Set on a peninsula on the Silver Coast, Peniche is a fishing town 100 kilometres (about 60 miles) north of Lisbon.
With several beautiful beaches, it draws holidaymakers in summer, and surfers when the big winter swells arrive. Peniche is also the starting point for a trip to the protected Berlengas Islands.
Peniche Fortress
The town itself also has a few things worth seeing, such as the Peniche Fortress, the traditional fishing port, and a renowned centre for producing lace. And of course, there’s no better place to experience fresh fish and seafood than in Peniche.
The trip to Peniche is easily doable as a day trip or a long weekend from Lisbon, you can even combine it with a visit to Nazaré; here are a few ways to get from Lisbon to Peniche.
Take the Bus
This is unarguably the cheapest way to get to Peniche. There are regular buses that run between Lisbon and Peniche throughout the day. Operated by Rede Expressos / Renex, buses depart from Sete Rios bus terminal (metro’s blue line).
The trip between Lisbon and Peniche takes about one hour and 30 minutes. If you’re planning a boat trip to the Berlengas Islands, you’ll need to take the first outbound bus from Lisbon to Peniche at 7.30am in order to get to Peniche by 9.30am and catch the 10am ferry to the Berlengas Islands.
Tickets are about €9 one way, and all trips can be booked on Rede Expressos’ website up to 30 days in advance.
Tickets and timetables: www.rede-expressos.pt
Drive Yourself
Driving is the most flexible option to explore Peniche, and to make stops along the way. The trip from Lisbon to Peniche takes about one hour and 20 minutes on the A8, which is a toll road, with the last 20 kilometres on IP6. From Lisbon to Peniche, expect to pay about €5 in toll fares.
If you want to hire a car, check out our page on car rental in Lisbon, which includes advice on where to hire a car in the city, some car rental companies to compare prices from, and things to know when hiring a car in Portugal – for instance, why you should get a Via Verde toll transponder from your rental car company.
Hire a Tour
There’s an abundance of tour groups and guides who will take care of all the logistics for you, including hotel pick-up and drop-off, designing an itinerary and choosing a restaurant to enjoy fresh fish and seafood. There are day tours to the Berlengas Islands, as well as tours that include a visit to Peniche, Óbidos and Mafra.
