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Local guides

Places we love around our homes — sights, food, beaches and the practical bits, gathered by the people who live there.

A viewpoint over the green ridge and turquoise coast of the Serra da Arrábida

Costa da Caparica

The Serra da Arrábida and Portinho da Arrábida

A green limestone ridge that drops straight into a turquoise sea between Sesimbra and Setúbal — the most striking landscape close to…

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Aerial view of Sesimbra's bay, beach and hilltop castle

Costa da Caparica

Sesimbra — a fishing town with a castle and a beach

A fishing town in a sheltered south-facing bay on the far side of the Arrábida hills, with warmer, calmer water than the…

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A palm-lined street of cafés and restaurants in central Cascais

Costa da Caparica

Cascais — the town, the harbour and the beaches

The old fishing town turned resort at the western end of the Lisbon coast railway — compact, walkable, and made for a…

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Aerial view of the lighthouse and cliffs at Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point of mainland Europe

Costa da Caparica

Cabo da Roca and the Guincho coast

The westernmost point of mainland Europe, and the run of cliffs, dunes and one enormous Atlantic beach between there and Cascais.

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Aerial view of the Palácio da Pena, painted red and yellow above Sintra

Costa da Caparica

Sintra — the Pena Palace and the Quinta da Regaleira

A cluster of palaces and gardens in wooded hills half an hour west of Lisbon — one of the busiest day trips…

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The Vasco da Gama Tower and cable car over the Parque das Nações waterfront

Costa da Caparica

Parque das Nações and the Oceanário — modern Lisbon by the water

The 1998 world's-fair site, now a riverside district of wide promenades and gardens, with one of the best aquariums in Europe —…

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Lunch by the water at Cacilhas, with Lisbon across the Tejo

Costa da Caparica

Cacilhas — the ferry to Lisbon, the Ginjal quay and the old frigate

The ferry terminal across the Tejo from Lisbon, with seafood restaurants, a riverside walk under the cliff, and a nineteenth-century sailing frigate…

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