Sip and Savor Portugal
Nine days across Porto, the Douro Valley, and Évora. Dinners in local homes. Wine with Ines at her family's estate. Cooking in Sofia's kitchen.
“Adolfo's roast chicken and vegetable lunch and award-winning chocolate cake dessert was my favorite meal of the trip! I've told the story several times since we got home of how Adolfo has 200 goats, makes cheese that is purchased by Michelin star restaurants, and opened his little shop that day just for us AND prepared lunch for us! Such a unique and special experience!” - Kathleen H.
→ Évora
Imagine yourself…
Cooking in a local chef's home in Évora, sipping wine on family-owned vineyards in the Douro Valley, and dining with a family right in the heart of Porto.
From the farms and the vines, all the way to the table.
Most food tours start at the plate. We start where the food does and follow it the whole way.
The fields
Cork forests and Douro vines.
The makers
A port house still in Portuguese hands.
The hands
Cooking in Sofia's kitchen.
The history
Walking tour around the city.
The table
A farm-to-table dining room closed for us.
Friends You Haven't Met Yet
Our personal relationships in Portugal open doors to experiences most travelers never have, like a chef sharing the secrets behind local dishes, a winemaker walking you through the vineyards, or a warm invitation to dine with a family in their home in Porto.
Chef Catarina - Porto
Wander the market together, then step into her kitchen for a hands-on cooking class in the heart of Porto.
Sofia - Evora
Pick vegetables straight from the garden, then cook traditional Alentejo dishes together in her kitchen.
Jorge & Family - Porto
Step into their home for a dinner of traditional dishes and unhurried conversation.
Ines - Duoro Valley
Wine tasting with Ines at her family's estate poured by someone who knows the vineyard by heart.
Be fully present. We’ve handled everything else.
✓ 4-5* Boutique Accommodations
✓ Airport meet and greet with private transfers
✓All ground transportation
✓ All meals listed in the itinerary
✓ Wine tastings and select alcoholic beverages with most meals
✓ All activities, experiences, tours, and sightseeing
✓ All taxes and tips for all drivers, guides, restaurants, and more
✓ 24/7 Tour Host
Exclusions: mandatory travel insurance, transportation or airfare to/from Portugal, hotel incidentals, and premium alcoholic beverages.
Just 6 – 12 travelers — small enough to fit inside a family kitchen.
"My standards are so much higher now."
"I've always had the travel bug, but after traveling with TTLT I know how unique a trip can be. Truly a life-changing experience."
"I loved not having to worry about one thing!"
"An amazing mix of interactive experiences."
"...dining in some of the smallest and best restaurants, and especially visits to small family businesses with amazing histories and stories."
Sip and Savor Portugal
Bem-vindo a Portugal
A private driver brings you from the airport to our hotel. Then we head straight out on a Porto food tour with our local guide and friend. This progressive dinner moves from place to place across the city, so you get a lay of the land and a taste of it in the same evening.
To the market with a chef, then a family table
We shop the Porto market with Chef Catarina, then cook what we bought together in a hands-on cooking class. In the evening, we join Jorge and his family at their home for a traditional dinner.
Across the bridge, into the port cellars
We cross the bridge to Gaia for a walking tour of the riverfront where the port houses keep their lodges. Then a private tour and tasting at Casa Ferreira, one of the last port houses still Portuguese-owned and run.
Into the terraced valley
We drive into the Douro Valley and admire the vineyards, terraces, and villages at the water’s edge. Lunch is at an old estate manor in the valley. Then free time at the hotel before we gather for dinner together.
On the river, then lunch at her family’s estate
A morning boat ride along the Douro (weather permitting) to see the terraces from the water. Then lunch and a wine tasting with Inês at her family's estate.
A cheesemaker who opens his restaurant for friends
On the drive south we stop at a small village where Adolfo, a respected cheesemaker, welcomes us to a private restaurant he opens for friends and family. We reach Évora in time for dinner together.
Aprons on in Sofia’s kitchen
A walking tour of Évora with Marie, including the Chapel of Bones, then a lunch built around traditional Alentejo dishes. In the evening we head to Sofia’s home and cook together in her kitchen.
Cork, olive oil, and a restaurant open for us alone
A cork factory tour to learn why cork is vital to the region, then an olive oil farm for a tour, tasting, and lunch. The afternoon is free. Our farewell dinner is at our favorite local restaurant, open tonight for no one but us.
Até já
An optional group breakfast before we say goodbye, with a private transfer arranged to the Lisbon airport or train station.
Our itinerary is always evolving as we coordinate with our friends in Portugal around their schedules. Consider it a vivid preview of what travel with us feels like.
Let's start with a conversation.
There's no commitment in asking. Whether you're wondering about the group dynamic, the activity level, or exactly what happens on day 7 — we're here. We'll reply within 24 hours.
Frequently Asked Questions
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This trip is moderately active: expect walking tours of up to 4 hours, cobblestone streets and uneven terrain, stairs, and extended periods of standing during markets and cooking classes. Travelers who are comfortable with a full, active day and reasonably long stretches on their feet will feel most at home on this itinerary.
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Our Portugal trips are capped at 6–12 travelers. We keep groups this small on purpose: it's the difference between a cooking class being a real conversation with a local chef versus a lecture to a crowd, and it means we can access family-run kitchens, home markets, and private spaces that larger tour groups simply can't get into.
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Our Portugal trip is a 9-day small group food journey through Porto, the Douro Valley, Évora, and the Alentejo countryside, built around hands-on cooking classes, market tours, and meals in the homes of local hosts rather than restaurant-only sightseeing.
You'll cook traditional Portuguese dishes alongside friends like Sofia in Évora (who taught us her family's recipes), taste centuries-old port wine traditions in the Douro Valley, and explore how Portuguese cuisine shaped food cultures around the world, all with a group small enough to get invited into kitchens a big tour bus never could.
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The Portugal trip is 9 days, with our upcoming departure set for April 23 - May 1, 2027.
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$11,000 per person based on double occupancy
$13,600 per person based on single occupancyPricing typically covers accommodations, most meals, cooking classes and market experiences with local hosts, in-country transportation, and a dedicated trip host.
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The itinerary moves through Porto, the Douro Valley, Évora, and the Alentejo countryside, tracing the country's food and wine story from the port wine cellars of the north to the rustic, market-driven cooking of the south. Each stop is chosen for a specific food experience whether that's a private wine estate visit or a cooking lesson in someone's home garden.
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You'll take part in hands-on cooking classes with local hosts, visit traditional markets to shop for ingredients before cooking with them, and sample port wine straight from the source in the Douro Valley. Traditional dishes and techniques are taught by the people who grew up making them which is the heart of how we design every Table Less Traveled trip.
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Place a deposit for your trip. Because our groups are capped at 12 travelers, Portugal departures tend to fill up well before the trip date, so we recommend reaching out as soon as you know you're interested.
