Spain and Portugal for Seniors: 7-Day December Tour

Our family had an absolutely amazing experience traveling through Portugal, thanks to Zicasso’s travel specialist and her company. Every detail of our vacation was thoughtfully planned and customized to fit our family's interests, making the trip completely stress-free and enjoyable.

We spent the first half of our trip in Lisbon, with unforgettable day trips to Sintra, Nazaré, and Óbidos. Our tour guide was exceptionally knowledgeable and brought Portugal's history and culture to life. She was also wonderful with our family and made every excursion engaging for both adults and children.

Our travel specialist was outstanding from start to finish. She greeted us at the airport, coordinated all of our transportation, checked in with us throughout the trip, and ensured everything ran seamlessly. Her attention to detail and genuine care for her clients truly set her apart.

For the second half of our vacation, we traveled to Lagos in the Algarve. Our kids had an incredible time at the waterpark and loved kayaking through the stunning sea caves. These experiences were perfectly chosen for our family and created lasting memories.

One of the things we appreciated most was that all of our guides and drivers were Portuguese. This gave us an authentic perspective on the country, its culture, and its people that we never would have experienced otherwise.

I highly recommend our travel specialist and her team to anyone looking for a unique, personalized, and memorable trip to Portugal. Their professionalism, local expertise, and outstanding service made this one of the best family vacations we have ever taken.

I didn't understand the relationship between Zicasso and its travel company, and it took me a while to get the triangular reporting scheme. It was easier for me to reach out to someone directly, but we managed.

The people at the travel company were very accommodating. However, I learned a lot about my own travel preferences through this trip. We spent four days in Porto, the first being arrival from the US via Lisbon, so we did not do any touring that day. We only had half a day to explore on our own given the activities that were planned for us. I would like to have had more downtime in Porto to get to know the city.

The foodie tour that we took was fabulous. Our guide took us on a very personal tour, introducing us to her favorites and including all the things we wanted to achieve. Please send her our regards and personal thanks.

We spent a day in Vinho Verde. As the harvest had been completed the day before we arrived, the experience felt contrived. We could easily have skipped this.

The Douro Valley exploration was more interesting to us. We visited two wineries, the second of which was more special, so we enjoyed the tasting more thoroughly. Again, the guide was delightful!

We took a train back to Lisbon feeling like we had missed much of Porto. As we expressed interest in Jewish history, we booked our first morning tour through a tour booking platform to supplement what the travel company provided. While they said their guides would be knowledgeable in this area, there was no guide that provided that background.

Our train ride to Lisbon ended in a surprise. We were about to descend the stairs to the Oriente platform when the doors closed suddenly and the train left. Fortunately, the next stop was not far and we were able to turn ourselves around and return to our awaiting driver.

Our day in Sintra and Cascais was disappointing. We drove to Cascais and had 25 minutes to explore. We then continued to Sintra. We were not sure what access we were provided, but another couple had full access and their admittance was for 12:00, so we had to be there by then. While it is a spectacular site, it was way too crowded to see anything, and a guided tour of the site would have been desirable.

We were able to include a visit to an estate due to a working relationship that exists with them. They have cork forests on their property, so there was no reason to visit Évora for that purpose.

All in all, the drivers and guides we were given were thoughtful, professional, helpful, and concerned… always helping us with doors, luggage, footing. Having them immediately available was extremely useful. On the other hand, we learned that we were not as interested in camp for adults, where all of our activities were planned for us, as we were in learning and feeling the culture and spirit of the country. The country is beautiful and its people quite warm and friendly.

Special thanks to our travel coordinator for picking up the pieces of our trip and finalizing the details for us.

The trip was lovely, but our itinerary was too busy. We’re seniors and enjoy downtime each day. Some of the trips with drivers were too long. Our hotel in Barcelona was very nice with great food. The hotel in Seville was disappointing. The concept of Zicasso is good, but age-appropriate planning would be an improvement.

We had a wonderful experience working with our Zicasso travel agent for our trip to Portugal. From the beginning, everything was thoughtfully planned and organized, which allowed us to really enjoy the trip instead of worrying about all the little details.

Our itinerary was very well balanced. We were able to experience Lisbon, the beautiful Douro Valley and Pinhão, Sintra, and Cascais, and each destination felt different and special. We especially appreciated that the trip included organized experiences and enough free time for us to explore on our own.

The hotels, transportation, tours, and other arrangements worked together very smoothly, and we felt that a lot of thought had gone into creating an itinerary that made sense geographically and gave us a good variety of experiences. When we had questions or needed clarification before or during the trip, our agent was helpful and responsive.

This was our first trip to Portugal and it ended up being one of those vacations that we will remember for a very long time. We came home with so many great memories, from the food and wine to the scenery, history, and wonderful places we visited.

We truly appreciate all the work that went into planning our vacation and would definitely recommend our agent to anyone considering a trip to Portugal or Europe. Thank you for helping make our Portugal trip such a memorable experience!

After returning from our incredible trip through Spain and Portugal, I felt compelled to leave a review for the travel company that helped make this experience so memorable.

From our very first conversations, the level of service and attention to detail from Zicasso’s travel specialists was truly exceptional. Every aspect of the trip was thoughtfully planned, from selecting beautiful four-plus-star hotel accommodations to coordinating private drivers, transfers, tours, and day trips throughout Spain and Portugal. It was clear they personally vet and care about the quality of every experience they recommend.

Our itinerary included Madrid, Granada, Seville, Ronda, Lagos, Lisbon, Cascais, Sintra, Nazaré, and Óbidos, and every transition throughout the trip was seamless and stress-free.

What truly set this agency apart, however, was the level of care and support they provided when things became unexpectedly difficult during our travels. My husband experienced severe stomach issues throughout much of the trip, including needing medical attention and a hospital visit while abroad. During an already stressful situation, the travel specialists went far above and beyond anything we expected from a travel agency.

They were immediately responsive at all hours, helped coordinate support when needed, offered assistance communicating with pharmacists, checked in on us regularly, and ensured our private drivers and guides remained available and flexible around our circumstances. Their kindness, compassion, and genuine concern made an overwhelming situation feel much more manageable while being far from home.

There was also one hotel room during the trip that did not meet expectations and the agency handled it immediately and professionally. The travel specialist quickly stepped in, offered to cover the upgrade, and worked directly with the hotel to ensure we were comfortable. Both the agency and the hotel responded with a level of customer service that honestly exceeded my expectations.

I also appreciated how receptive the travel specialist was to feedback throughout the trip. There was one driver whose driving style made me somewhat uncomfortable and, after mentioning it, he responded immediately, took the concern seriously, and ensured all future drivers met the level of professionalism and comfort we expected.

It’s rare these days to find a company that combines professionalism, responsiveness, luxury-level planning, and true personal care the way this team does. This was not simply a “booked vacation,” it felt like having trusted support throughout the entire journey.

I cannot recommend the travel specialists and their agency highly enough. If you are considering travel to Spain, Portugal, or Europe in general and want a seamless, personalized, high-touch experience, they are absolutely outstanding.

Pace was appropriate. Excursions were wonderful, especially with our guide. He was amazing. We loved the cork tour with another guide. The lunch was spectacular. Loved Sintra. The Port wine tasting turned out to be great, but started a little rough because we didn’t really know what it entailed. But at the end, fabulous. Loved the Douro Valley boat cruise.