Families
Child seats, luggage, beach days and grandparents — everyone in one vehicle, at everyone's pace.
Signature service
Mercedes Class V Van Hire with Private Chauffeur
Your personal chauffeur and local expert
The idea
Premium Mercedes-Benz V-Class 220d at Your Disposal
This is a personal, boutique service operated exclusively by Eduardo Silveira, a professional local expert who has spent years guiding discerning guests across Portugal. You are not booking a fleet or an anonymous driver — you are reserving Eduardo's time, knowledge and attention for your own journey.
Your vehicle is an immaculate, executive Mercedes-Benz V-Class 220d: six individual seats in a face-to-face configuration, three-zone climate control, onboard Wi-Fi, USB and 12V chargers at every seat, complimentary fresh water and ample luggage space for six full-size suitcases plus cabin bags. Whether you are travelling as a family, a couple or a luxury party, the cabin is designed for space, comfort and discretion.
With Driver for Hire you book both the vehicle and a professional local driver, for one day or several. There is no fixed itinerary and no list of stops to tick off. You decide where you want to go — in the morning, or halfway through the afternoon — and we take you there.
It is the most flexible way to travel in Portugal, and the service our guests extend most often once they have tried it.
Who benefits most
A local expert in the driving seat.
Couples
Long lunches, sunset viewpoints and no map-reading arguments. The day belongs to the two of you.
Business travellers
Meetings across cities, calls answered in the back seat, and always on time.
Photographers
Out before sunrise, waiting for the right light, and a driver who knows exactly where it falls.
Luxury travellers
Discreet, immaculate and entirely private, with reservations and timings handled for you.
Guests who'd rather not drive
No foreign motorways, no tolls, no parking, and a glass of wine you can actually enjoy.
Perfect for
Nine ways guests use their driver.
Explore at your own pace
No timetable. Leave when you like, stay as long as you like.
Multi-day road trips
The same driver and vehicle from Lisbon to the Douro and back.
Wine regions
Taste everything. Nobody in your group has to stay sober to drive.
Business travel
Meetings across cities, calls answered in the back seat, on time.
Family holidays
Child seats, luggage, beach days and grandparents — all handled.
Shopping trips
Outlets and boutiques with the car waiting to take the bags.
Flexible sightseeing
Two castles today, one long lunch tomorrow. You choose each morning.
Cruise passengers
Full day ashore, back at the ship with time to spare, guaranteed.
Last-minute changes
Rain? Closed museum? A better idea? We simply re-route.
Popular routes
Custom long-distance chauffeur routes.
Multi-Day Chauffeur Trips: Lisbon to Porto & Douro Valley
A relaxed northbound journey through Coimbra, Aveiro or Óbidos, with overnight stays in Porto or the Douro wine country.
Lisbon to Algarve Coast Car Service
Custom stops in Évora, Monsaraz or Comporta on the way to the Algarve. Your driver and vehicle stay with you for the full trip.
Cross-Border Executive Transfers: Lisbon to Madrid, Seville, or Santiago de Compostela
Direct, discreet cross-border car service for business and leisure travellers who value comfort, privacy and a smooth border crossing.
How it works
Simple by design.
- 01
Tell us your dates
Number of days, group size, where you are staying.
- 02
We confirm a daily rate
All-inclusive premium daily rates covering your private Mercedes V-Class, Eduardo as your dedicated driver-guide, fuel, highway tolls, and parking. Zero hidden fees.
- 03
Your driver arrives
Typically 8 to 10 hours a day, extendable on request.
- 04
You decide the day
Every morning, over coffee. Change your mind whenever.
Independent guest reviews
Comfortable, calm days on the road
Published Tripadvisor reviews from guests who travelled with us by road. Quotations are unedited.
Private Tour of Sintra
“If you’re looking to explore some of the areas just outside Lisbon, I could not recommend this enough! Our tour guide Hugo picked us up directly from the hotel with zero fuss, meaning a completely stress-free day. Hugo was friendly, respectful, and extremely knowledgable about Sintra and the Pena Palace where we visited. He structured the day around us, so we never felt rushed, could view the sites at our own pace, and take what detours we thought were interesting. Really good service and I look forward to seeing more sights with him!”
Exceptional Sintra tour
“Hugo was great from the beginning while we were planning our trip to Sintra. He was easy to communicate with via email and phone to make the arrangements He was knowledgeable and personalized the tour to our interests . His english was fluent . His van was spacious and comfortable . We highly recommend Hugo !”
Sintra - Private Tour with Heart and Soul Tours
“Highly recommend this tour. Had a wonderful day with Hugo from ❤️ & Soul Tours. He was punctual, informative, engaging, funny and with all that he was also a good driver - all around complete package! Loved all the locations Hugo brought us to - So sorry to have to leave beautiful Portugal!”
Booking request
Plan Your Portugal Journey
Tell us your dates and roughly what you have in mind — even if it is 'we are not sure yet'. That is rather the point of this service.
What a day with your own driver looks like
Your driver arrives at your hotel, apartment or villa at the hour you asked for, usually with coffee already drunk and the weather already checked. There is no itinerary to keep to. If the morning is clear we might suggest the coast; if it turns grey, a monastery, a market or a cellar makes better sense.
Distances in Portugal are forgiving. From Lisbon you can reach Sintra in forty minutes, Óbidos in an hour, Évora or Nazaré in ninety minutes, and Porto or the Algarve in three hours. That means a single day can hold two towns, a long lunch and a viewpoint at sunset without anybody feeling rushed.
Where the value really shows is in the small things: being dropped at the door of a restaurant in a town with no parking, leaving a winery when the conversation ends rather than when the bus goes, and having somebody who knows which entrance has the shorter queue and which beach is sheltered from today's wind.
Frequently asked questions
- How many hours are included in a day of driver hire?
- A standard day is eight to ten hours from pick-up to drop-off, which suits almost every itinerary. Extra hours can be added on the day at an agreed rate.
- What is included in the daily rate?
- The vehicle, the professional driver-guide, fuel, motorway tolls, parking and all driver expenses. Your meals, entrance tickets and tastings are paid separately so you only pay for what you choose.
- Do we need to decide the route in advance?
- No. That is the point of the service. Many guests decide over breakfast, and change their mind again at lunch. We advise on distances so the plan stays realistic.
- Is the driver also a guide?
- Yes. Eduardo and Hugo have each been guiding in Portugal for over eleven years, so you get commentary, restaurant recommendations and local context — as much or as little as you want.
- Can we hire a driver for several consecutive days?
- Yes, and most multi-day guests do. The same driver and vehicle stay with you throughout, which makes the whole trip easier and far more personal.
- Can the driver take us to another region and stay overnight?
- Yes. For overnight itineraries — the Douro, the Alentejo, the Algarve — driver accommodation is included in the quoted rate. There is nothing extra to arrange.
- How does driver for hire differ from a private tour?
- A private tour follows a planned itinerary for a specific destination. Driver for hire has no itinerary at all: you keep the car, the driver and the freedom, and shape the day as it goes.
- Is the service available outside Lisbon?
- Yes — across mainland Portugal, and into Spain for longer journeys. Pick-up is normally in the Lisbon region, but we can start the day elsewhere by arrangement.
Continue planning your journey
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