Private tours in Lisbon & surroundings
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Obidos, Alcobaça, Nazaré, Batalha, Fatima - full day
Personalized booking
Program
Travel northwards and arrive at the beautiful and very ancient walled town called
Obidos - medieval city surrounded by the castle with picturesque narrow streets,
whitewashed houses, iron balconies, flower pots in every window. Inhabited by
Romans and Arabs, this was the dwelling place of the Portuguese court for more
than 500 years.
Drive to Alcobaca and stop in this charming ancient town. Free time to visit the XII
century Alcobaca Monastery. It has the longest church in Portugal, an amazing
construction which resisted time and earthquakes and where you can see how
Cistercian monks used to live. See also the tombs of king Peter and Ines, the 2
lovers of the most dramatic Portuguese love story. The cloisters are worthwhile a
stopover: wander around the garden, kitchen, cellar, refectory, chapter house,
dormitory, Kings’ hall of this centenary dwelling place of friars.
Free time for lunch in Nazare, the most colourful of Portuguese fishing villages
and the richest fishing region of Portugal, where one can see fishermen and their
wives wearing traditional clothes. This seaside resort is also famous for its
beautiful handicraft. After lunch, go up to the cliff near the beach, for a superb
view of the village and coastline.
Proceed to Batalha Monastery, a XIV century masterpiece in Gothic style. Here
you can admire the highest church in Portugal, the Royal Pantheon of the
Portuguese “Conquerors of the Sea” – the so-called “Magnificent generation”, the
beautiful manueline cloister, the chapter house with the tomb of the Unknown
Soldier and the Unfinished Chapels.
Finally Fatima - the Center of Christian faith and a local of world's pilgrimage. See
the chapel where Our Lady appeared to the shepherds, the Basilica and the vast
square where people crawl on their knees towards the heart of the shrine, in a
impressive sign of faith and devotion, lightning a candle, praying and making a
vow to Our Lady or fulfilling a promise. Religious services can be attended. Visit
also Aljustrel with the humble houses where the shepherds lived.
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...Perched on a hill rising out of an agricultural plain, Óbidos is one of Portugal’s
picturesque gems. From its lofty centre one gazes upon expanses of vineyards speckled with
whirling windmills and terracotta-roofed homesteads. Nearer, narrow cobbled streets, lined
typically with whitewashed, bougainvillaea-draped houses, wind up to the walled interior.
The region was the westernmost limit of the Roman Empire. Under Portuguese rule,
Obidos flourished into a major trading port. Every Portuguese queen was given Obidos as
a wedding present. Obidos continues to be a popular destination during the summer, when
tourists jam the streets to explore the city’s medieval charm....
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...The city of Alcobaça became notable after the first king of Portugal, Afonso Henriques,
decided to build there a Monastery to celebrate the conquest of Santarém. It’s one of the
most magnificent gothic monuments in the country and was the first Gothic building in
Portugal, started in the 12th century. Over the centuries this monastery had an important
role on Portuguese culture. The Cistecian monks in Alcobaça dedicated their lives to
meditation, working and teaching. They created the first public school in Portugal, which
was begun in 1269, and the use of the land for farming purposes, providing a genuine
agricultural training ground, the fruits of which are still visible today...
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…Possibly the most famous fishing town in Portugal, Nazaré is unique in many ways. It
has an atmosphere of times gone by, contentment and traditions, which continue to thrive,
which make it a special place to visit. Along the seafront of Nazaré, people still dry their
catch of fish in the sun and mend their boats alongside sunbathing holidaymakers. A
throng of craft shops and cafes stretches the length of the Avenida Marginal, as well as
restaurants serving a great variety of the local speciality, which is of course fish. Until not
too long ago, fishermen were still seen using oxen to pull their brightly painted boats from
the ocean and even today many locals still wear their characteristic traditional costumes:
the fishermen have check shirts and trousers, and the women wear several layers of
petticoats. The fishing boats are Phoenician in design with bright colours and eyes painted
on the vessels, supposedly with the magical power to avert storms…
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...In the XIV century, king Ferdinand died without a male heir to the throne; this
originated the most significant civil war in Portugal, involving England and Spain. The
winner, king John I, ordered the construction of this Monastery in homage to his victory
and to be his Royal Pantheon. In fact, he started also what would become known as the
“Magnificent Generation”, those Monarchs who gave the impulse and consolidated the
gigantic Portuguese Empire. The Monastery was to be the Portuguese monarchy's main
building project for the next two centuries. Here a highly original, national Gothic style
evolved, profoundly influenced by Manueline art...
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...The Catholic Church regards the three parts of the Fatima Secret and the total Fatima
message to be important and of great value to the spiritual lives of its people. It consists
only of prophecies about the new condition of the Church in the world.... Fatima and its
Secret do present us with something deeply serious, for they bring us face to face with the
mysteries of eternal life. Fatima is undoubtedly the most prophetic of modern apparitions.
Faith and prayer are forces which can influence history and that in the end prayer is more
powerful than bullets and faith more powerful than armies...
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