The capital’s backyard offers some seriously enticing side trips. A succession of attractive coastal resorts and camera-ready towns lie within a 50-km (31-mile) stretch north and south of the Tagus River. You’ll find impressive palaces in Sintra, upscale entertainment in Cascais and Estoril, glorious beaches in Guincho and Costa da Caparica, vine-covered countryside in the Setúbal Peninsula, and some of the best places in Portugal to enjoy delicious fresh seafood in Setúbal and Sesimbra.

Vacationers are nothing new here. The early Christian kings adopted the lush hills and valleys of Sintra as a summer retreat and designed estates that survive today. Similarly, Lisbon's 18th- and 19th-century nobility developed small resorts along the Estoril Coast; the amenities and ocean views are still greatly sought after. For swimming, modern Lisboetas look a little farther afield—south across the Tagus River to the beaches and resorts of the Costa da Caparica and the southern Setúbal Peninsula. But whichever direction you travel and whatever your interests, you'll be delighted with all that's available within an hour of Lisbon.