Porto to Lisbon Atlantic Ride

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!

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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!

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.

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!

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.