Setubal Wine Tour & Arrábida Park: Beach Lunch from Lisbon

Two Wine Cellars & a Clifftop Coast: The Setubal Day That Ends at the Beach

You get picked up from your Lisbon hotel at 9am and driven to two working wine cellars in Setubal, where you taste wines aged in barrel and bottle; a scenic drive through Arrábida Natural Park with stops at Sesimbra and Cabo Espichel lighthouse; and a lunch of grilled fish at a beach restaurant, all included. The driver returns you by 5pm, so you're back in the city for dinner if you want it.

Step-by-step itinerary

• Scenic drive through Serra da Arrábida
• Visit Arrábida Natural Park with guide
• Visit Oceanographic Museum at Fort
• Tour wine caves and cellars
• Wine tasting at José Maria da Fonseca
• Lunch at Portinho da Arrábida beach

The Experience

"The wines here, they don't travel well — you have to come to them," our guide said as we pulled into the first cellar, and he wasn't wrong. The day starts with a 9am pickup from your Lisbon accommodation, then it's about 45 minutes south to Setubal, where the real work begins. You'll visit two wine estates — the first is Quinta da Bacalhôa Palace, a nineteenth-century house with gardens that look like they belong in a different century, where you taste wines straight from the barrel in the ancient cellars. The Adega da Mata and Adega dos Teares Novos hold Periquita reds, and deeper down are the old Setúbal Muscatels, some of them over a hundred years old, resting in the dark. It's the kind of place where time moves differently.

After the second winery visit and tasting, the tour shifts. You drive through Serra da Arrábida Natural Park — the landscape changes from vineyard slopes to something more dramatic, with white chalk cliffs rising straight up from turquoise water. The park sits between Sesimbra and Setubal, and it's one of the rare patches of Mediterranean vegetation left in Portugal, protected enough that you need a guide to walk certain areas. You'll pass Sesimbra, a fishing town that's stayed itself despite the tourists, and if the timing works, you stop at Cabo Espichel, where a hexagonal lighthouse from 1790 stands on a barren point overlooking the Atlantic. The view from up there is the kind you don't forget, but the guide doesn't linger — there's lunch waiting.

Around 1pm you're at Portinho da Arrábida, a beach restaurant where the catch of the day is actually the catch from that morning. Fresh grilled fish, the kind that tastes like salt and smoke, comes with whatever the kitchen decided was good that day. You eat with your feet a few steps from the sand, and the wine from the morning's tasting tastes different here — sharper, colder, right. The whole tour wraps by 5pm when the driver drops you back at your hotel. It's eight hours, but it doesn't feel rushed because nothing in it is filler.

What’s included

• Hotel or port pickup and drop-off from your Lisbon accommodation.
• visits to two wine cellars with tastings included.
• lunch of fresh grilled fish at Portinho da Arrábida beach restaurant.
• scenic drive through Arrábida Natural Park.
• stops at Sesimbra and Cabo Espichel lighthouse.
• wine and alcoholic beverages.
• driver and guide.
• local taxes.

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleAccessible transportStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePublic transport nearby

Operated by Knight Riders Tourism

Is this one for you?Book this if you want to taste serious Portuguese wine without renting a car or piecing together transport and timing yourself — the private pickup, fixed 9am start and included lunch mean you show up at your hotel and the day unfolds without you arranging anything else.

Top questions

How long is the drive from Lisbon to Setubal?

About 45 minutes from central Lisbon to the first winery.

What wines will I taste?

You'll taste wines from the cellars you visit, including Periquita reds and Setúbal Muscatels. The specific bottles depend on what's being poured that day.

Is lunch included?

Yes, lunch at a restaurant in Portinho da Arrábida is included in the tour price. It's fresh grilled fish.

Can I do this tour if I don't drink alcohol?

Yes. You can skip the wine tastings and still do the park drive, Sesimbra, Cabo Espichel and lunch. Let your guide know when you're picked up.

What time does the tour end?

The tour ends at 5pm with drop-off at your accommodation.

Is this tour wheelchair accessible?

Yes. The vehicles and all areas of the wineries and restaurants are wheelchair accessible, and specialized transportation is available.

How many people are in the group?

This is a private tour, so it's just you and your group with your own driver and guide.

What should I wear?

Comfortable shoes for walking through the wine cellars and around the park stops. Bring a light layer — it can be windy at Cabo Espichel even on warm days.