A Month in Almoçageme, Portugal Part 2 – Visits to Cascais and Estoril

On my list of things to do while staying in Almoçageme was to visit nearby Cascais and Estoril. The first time I decided to go to Cascais, I ended up in a different town completely. Needless to say, the busses here have been a challenge! Waiting at the stop, only a few minutes behind schedule, a bus pulled up with the correct number. I was standing on the side of the road, and as it stopped, I started to confirm with the girl next to me it was the correct bus. Without even opening the doors, the bus quickly pulled away! The girl said, no problem, it’s coming soon. A few minutes later, another bus with the same number pulled up and opened the doors and everyone at the stop got on, including me. Cool!

I sat down, and a few minutes later, pulled out my phone to check where we were. Funny enough, we were headed to Sintra, not Cascais. I chuckled to myself and said, okay, go with the flow. I wanted to visit Sintra as well, so all good! I got off at the main stop in town, and took a walk around. Looking at the maps, all the sights were a bit outside of the center, and being late in the afternoon, I didn’t want to start touring. So, I browsed around the shops and found a restaurant with a nice patio for a late lunch and a glass of wine. It was good to just be and not worry about rushing around being a tourist or anything else! I enjoyed the afternoon, and decided to try to make it to Cascais again the next day.

The next afternoon it went much better. With a new energy, I got up and waved at the bus so there was no question I wanted on. I boarded and ended up in Cascais about an hour later! I started walking though the steep, winding streets of town, and eventually made my way down to the 3km boardwalk that runs along the coastline between Cascais and Estoril. I loved it! The energy was amazing and the scenery was gorgeous! So many people were shopping, dining, playing games on the beaches, walking the shoreline, and just enjoying life!

After the beaches, I headed back towards town through the marina finding O Palácio dos Condes de Castro Guimarães, now a museum, and the beautiful Parque Marechal Carmona with the Capela de São Sebastião just behind it. It’s so crazy this beautiful park was almost empty. It has awesome trails, ponds, statues, a great view of the Palácio, fountains, the chapel, and even peacocks, but hardly anyone was interested. I spent quite some time roaming around and taking it all in.

As the sun began to drop and my tummy began to rumble, I found an amazing little restaurant and got a seat on the patio looking out towards the square. I ordered a half bottle of vinho verde and shrimp with the most scrumptious lemon/brandy risotto! My parents had given me a little money for Easter, so this was my celebration dinner! So nice! I couldn’t believe I hung around in town until almost 11 PM! A late night for me :-).

Loving the town so much, the next week I made another trip to see what else I could find. this time, I headed the opposite way through town and down the promenade to Boca de Inferno, Hell’s Mouth. From what I read, this place is crazy in stormy weather, but fairly mild on a warm spring day as it was. Still really cool!

Next, I headed back towards town, stopping at the lighthouse and Casa de Santa Maria.

Then back towards the marina for a look at Cidadela de Cascais, the fort directly behind it, and some cod for lunch in town, before heading towards Estoril for the beach vibes!!

This day was so warm and beautiful, I couldn’t have asked for more. I mean really, beaches with castles, OMG, this is so cool!!!…..I even indulged in a cucumber-lime-mint popsicle, yummm… 🙂 !

Then, looking out from the last viewpoint, enjoying the flowers…

There’s always THAT person…(sorry to bring you into this, but really??? C’mon!)

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed Cascais-Estoril! It is a beautiful place to be!

Peace, Hugs & Love!!

Michelle