday that's not super-strenuous this was perfect. Since I loved the cycling so much I found the beginning of the tour in Porto and the end of the tour in Lisbon to be the least enjoyable. In fact, I think it would be better if the final day was a choice between a day trip to Lisbon for those who want it or an additional day's cycling around Óbidos. Most of us signed up for a walking tour in Lisbon, organised for us by our cycling tour leader, but for me this was definitely the most disappointing part of the whole trip since the guide just wasn't very good. In general, we were all left to our own devices in Lisbon and somehow it felt like an anticlimax after the five days' cycling togather. However, there were plenty of other positive points - the accomodation was of a very good standard and all the hotel breakfasts were delicious, the bikes were pretty good, and the cycling routes were a lovely mixture of coastal roads and forest paths.

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We had a well organized cycling trip. Our leader Rita C and her partner Denis were great!! The planned lunches were a time saver!! and they were healthy and delicious!!! We were a group of 15 cycling plus our guide. Good size for a group. Would not want it any bigger. Most of the cycle paths in Portugal are great!! We did come across some rough roads full of potholes and bumpy, good thing there were not too many of those!! There was a long board walk that needs several repairs. I commented on that in the last section. The coast of Portugal is beautiful to ride!! We also had amazing weather, sunny every day with a warm breeze. All of the hotels are nice except the last hotel in Obidos. I commented on that in the last section.

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refer to my comments hereunder

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From start to finish I was impressed with this trip. There is so much awful (non-existent) customer service around these days that it heart-warming to speak to real people who really cared and knew how to organise and make things happen to suit me. Only my flights gave me grief (BA was a cosmos away when it came to their customer service) and this was no fault of Exodus, who did everything that could reasonably be expected to resolve the issues. Well done Exodus and the guides. I will definitely be joining you again for some future breaks.

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A relatively short trip from Porto to Lisbon - only five days cycling but excellent nonetheless. It helped that I was with a terrific group of people who all enjoyed each other’s company and the tour leader, Cristovao and support driver Joao were probably the best team I’ve encountered on my many trips. The ride is fairly easy, with one ‘mountain’ and a few minor hills but an absolute doddle on an E-bike. The Atlantic coastal scenery was breathtaking and we rode for 99% of the time on secure bike paths. Portugese cycling infrastructure is very good and whenever we approached a small town, car drivers always gave way to cyclists - quite a treat after riding in the UK where many drivers treat cyclists as a nuisance. Some of the pathways were unmade - in other words, rocky and bumpy and the cobbles in town were a nightmare, although, in fairness, we only encountered them a few short times. We rode through nature reserves on boardwalks and through forests, some regenerating after recent forest fires. There were lagoons, rivers, lakes and a short ferry crossing. We spotted flamingos and storks nesting on telegraph poles and plenty of wildflowers and butterflies. But the beaches with dramatic waves were the high spot for me and it was glorious riding along for miles with the Atlantic in sight. All the hotels were extremely comfortable with varying degrees of facilities like kettles and refrigeration in the rooms. We ate out every night and enjoyed a variety of meals, not to mention wine. Unsurprisingly, Port is quite a feature and we went to a tasting in the first evening which was included as part of the trip. We had two picnic lunches provided by Joao which were really sumptuous and it was hard getting back on the bikes after over indulging. (It wasn’t mandatory, but the food was so good…)

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A very good trip with excellent guides. Weather was not as good as expected but very enjoyable. Hotels were good and food recommendations by our guide were also excellent and memorable. All except for the last hotel and the dinner. Not up to the Exodus standard.

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We apparently had the worst weather, ever, for this cycle trip along the Atlantic coast of Portugal. After a year without rain in the region, we found ourselves fighting rain and high winds for a good portion of the tour. However, our group had a great time due, in large part, to our amazing team of Ruben, Armando and Tiago. In spite of the weather, they helped us to enjoy the amazing scenery, food and people of Portugal! They were extremely well organized and flexible when the weather was bad - even arranging to have downpours while we were inside having coffee/lunch :) The kitty system for lunches was brilliant and the food was varied and delicious. Cycling was more difficult than expected due to conditions but still pleasant, for the most part on separated cycle paths and quiet country roads. With the exception of the Literary Man in Obidos, accommodations and dinner recommendations were excellent. Will definitely return for another bike trip to experience Portugal in the sun!

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This was my 10th overseas cycling trip and none were better than this one-the scenery, food, accommodations ,the local people, the ride-all of exceptional quality. A top experience on these trips though depends on the cohesion and dynamics of the group and the interaction with the Exodus team-in this regard we were exceptionally fortunate as the entire group quickly bonded and we all clearly enjoyed each other's company. The nationalities ( 10 Canadian and 6 British ) mixed perfectly- all good ,cheerful people intent on having a great holiday.

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This trip was absolutely amazing! I can't think of a better way to experience a beautiful country like Portugal. The people were friendly, the views breathtaking and the food, coffee, wine and beer were amazing. Our guides, Ruben and Armando were excellent. They were organized, knowledgeable and enthusiastic and went out of their way to provide us with an exceptional experience. I chose to ride a regular bike and would recommend choosing an e-bike if you are not an avid biker, regardless of fitness level.

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Loved every minute of this trip. Glad I had an e-bike. Was able to bike manually most of the time but liked the ebike for the hills. Ruben was a fantastic guide, so positive, enthusiastic and informative. And Armando the van man fed us all very well and researched and accommodated for all the allergies some of the other riders had. Highly recommend throwing in extra for the lunches. Most of the ride was on paved cycle paths which made for an excellent ride. Best way travel this beautiful country❤️

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It's incredible that you can cycle along the coast from Porto to Obidos on mostly cycle paths. The views are great for the most part. It's a shame about the destruction of the once beautiful pine forest by fire. The 5 km hill on the 3rd day was quite a challenge and several experienced cyclists in our group felt that this trip should be rated higher than it is. (There were a few other challenging hills in subsequent days). Our group always had the opportunity to ride in the van and e-bikes were available for an extra charge. Breakfasts and lunches were very good. Our van driver put on wonderful picnic spreads for us. All in all this is a great trip with a reasonable length of 5 days cycling. I felt most of us were 'done' by day 5. If you can add some days on at the beginning/end to relax and enjoy Portugal.

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Wow! What a ride. The BEST way to check out a country and see the people and natural landscapes from ocean front to the hills. Everything was so organized (thanks, Exodus!) and our tour guides Ruben and Amando were excellent. Our bikes were new or in like-new condition. We had 15 very satisfied cyclists on this ride, who want to do another❤️

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Trip May/June. Cycling generally leisurely with only one notable hill. Route follows the coast on quite roads and/ or cycle lanes for much of the way. (Poor road surface on one day) Hotels generally good 4 star quality, cafes and lunch / picnic stops were an excellent mix with evening meal venues being fantastic quality.

Rubén’s and Rogerio were excellent guides who were very knowledgeable, helpful and good company, just a pity they had no control over the unusually inclement and windy weather. Recommend the trip.

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Well crafted trip showing off Portugal’s rural and unspoilt Atlantic coast

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This was a great trip. Ruben our leader/guide was excellent - enthusiastic and knowledgeable. The scenery, weather (end May), hotels and food were all super - and the cycling was fun and not too strenuous for people who regularly cycle. The distance cycled was about 40 miles a day which meant not too early a start - and adequate time in the evening to visit most of the places where we were staying, and have a good meal. Ruben's recommendations for evening meals were ideal. The group were also lucky to have Rogerio as the driver and support, who was always keen to help in any way. A really enjoyable holiday.

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A fabulous trip with brilliant Portuguese guides. Reuben, the lead guide was outstanding and his team had a genuine passion for their country which was truly infectious. Nothing was ever too much trouble. The cycle paths meandered their way through beautiful pine forests, villages, coastal areas and farms. The pace of the trip is relaxed but their were also many opportunities to cycle faster and the guides were very flexible. The restaurant recommendations were all excellent and the Portuguese people were most welcoming. The perfect trip if you want to cycle 35-40 miles per day on fairly flat terrain using cycle paths - you won’t find better guides! Thank you Reuben, Christofe and Rogerio.

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It was a great tour along Atlantic coast with good weather, many good views, excellent guide and driver and great&fun group.

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Fantastic week of cycling, sightseeing, good company and excellent guiding in coastal Portugal.

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This trip was an amazing experience with absolutely stunning scenery, around every bend was a picture postcard view of the ocean. The guides were excellent and their spoken English was great. This being my first premium trip I was very impressed with the hotels and watching the sunsets over the Atlantic from our hotel balconies and resteraunt tables was a highlight for everyone. The cycling was a bit harder than I anticipated, the trip is graded a two but is as hard / a bit harder than the indochina trip I did earlier in the year which was graded as a three. The first few days are definitely leisurely, but on later days there are a couple of hills one long climb and one short but steep one, the last day is more undulating. I wouldn’t let these put you off though they are manageable by anyone that’s done a bit of prep or cycles regularly and there’s always the van or an ebike. The bikes were trek dual sport 3’s and were excellent hybrids with hydraulic disc brakes giving confidence on the way down. The trip was mainly on excellent quality cycle paths with only a limited amount of road riding to link them together. We were generally in the hotel for 330 each day with most starts about 930

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This is a pleasant cycling trip but as some reviewers have previously highlighted despite the grade 2 we were often arriving at the hotel about 5.00pm or later and so we didn't have much time for relaxation off the bikes. This was not too much of a problem until the arrival in Obidos which is worthy of some time to look around. There are some diversions from the original route following the devastating fires in 2017. Generally good hotels are used, The Literary Man in Obidos is very interesting and quirky.

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Portugal is a beautiful country and cycling along its coast felt like I experienced all it's best parts.

Cycling: This is rated correctly at 'moderate' because of the hills. However it is a comfortable 'easy' ride for the average fit person. I don't ride a bike at home and felt this was very doable. I really enjoyed how the cycling increased in time on the bike and pace as the trip progressed. From the first day where we took it easy, stayed together as a group and didn’t go too far a distance, to the last day of rolling hills, go at your own pace (fast or slow) and longer distances. Since you are travelling as a group it is to be expected that sometimes you will be waiting for the last person. But it is nice since, you can have yourself a little snack and coffee while you wait a lot of the time. Plenty of opportunity to take your time or even ride in the support vehicle if you aren’t up for the hill that day. I took advantage once myself of the ‘free’ ride.

The ride is on mostly flat, or rolling, paved bike paths, through forest and coastal towns. We spent little time on roads and if we did they weren’t busy. Since it is a cycling trip the majority of your day is spent on the bike or ‘in transit’. Sightseeing in the towns you stay in is limited but a part of the consistent paced itinerary.

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Good cycling beside the Atlantic Ocean. Blue sky and sunshine with wind behind us. Lovely hotels, great beaches and lots of surf. Nice bikes, and fun cycling.

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Lucky that we had a late Oct ride with 25 C temperatures.

Great guides and well working bikes.

The mostly flat terrain was pleasant and interesting.

The meals were excellent, like a gastronomic tour!

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Who could ever have imagined just how fantastic a week long experience cycling (plus laughing, drinking,eating, talking and laughing a bit more) from Porto towards Lisbon would turn out as a new group assembled , on time (in house story), in Porto on Saturday September 22. For me - well I had one of the great experiences of my life and I could say the same for my wife , Ali.

There was a sense of apprehension at the initial meeting but most of that pretty quickly dissolved as we went on our tour of Porto (on foot) and then to our first dinner. We quickly realised we had a great team - and to make a great team we had to have great leadership. That we did in Jaoa ( Zoom Zoom) and Oscar - absolutely brilliant and more on them later.

The tour was everything ('more or less' - there is a story there) we could have hoped for - scenic even breath-taking at times, a huge variety of different landscapes from coast to farmland to colourful villages and picturesque lakes and seaside towns, mainly very good surfaces but nothing un-expected, great accommodation, great camaraderie and ultimately friendships and very good equipment. The tour was, as advised, mainly flat with a couple of good challenging short hills which did take a good bit of energy.

If you have reasonable fitness (e-bikes are always available if you want) and enjoy the benefits of good exercise, connecting with new acquaintances and being blown away with scenery this is a 'bucket-list' trip for you. And, to finish in the castled town of Obidos (yes, with a bit of final climb - 200-300 metres - 'more or less eh Jaoa') was a wonderful experience as was the time to enjoy that fantastic city of Lisbon when we arrived there by bus for our final day.

We will never forget our week long cycling experience on Portugal for all the very best reasons!

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We had an excellent cycling holiday with great leaders and a very sociable group of fellow travellers.

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Great ride. Most is on mostly flat, well maintained, paved bike paths, with little riding on roads. Going in late October meant that when we were on roads they were almost traffic-free and the lovely coastal villages and beaches en route were tourist-free. This summer Portugal experienced many forest fires and a day of cycling through charred forests was unavoidable. It was interesting to see, first-hand, the unfortunate devastation that we had all read about in the news. Regeneration will begin quickly, I'm sure. Marco was an excellent guide and we were fortunate to learn a lot as a result of his excellent knowledge of the history of Portugal. The picnic lunches were a highlight, the group was great and I had a wonderful holiday.

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This was my 7th cycling trip and biking was a great way to see this region of Portugal. The route is mostly flat with the occasional steep but short hill.. The views while cycling along the coast were beautiful. Our cycling group was a lot of fun and the pace was perfect such that we enjoyed a relaxing time at coffee stops (always near a beach) and got into the next town/city in time to explore a bit. The weather was perfect for cycling and we had no rain on the trip.

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This was our 6th cycling trip and one of the best,we usually do moderate but this time did leisurely to moderate,thought it might be to easy but there was a couple of challenging hills,hotels were very good,trindade hotel in Porto advertised a rooftop bar but there wasn't one,another hotel had a rooftop bar but was closed for the season bit early I thought. Our guide Pedro and our driver jaun were excellent nothing was too much trouble ,super trip .

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A fantastic week riding through beautiful coastal scenery, with fantastic accommodation and excellent food.

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Megan was brilliant. She listened to all my specific requests for our holiday, and provided all the information I needed to make decisions. She was also quick and efficient, so I could get from tentative requirement to confirmed booking in just a few days.

Judith Rawle, 15 Apr 2024

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Good communication and rapid responses to questions by e-mail and later by ‘phone. We anticipate the holiday to meet all our expectations.

6 Nov 2023

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Service was great with prompt, informative responses. Would prefer to be able to pay online though.

Sirikit Valentin, 29 Jun 2023