Self-Guided Leisure Cycling Holiday - Historic Villages

Cycling Holidays

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Holidays that move you

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Holiday Highlights

Exploring Marvão and its hill top castle offering incredible views of the area
Staying overnight in “the most Portuguese village of Portugal” – Monsanto
Staying in a charming Pousada built into the mountain top
Visiting the old Roman village of Egitânia with its olive oil press
Spending an afternoon in the remote, modern Spa of Cró with its lovely warm water pool
Spending your final night in Almeida

View Holiday Schedule

Day	Description	Distance	Meals
1	Arrival into Lisbon Airport - Transfer to Marvão
2	Marvão to V.V. de Rodão	32 Miles / 51 Kms Approx.	B
3	V.V. de Rodão to Idanha-a-Nova	45 Miles / 73 Kms Approx.	B
4	Idanha-a-Nova to Monsanto	24 Miles / 39 Kms Approx.	B
5	Monsanto to Sortelha	35 Miles / 57 Kms Approx.	B
6	Sortelha to Cró	18 Miles / 30 Kms Approx.	B
7	Cró to Almeida	31 Miles / 51 Kms Approx.	B
8	Departure from Almeida - Transfer to Lisbon Airport		B

Meals: B = Breakfast L = Lunch D = Dinner | Please keep in mind the distances and ascent information provided are intended to be indicative and may vary from the actuals due to accommodation changes or when compared on different GPS devices and software

For more information download our trip notes

Holiday Information

This lovely self guided cycling holiday in Portugal takes you through the remote and beautiful eastern border between Portugal and Spain. On quiet country roads you will explore this traditional region, take in its natural beauty and experience its Roman and medieval history.

Travelling from south to north, you'll skirt the Spanish border passing through white villages built around medieval castles that once served as outposts to guard against the Spanish invasions. You'll stay in small, good quality accommodation and with excellent local food to boot, this cycling holiday is a true gem!

Your cycling starts in Marvão and follows narrow countryside roads meandering through a stunning granite landscape. Highlights along the way include the Tejo river and its imponent gorge at Vila Velha de Rodao, Monsanto once considered the "most Portuguese village of Portugal", medieval Sortelha and the fortified village of Almeida - a jewel of the 18th century, where a stay in a beautiful Pousada is a fitting end to this wonderful cycling journey through Portugal.

You will be provided with route notes, maps, and GPS so navigating the day's rides couldn't be easier! With start dates flexible and lots of great flight options now possible to Lisbon, there's never been a better time to enjoy a week of cycling in the ever lovely Portugal.

For more information download our trip notes

Holiday Feedback

Great scenery...

We enjoyed the ride to Monsanto very much and Sortelha was a great destination with great scenery en route. We very much enjoyed the quiet and remoteness of this ride. Antonio and Alfredo both gave us insights into the country which were very helpful. The villages that we stayed in were very interesting and the festival at Monsanto had amazingly skilled performers and was great fun.

Lucy, Bath, UK
Both guides were very supportive...

I liked all days but probably the most enjoyable was day 3 where we had less distance to cover and could spend some time in Idaho a Velha (Egitanea) were I enjoyed the Roman buildings and we had time for a meal at the restaurant. The small country roads were particularly nice. The road up to Monsanto was very hard but it was worth it to be up there.

Both guides were very supportive throughout and we had the pleasure of their company on several evenings. I left a hat at one of the hotels (Vila Velha de Rodao) and one guide was able to arrange for us to drop by to collect it on the way back to Lisbon. A small thing but I was pleased to get it back. The gift of oranges from the taxi driver was also particularly enjoyed! Overall I felt we got a lot of extra service on this holiday which I was not expecting. The Garmin navigation devices provided also worked well.

Robert, Cambridgeshire
Loved every moment.

Loved every moment. My favourite day was probably day 2 just because we felt such a sense of achievement after. I also liked Sortelha very much. We were happy with the variety, and our tour guides were fantastic. The notes were great especially the maps and elevations. It was a great holiday. We visited a beautiful part of Portugal which we would never have found on our own. The variety of route was a lovely surprise each day.

Anne, Cambridgeshire
I'd highly recommend this trip!

Our representatives were full of useful information and recommendations, for example; what restaurants to eat at in the evening, lunch stops and places to see en-route and were always happy to help or advise. The routes were lovely – we experienced the great countryside with challenging and well chosen quiet routes. I’d highly recommend Antonio to anyone.

Helen, East Sussex
A first rate crew!

I would recommend the Historic Villages Self-Guided to any cyclist. Your local partners were the best. We really appreciated their positive attitude – attention to detail and local knowledge. A first rate crew!

Harold, Canada
Excellent...

This was another excellent chance to visit another country with travel, accommodation & local information all provided.

Good variety of terrain; lovely countryside; amazing wild flowers; so many birds singing & the overall scent of flowers & tree vegetation in the air. The sun was shining & lots of downhills to enjoy! The variety of terrain was exactly as had been described to us. This was our first taste of route navigation with GPS ; no family “consultations” at junctions; no maps and directions to turn over in whatever the weather. What a difference.

Antonio Malvar gave us probably the best service we have received from all our Skedaddle cycling holidays. The holiday pack of information was comprehensive & had everything we needed; our week’s route & accommodation stops were explained to us in detail at our initial hotel venue. Antonio made sure we understood the use of the bike GPS devices and he followed up the next day to check the level of battery power remaining & our route & day’s holiday had been OK. Having A’s company for dinner the first evening helped to explain some of the Portuguese services and what we were likely to find as we went from place to place. A’s partner, Tiago, who joined us for the end of the holiday & drove us back to Lisbon was again as discrete or as helpful as we wished. They both clearly enjoyed cycling themselves; their work and made “customer care” their business and they were proud of their country.

Graham, York
We love Skedaddling...

Excellent service by the Skedaddle – Rui was very attentive and when he was transfering bags he always stopped for a chat and to check we were ok. He couldn’t do enough for us.

Tucker, Leeds