SAMPLE PROGRAM · LISBON & SINTRA

After the conference: Sintra and Cascais

Two nights in the hills above Lisbon, for teams who came for a big conference
and need a quiet place to turn it into decisions.

Plan a retreat like this
See the day by day

CLIENTS
Teams in Lisbon for a major conference,
such as Web Summit

GROUP SIZE
8 to 30, in one palace
or quinta hotel

LENGTH
Two nights, straight after the closing day. Works before too

SEASON
Built around event & conference weeks. Works all year

GETTING THERE
About 40 minutes to
an hour from Lisbon's conference district or the airport

FORMAT
Sample program.
Every retreat is designed to your brief

WHY THIS WORKS

Why it works for teams.

Lisbon hosts some of the biggest conferences in Europe. Web Summit alone brings more than 70,000 people to the city every November. Most teams fly home the morning after, tired, with a notebook full of ideas and no time to act on them. Planning a conference in the city? See our Lisbon case study.

Sintra is the better ending. The hills, palaces and Colares vineyards sit under an hour from the conference halls, and the pace drops the moment you arrive. This sample program gives a team two nights to rest, talk and leave with a plan.

Close, but it feels far. 
No flight, no long transfer. Leave the conference district after lunch and be in a palace garden by mid-afternoon.

Room to decide. 
One protected working morning to turn three days
of talks and meetings into owners and next steps.

Wine and the sea. 
Colares grows Ramisco
and Malvasia in Atlantic sand. The Cascais coast is 20 minutes down the road.

A large ornate building, Monserrate, with a rounded tower, decorative arches, and red-tiled roofs. The building is surrounded by trees and greenery, with a pathway leading towards the entrance where there are people gathered.

DAY BY DAY

The program, day by day

DAY 1  

Out of the city

  • Pickup at the conference venue or your Lisbon hotel after the closing sessions

  • Check in to a palace or quinta hotel in the Sintra hills, set in its own gardens

  • Late-afternoon walk through the gardens at Monserrate, or straight to the spa

  • Welcome dinner at the hotel, built around the Sintra and Colares larder. No agenda tonight

Aerial view of the Sintra hills, red-tiled roofs, surrounded by lush greenery and forested hills.

DAY 2

Work, then Colares

  • Morning working session in a room with daylight: what we heard, what we do about it, who owns it

  • Cellar visit and lunch at Adega Regional de Colares, Portugal's oldest wine cooperative, founded in 1931

  • Free afternoon, or a private early-evening slot at Pena or Quinta da Regaleira

  • Dinner by the sea at Azenhas do Mar or Praia das Maçãs

Azenhas do Mar cliffside village with white buildings, red tiled roofs, and ocean waves crashing against the rocks at sunset.

DAY 3

The coast road home

  • Leisurely morning breakfast and streamlined checkout with dedicated luggage handling at the hotel

  • Short closing session to confirm actions and owners

  • Coastal drive past Cabo da Roca and the dunes of Guincho

  • Closing lunch by the sea in Cascais

  • Transfers to Lisbon airport, about 35 to 45 minutes

Two people carrying surfboards walk along the shoreline at sunset with the sky showing orange and yellow hues, and their reflections are visible on the wet sand.

What we handle

Venue and room block  ·  Program rhythm, sessions and free time  ·  Restaurants, private dinners and wine  ·  Airport meet and greet and every transfer  ·  Guides, experiences and Plan B for weather  ·  Run of show and a RuaMar lead on site  ·  One budget

  • Spa services

    Spa & Wellness treatment

  • A tranquil outdoor swimming pool surrounded by lush greenery, trees, and rocks, with a rocky hillside in the background as private, Portuguese accommodation.

    2 nights in luxurious 5-star accommodation

  • Tailored experiences

    Private palace and winery visits

  • All meals, petiscos & wine tasting

    All meals, petiscos & wine tasting

PLANNING NOTES

Good to know

  • We book rooms the moment conference dates are announced.
    Lisbon hotels fill fast in big conference weeks, and the hills feel the overflow.

  • Conference days run long. Day 1 has no session and no early start, on purpose.

  • Sintra is often cooler and mistier than Lisbon, especially in November. Every outdoor moment has an indoor alternative.

  • RuaMar is not affiliated with Web Summit or any conference organiser. We design the days around your team's own schedule.

FAQs

Questions teams ask

  • Usually 40 minutes to an hour by road, depending on traffic. We time pickups around your last session.

  • Yes. Two nights in Sintra before the conference works well for setting goals and meeting priorities.

  • Yes. Several palace and quinta hotels in and around Sintra have meeting rooms and private dining. They are small, so they suit teams of up to about 30.

  • For larger groups we use a resort in the Sintra hills or a hotel in Cascais, with Sintra and Colares visited by day.

  • No. This is a sample program. We design every retreat around your purpose, dates, group and budget.

Don’t just attend the conference. Own the week.

Blend your next industry conference with a tailored team retreat. Tell us your event dates, budget and we'll handle every detail. Looking at another part of Portugal? See all seven regions on the map →.

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