I’ve wanted to go to Portugal for such a long time – and it’s finally happening! Why Portugal? I thought you’d never ask!
Here’s five great reasons to visit Portugal:
- Lisbon – a city that is truly vintage Europe, with all the traditions and gorgeousness without the hype.
- Feasts – naturally it varies from region to region, but there are national obsessions like bacalhau (salted cod) and cozido à portuguesa (stew), and other gourmet delights matched with perfect Portuguese wine, mmmmm.
- Pilgrim’s trail – the Camino Portugué is a more rural take on the traditional pilgrim’s trail in Spain… passing through lush forests, terraced fields, vineyards and sleepy villages (sounds perfect to me!).
- Porto – the home of port of course. Add cruising on the Douro with some port tastings along the way, and strolling through the maze of steep, narrow cobbled streets. Perfection right there.
- Beachy bliss – the Algarve region is a favourite coastal hangout for locals and tourists. With year-round sun and gorgeous temperatures, a stunning coastline and all the culture of Portugal, it’s a no brainer we’ll be spending some time there – and coming back to cycle it sometime soon!
But my favourite part is that Portugal is fresh – off the beaten tourist trail and the perfect place to hang out as part of our very compressed ‘golden gap year’ from September to mid-November. Bring it on…
Flight path 
June 4th, 2016 at 11:19 pm
Michelle and I are visiting Portugal next week! Doing all the things you’re writing about. Cheers Don
June 5th, 2016 at 12:58 pm
Wow brilliant! We’ll all get in before everyone catches on to how great it is. Have fun and say hi to Michelle. It’s been years – hope all goes well with you and the family
June 5th, 2016 at 2:19 pm
Great reasons to come to Portugal! We hope you’ll have a great time.
June 5th, 2016 at 2:36 pm
Thanks and I’m sure we will! I really want to cycle the Alentejo region too, but that’s for next time 🙂
June 26th, 2016 at 4:54 pm
I visited Porto 25 years ago or so and absolutely loved it. If it hasn’t changed too much since that time, then I’d definitely recommend it to anyone.
June 26th, 2016 at 5:47 pm
I’ve been told it hasn’t changed much – they value their heritage – so can’t wait to hang out there for a bit!
June 26th, 2016 at 5:51 pm
Sounds good!