I paid a short visit there the other week. Just for a few hours. The beaches I saw were quite small and that includes the ones at nearby Estoril. There are a lot of big old houses and lots of flowers I thought. It was a Monday and fairly busy, as it is a popular location to spend a day for people from Lisbon and the area . The marina was quite active.

I think it might be a good base for taking a look around rather than a beach-lazing type holiday.

thanks a million I think thats what Ill do!

Spent a week in Cascais a few years back. Quite an upmarket resort hence the number of Porches and Ferraris we saw. It has a small town feel with various small restaurants dotted down back streets - quite a variety of cuisine types. A small beach in town and a larger one towards Estoril. More a traditional Portuguese resort than say the pupose built Algarve resorts. Some great site seeing including Lisbon and Sintra easily reached by public transport and the surrounding countryside is beautiful.