Obidos has been known as “the Wedding Present Town” for centuries. Why? Because it was quite simply offered as a wedding present in 1282 by King Dinis to his Queen Isabel. Around the winding cobblestone streets, the Gothic entryways and medieval buildings overlooking the vast vineyards stretching out in the distance, Obidos is one of the most romantic towns in Europe.

Obidos is one of the most picturesques places you’ll ever get to see. It is a dazzling combination of romantic, medieval and traditional Portuguese elements. Part of the architecture is Manueline, which makes it authentic and uniquely Portuguese.

What’s the best spot to watch the entire town? From up, of course! You are welcome to climb the 13-meter walls of the medieval castle to get a panoramic view over the town and its center.

The Manueline 16th-century castle that is one of the greatest attractions in town has been turned into a hotel. Its towers and high walls encircle an authentic and imposing facade. You can walk there hand in hand with your loved one and muse at the time when knights pledged their love to their damzels in an “old-fashioned” and lovely way.

The layout of the city is not very difficult. If all roads lead to Rome, Rua Direita leads straight to the center of Obidos. There, you will find Praca de Santa Maria, the main square in town, with its fountain, the Town Museum, the Church of Santa Maria and the Church of Misericordia.

The Obidos Lagoon, also inland, is a beautiful place to swim or sunbathe. So you see, the city has it all. It is the perfect romantic getaway.

And every princess deserves her own chariot – or private transfer, as is the case nowadays. Problem solved with transfers from Lisbon Airport to Obidos.

The capital city of Lisbon, one of its most vivid cultural and economic hubs of Portugal, is a place where there’s always something going on, be it a concert, a fair or an international event. August is high season here, so expect lots of people, lots of events, but also lots of entertainment.

August seems to be the month of music in Lisbon. On August 2nd 2015, you are invited to attend the Piknic Electronik at Tapada da Ajuda, Lisboa. For an entry ticket of 12 EUR, you can dance to the electronic music of John Talabot, Marc Pinol, Mary B and JMII. Electronic music is not just about the rhythm: it is also about the social experience you can enjoy and about experimenting.

If you are visiting Lisbon towards the end of August, between the 20th and the 25th you can attend another unique event, with an accent on the traditional side: the International Folk Dance Festival Lisbon, where you can admire local music and dance in a festival sponsored by the Municipality.

On the third Sunday, every month (August being no exception) the Changing of the Guard and Charanga ceremony takes place in Belem, at the Garden of Viera Portuense. The 28 horsemen of the Cavalry will perform a wonderful ceremonial march to the delight of the audiences armed with cameras. Entry is free.

Begun in July, the Oceans Festival is perhaps the most important event of the summer, scheduled to last until August 13th 2015. Exhibitions, conferences, music and dance and amazing fireworks will all feature in the ultimate tribute to the sea life.

To travel around the region and the entire country, we suggest pre-booking a Lisbon airport transfer.

Let’s explore some more!

Estoril was already an inhabited city in the times of the Phoenicians and the Romans. When the Arabs came, the style of architecture and the local culture was enriched and later, after the Reconquista, it started to take the shape of the traditional European and Portuguese center it is today.

Algarve in southern Portugal is not the only place to enjoy the seaside. Estoril boasts with some of the greatest beaches around Lisbon. The gorgeous Tamariz Beach displays a picturesque scenery, surrounded by restaurants and bars and overlooking a castle owned by the Monaco royal family.

The Estoril Casino is also located nearby, hosting international events and serving as inspiration to writers, apparently! Ian Fleming apparently drew inspiration from the place for his “Casino Royale”.

Do you like sports? If you do, you will definitely feel at home in Estoril. Motorsports are the subject of international events here, at the Estoril Circuit. Moto GP and other contests happen here.

But what is more prominent in Portugal and in town is golf. Estoril Golf Club has hosted the Portuguese Open not once, not twice, but 20 times! It is an internationally acclaimed golf facility with a colorful, futuristic architecture set in an idyllic landscape, by the sea. The golf course is just 3 minutes away from the town center of Estoril and less than half an hour’s drive from Lisbon.

Estoril must be on your list and to make your stay even better, you can get a Lisbon airport transfer to Estoril or rent a car in Lisbon.

Lisbon – and in fact the entire Portugal – lives with a mixed cultural heritage and with a glorious medieval and pre-modern history. For 2 weeks each year, Obidos takes a step back in time and celebrates a glamorous Medieval market. This walled town becomes the playground of knights, minstrels and damsels (in distress or not). This outdoor amazing market offers tourists and locals alike the possibility to purchase traditional foods and other product, handicrafts, but also the opportunity to visit the castle or to attend jousting tournaments.

If you live life on rock strings, Super Bock Super Rock held between July 5th and 7th 2015, will give you a perfect pretext to also visit the beautiful Sesimbra, near the wonderful golden Meco beach. Food can be found here and transport, but also camping opportunities.

To end the month of July, from the 30th day to August 13th 2015, you are invited to attend the Festival dos Oceanos, the Lisbon Ocean Festival, which attracts thousands of international visitors to the shores of Lisbon in a two-week event that features oceanic themes and activities, street performers, night visits to the museum and glorious displays of fireworks.

It is worth staying in this amazing city at least a few days to appreciate its feel and to travel in its surroundings. You can rent a car in Lisbon or book a Lisbon airport transfer online.

Lisbon city might look like a melancholy and mysterious place from the outside – and it is – but that doesn’t mean the Portuguese don’t know how to party and have fun. Actually, they can show you this really soon, because the month of June begins with Festas da Lisboa, the merriest festival dedicated to the capital city of Portugal.

Street shows, dance and Fado music, outdoors and indoors cinema, collective barbecues and fairs with handicrafts and local produce, all these and more are going to feature in the Lisbon Festival. The party will move from venue to venue, but one special event is the St. Anthony Festival in the district Alfama, the oldest in the city. The party will last between the 12th and 14th of June.

Alfama is a neighbourhood filled with color and life, where you can best sample the Portuguese life surrounded by old buildings with red-tile roofs and narrow streets. St. Anthony is the patron saint of Lisbon.

During the St. Anthony Festival, the scent of… sardines will fill the air. This relates to the miraculous story of the 13th century Saint Anthony of Padua. It is said that, during one of his visits to Rimini, in Italy, the saint was so depressed that people would not listen to his sermons, that he went to the shores of the sea to preach to the fish. All of a sudden, rows of fish, from the smallest to the most sizeable, raised their scaly heads above the water. Today, traditional sardine dishes are served in honor of the saint.

And since you have surely decided to come to town for the festival, how about a Lisbon tour?

In 2007, the Lisbon Golf Coast was named the best European Golf destination by the IAGTO and ever since, the courses in the region have been striving to maintain these high standards. The courses around Lisbon provide excellent golfing facilities in a natural environment of quiet and beauty. So let’s take a moment to review some of these courses with soft leveled grass.

Opened in 1936, Estoril Coast is a luxury beach resort with a championship golf course just 25 minutes’ distance from Lisbon. It is in fact the oldest and most famous club in Portugal and was designed by Mackenzie Ross. With the Golf Academy here, you have the best chances of getting the hang of the sport within just a week!

If you want to mix golf with cultural travel, you can go to the medieval village of Obidos and walking under the scented pine trees of the forest, you will get inspired to play at the Praia d’El Rey golf course, which, as the name suggests, promises to offer a truly royal experience.

Another popular golf destination around Lisbon is Quinta da Marinha, offering flat terrain and gorgeous panoramic views. The view is quite spectacular, with the majestic Sintra mountain in view.

Around the local golf industry, transportation services have also developed, so most people choose to go online and book a Lisbon golf transfer to take them from the hotel or address to the golf course and back. It’s a really good idea!

Though it only emerged as a nation-state in the 1100s, Lisbon boasts with a history of 300.000 years. Legend has it that the city was founded by the legendary Ulysses himself. This would explain the similarity in name: Olissopo was apparently the ancient denomination, a Phoenician derivate of the words “Allis Ubbo”, translated as “enchanting port”.

Though disputed by the Greeks, Phoenicians and Carthaginians for centuries in antiquity, Lisbon was finally conquered by the Romans, who established their Iberian reign here in 205 BC, founding the city under the name of Felicitas Julia.

During the middle ages, Lisbon was disputed between the Christians and the Moors. In the 8th century, the Arab Moors captured the city and would seize it for 4 centuries.

Recent history (that is to say, post-Reconquista) sees the 15th century of the great geographical discoveries revolving around the great center of Lisbon. Perhaps the most prominent Portuguese explorer of the age was Prince Henry the Navigator. He expanded the Portuguese influence (and the Portuguese land) to Northern Africa.

There are many landmarks in Lisbon which have been classified as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, such as the Jeronimo Monastery and the Belem Tower. Unfortunately, most of the medieval and pre-modern architecture of the city was destroyed by the 1755 earthquake. The city was consequently rebuilt by the Marques of Pombal and extended towards the north in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The best way to negotiate the town is if you rent a car in Lisbon or book a Lisbon airport taxi.

Lisbon hosted the World Fair in the year 1998, which proved to be a happy occasion for the Portuguese to add a few pieces of the architecture of the future. The fair welcomed 130 countries, organizations, etc. and was a replica of the original 1851 Great London Exhibition. Expo 98 permitted the creation of Parque das Nacoes.

The three main attractions of the park are the Oceanarium, the Oriente Station and the Vasco da Gama Bridge. The Oceanarium is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Portugal, an amazing aquarium displaying a review of all the wonders of the Atlantic Ocean. The Oriente Station is another trip into the future, a roof made of iron and glass designed by architect Santiago Calatrava. Last but not least, the Vasco da Gama Bridge measures 17 km in length, making it one of the largest (and longest) bridges in the world.

A day at the Parque das Nacoes can make for an excellent family outing, especially since there are additional attractions to explore, such as the water gardens, a marina and a modern built casino, as well as two imposing twin towers named after two of the ships of Vasco da Gama, Sao Gabriel and Sao Rafael.

Accessing the park is quite easy, most of the tourists arrive at the Oriente Station (which houses a train station, a metro station and a bus terminal), but you can also choose to rent a car in Lisbon or employ the fastest and best way, a Lisbon airport transfer.

Mid-February around the world brings flowers and candy and red heart-shaped boxes and balloons for Valentine’s Day on February 14th. Lisbon is no exception. The capital city of Portugal turns into a capital of love, as its restaurants, bars and clubs are flooded by lovers eager to celebrate their affection.

February is also the month of Carnivals in Portugal. With celebrations mainly centered around Madeira Island and the Algarve (the Loule Festival has a centenary tradition), Lisbon nevertheless has its share of street parties, confetti, parades and music. Silly rather than professional dances are in store along with masked parties and glee. Parque Nacoes is the focal point and the date is February 17th.

March brings about more than spring and the sense of rebirth. There are many events to look forward to, mainly concerts and the March 22nd Half Marathon which starts in Almada and finishes in Belem. 25.000 runners of different levels of ability will run along the Tagus River.

Among the artists that will be performing in concerts in Lisbon this month of March 2015 we must mention the Scorpions (March 10th), Boyce Avenue (March 14th) and Beyonce (26th and 27th of March). If you are a football fan, you can go to a Benfica match.

Moreover, if you travel an hour from Lisbon to Obidos, you can participate in the 13th edition of the International Chocolate Festival held between April 16th and May 3rd.

Spring is the best time to travel to Lisbon and see it in full bloom and once you are there, you might need a Lisbon tour or a Lisbon airport transfer to cater for your transport needs.

Lisbon is all about the verve, the happiness, the entertainment, the sport and the romantic beauty of architecture. Here is what you simply can’t miss out on during the coming year 2015.

Start January with a smile on your face with a typical French comic opera: Los Diamantes de la Corona, zarzuela by Francisco Asenjo Barbieri. Performances are held between 22nd and 29th of January. On January 25th, treat yourself to a royal exhibition: A Shared History: Treasures of the Royal Palaces of Spain.

On the 8th of February 2015, football at the Benfica Lisboa is on your list if you are a sports enthusiast. If a more cultivated type of sport is what you enjoy, you can attend the Lisbon International Show Jumping Competition in May and admire the most beautiful horses.

Regarding all-year round tourist attractions and activities, you can always opt for a Lisbon tour or even a culinary voyage through Lisbon and its surroundings, where you can taste its cuisine and delight in a glass of Portuguese wine.

What attractions can you visit in Lisbon? One of the most popular of all is the Belem Tower, a 16th century masterpiece in the Manueline style by architect Francisco de Arruda. Another landmark is the Lisbon Museum, where you can learn everything about the culture of the country.

And since the sea is such an active part in the life of the Portuguese, the Oceanarium of Lisbon will give you a glimpse into the magical world of sea life.

Hoping we have given you more than enough reasons to start a great 2015 in Portugal, we once again wish you a wonderful New Year!