Some of the Best Trails and Places To Stay

In this article you’ll find tips on some of the best hiking trails in Portugal. It’s a shortlist of some scenic, mostly easy paths that will allow you to experience local culture. Make hiking in Portugal your next adventure when exploring  Europe!

Hiking in Portugal: tips on the best trails

Are you the kind of person who checks the hiking trails of a country you’re planning to visit before even booking a flight? Then we have some good news if you’re looking for some of the best hiking trails in Portugal, where the forest grows year after year, rather than disappearing. If you do not feel like exploring the countryside and cities solo, you can pick some of the best small group tours of Portugal.

Lousã Mountain trail in Portugal

Thick milky mist was covering the sleepy forest that morning, when we headed up to Serra da Lousã (Lousã Mountain). Starting our hiking in Portugal with trekking path was like entering a mysterious realm where you don’t really know what is hidden under the white layers of fog.

These secretive feelings disappeared once we hiked up to the forest, with a bright sun peeking from behind high pine and eucalyptus trees. The path to the top of Lousã Mountain is not dramatically steep, but there are some parts in the forest where you’ll start to breathe faster, and your muscles will be challenged, too.

Most of the walking trail goes through a forest, which is a big relief especially in hot summer, and a couple of fountains with spring water can literally save you when you need some refreshment along the way.

Interesting places around Lousã Mountain

Apart from the beautiful views you get while following the path, you can find a few special spots where not so many hikers arrive. Our favourite was Santuário de Nossa Senhora da Piedade, a shrine above river pools with a quirky statue of Jesus in one of the chapels. You don’t see a holy person twisted into painful position carrying the cross with a smile on His face every day.

Here you can find more interesting itineraries in Portugal.

Join some of the tours in Portugal:

Watch this video to get inspired. Credit: Portugal Tourism

The Lousã Mountain path is worth taking mainly for the ancient schist villages scattered among the hills in the forest, as they are almost invisible from below the mountain. Schist is an ancient building material, that has recently become very popular to make trendy thin plates made of layers of rocks.

The most famous, but also the most heavily reconstructed schist village, is Talasnal. It was abandoned in the 1950s during a mass exodus from the countryside, but it is coming back to life thanks to wealthy locals and foreigners who renovated some of the houses and started renting them out.

A quiet alley in Talasnal.

Most of the schist houses attached to the renovated ones are still empty. Walking between the rocky walls, heavy wooden doors and windows that won’t allow you to look inside will make you wonder what lies beyond. In the village, you’ll find a “bar” with souvenirs; a very modest shop with local home made delicacies and handcrafted goods.

To experience an immensely quiet atmosphere, where the past triumphs over the present, make sure to visit the villages of Casal Novo, Catarredor or Vaqueirinho and Chiqueiro, where local shepherds still live. Definitely a must when hiking in Portugal!

More info for Lousa hiking trail

The hike we did was 11.53 km / 0.6 mi long and it took us 5.5 hours to complete it.
Maximum altitude: 538 m / 0.33 mi
Download the full map of hiking in Lousã.

Insider tips:
1. Bring sturdy hiking shoes with you. There are a few parts where the trail gets really rocky.
2. In summer, snakes love to sunbath on hot stones near trails, so be aware of your steps when hiking there.
3. If you want to cool down, bring swimwear. You can take a dip in one of the river pools you’ll pass on your way around the Lousã Mountains.

How to get to Lousã

Take a train from Lisbon (Santa Apolonia station) to Coimbra B (station for high-speed trains). From there take a regional train to Coimbra A (station for regional trains in the center of town). When you exit the Coimbra A train station, cross the road on your right (direction of the river) and take a bus to Lousã. The whole journey from Lisbon to Lousã takes about 2.5 hours.

Where to stay in Lousã, Portugal

If you want to immerse yourself in local history, you can do so at the  Octant Lousã boutique hotel. It’s an 18th-century palace with stylish décor, spacious rooms, outdoor swimming pool and international cuisine served in an impressive dining room.

The hotel holds a remarkable place in history. Here Marechal Massena, a commander of the Napoleonic troops, was getting ready for his dinner when he found out they were being attacked. He fled immediately, leaving his dinner for his enemy, Duke of Wellington.
 In Palácio da Lousã, the first local newspaper was also published.

The hotel serves special honey produced from local pollen. You can buy it together with other natural products (teas, bee pollen) at the reception.

Best hotels in Lousa, Portugal

Quintal del Alem
A 4-star accommodation with kids pool, terrace and garden. The hotels has also restaurant and bar.

Talasnal Montanhas de Amor
If you want to sleep in the schist village of Talasnal, this is your best choice. A rustic property surrounded by nature.

Pousada de Juventude da Lousa
If you travel on a budget this hostel has dormitories, twin rooms, kitchen and lounge with free wifi.

Plan your trip to Portugal :

Borba: hiking trail in Serra d’Ossa

The colour ‘sky blue’ must have been invented in the Alentejo region of Portugal. When we got off the car near the bridge before starting our hike in Serra d’Ossa, we would have stared at that blue for hours, was it not for the bright sun.

Blue sky of Alentejo.

The excitement of setting off for a hike that had been created only a few weeks before our arrival was quite overwhelming. We had no idea what scenery to expect, how difficult the path would be and we were quite thrilled that we couldn’t see any previous reviews of the hike. We followed the brand new yellow/red sign feeling truly challenged and delighted when we realised that we were probably two of the first hikers there (if not the very first ones.)

We walked below an enchanting, motionless blue sky with no clouds, we passed curious cows taking their daily “dose” of fresh grass, while tiny flowers and leaves that created a beautiful alleyway tickled our ankles. That’s how our hike in Serra d’Ossa near Borba commenced.

Dry trees mingled with their younger brothers and sisters, creating shade for thousands of fern bushes that contrasted with the dry soil we walked on later.
 Once you arrive at the top of the mountain range, you get a view of scattered villages and cork trees farms, lakes and private pools. Both equally tempting. Elegant eucalyptus trees and thyme bushes offering free aromatherapy, lazy introvert snails swinging on wild chestnut flowers; a summer yellow landscape, with solemn cork trees growing apart from one another. That’s Alentejo.

Interesting places to stop around Serra d’Ossa

A unique São Gregório’s chapel.São Gregório village.

Don’t miss this place when hiking in Portugal. What looks like a chapel with a single house from afar, is in fact a hidden village where up to 40 people used to live.

São Gregório village was abandoned in the 1980s, but things have changed since then immensely, and now you can even rent the whole village for yourself! The houses have been renovated and welcome tourists, check the latest deals of the rooms. Check the latest price on Booking.com . In any case, this tiny village on the top of the vineyards and below the mountains is definitely worth a visit!

More info for Borba hiking trail

The hike is 11.95 km / 7.4 mi long and we did it in 4 hours.
Maximum altitude: 548 m / 0.34 mi
Download the full map of hiking in Borba.

Insider tips:
1. Bring enough water with you. There’s no source of water on the way.
2. Don’t forget sunscreen or coconut oil. You’ll walk half of the way under the sun, with no shade.
3. If you need to grab a map of the area or pick the best hiking trail/outdoor activity for you, please visit the new multimedia local tourism office in Borba.

New technologies make the office more interactive and interesting as you can see directly how the trail looks like or whether a historical tour around nearby villages would be attractive enough for you.

Now you see why you need a lot of water and sun protection.

How to get to Serra d’Ossa

One of the best options for a hike in Serra d’Ossa in the Alentejo region is to have a base in Borba municipality. You can take a train from Lisbon to Evora (1.5 hour) where you can have a break in the historical center and then continue with a bus to Borba (1 hour 10 minutes).

Where to stay in Borba, Portugal

Borba is a quintessential small Alentejo town, where you can get a perfect glimpse of local life in Portugal. You’ll walk tiny streets with lots of small cafes on squares that are never empty, visit unique churches with no tourist queues, and you’ll be able to have tasty local meals in small taskas.

At the Casa do Terreiro do Poço.To stay close to local life, we recommend Casa do Terreiro do Poço, a very special hotel where Mr. João and Mrs. Rita (owners of the hotel) put their passion for design and furniture into their hotel business.

Apart from chilling out on your own terrace or in a big lounge, you can freshen up in a swimming pool. The hotel has recently got four new rooms with a new garden for guests to relax – which is not hard to do, since the place is located in a very quiet area.

Best Hotels for Evora (near Borba), Portugal

Pousada Convento
A 5-star accommodation close to Roman Temple, eateries and shops. Each room comes with cable/satellite channels and wifi.

Evora Hotel
This 4-star hotel features a golf course, outdoor tennis courts, swimming pool and all rooms with balcony. It has also restaurant and lounge bar.

Vitoria Stone
A 4-star hotels with outdoor swimming pool and spa. The hotel features a restaurant and a bar and is located close to all sightseeing attractions.

Penafiel hiking trail near Porto

Visiting Penafiel, a municipality located only 39 km /24 mi from Porto, was like watching a short documentary about rural landscapes. Whispering women arranging flowers before Sunday Mass, a bashful man pulling his cart overloaded with hay, vineyards with no fence, folk music blowing from a distance, women hanging the laundry briskly so they can run away from the hot sun.

Passing through villages of Galegos, Alvite, Santo Ilos, we were immersed in local life. We observed life around us, talking to farmers, vendors and house wives. We stopped at a random house asking for a bit of drinking water because our bottles had been empty for a long time.

A walk in Penafiel is not a typical hike in nature. Although you’ll enter a few eucalyptus forests there, it’s much more about getting to know local life and interacting with locals. If this is your way of exploring places, you’ll find what you look for in Penafiel. One of the best choices if you want to take it easy while hiking in Portugal.

Interesting places to see in Penafiel

The rooms are very bright and stylish, with a cozy lounge and fireplace. There’s an outdoor swimming pool with comfortable blankets and sitting bags outside. Check the latest price on Booking.com.

The hotel is a family run business in true sense. The Vinhas care about their guests with love and respect everyone’s needs. Do you need some advice about transport or local shops? Ask them. Do you have a travel story to share? Talk to enthusiastic Iva.

Do you fancy having some local wine? The owner of the hotel will be glad to join you. And if you wonder where all these fresh ingredients for your breakfast/dinner come from, say thanks to Iva’s mother.

Best Hotels for Penafiel, Portugal

Casa de Ventozella
This country house offers rooms with equipped kitchen with dishwasher, oven, coffee machine and kettle. All units have a private bathroom.

Penafiel Park Hotel & Spa
This 4-star hotel features jacuzzi, indoor pool, sauna and mineral bath. There are also several rooms specifically designated for families.

How to organize hiking in Portugal

Some of you might be avid independent hikers, but some of you, as you told us, prefer to have things nicely scheduled and get some local assistance. There’s no way to tell who is right. If you belong to the second group, we suggest considering We Love Small Hotels (WLSH) as your choice when planning hiking in Portugal.

WLSH is an aspiring initiative of locals who love nature, history and genuine local life, and decided to combine it with friendly, cozy and stylish hotels which will eventually become your base when indulging in the hiking tours.

The concept of the company is to help you to choose the best tour in Portugal as well as to help you to pick the best accommodation (with choices of charm, history, country categories).

Once you choose a hotel (or more of them if you stay in Portugal for some time), you will be able to match it with tours that will suit you best (walking, biking, bird watching, food & wine, romance or family).

The whole package also includes a pick-up from the airport, where a representative of WLSH will provide you all necessary information and GPS devices with installed Wikiloc application (this app also works offline on your mobiles.)

The tours are self-guided (apart from bird watching). We did all these three hikes in Portugal with the app as we found it pretty easy to follow. Bonus of the app: there’s no rush to follow a group or your guide and you can have a break whenever you like.

You’ll be able to pick the length of a tour depending on your needs and fitness level, as there are shorter and longer variations of some tours.

All the tours have been designed by the team of We Love Small Hotels and they are constantly working to make them even better and more interesting. Well, seeing the joy and dedication to their work in the hotel in Penafiel, which is part of the company, we’re confident they’ll keep following their ambitions.

Pack and travel:

Disclosure: Our hiking in Portugal experience was possible with the help of We Love Small Hotels who kindly hosted us in Lousã and Penafiel and of João and Rita who invited us to spend a couple of nights at their family hotel in Borba. A big thanks goes also to Interrail.eu, who generously provided Interrail train passes for us.

Our opinions, sweaty backs, foreheads and arms, caught trains and a missed stop are our own.

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