Portugal Vacations

Portugal is a country steeped in well-established traditions. With Spain hugging the west of the land, Portugal has made a point to create and uphold their own distinctive culture which is embedded into the daily life of people.  Portuguese is a Latin language and is the 5th most spoken language in the world. Practise your best boa tarde! (good afternoon) and join in the fun of a feira or festa, a wonderful way to dive into the heart of Portuguese culture.  Celebrations of love (Festa de São Gonçalo, beginning of June) and summer (São João, end of June), the harvest (Festa das Vindimas, early September), and the Catholic religion (Carnaval, Easter) and even sweets (International Chocolate Festival, March) reveal the Portuguese psyche like nothing else. 

Catching a soccer game while you are visiting is another way to connect yourself to the heart of the Portuguese. Soccer is a national passion and watching a game at a neighbourhood bar while snacking on creamy lupini beans and sipping a cool Sagres is a classic way to spend an afternoon like you live there.

Roman Catholicism is the most followed religion in the country (85% of the population are Catholic) and parades, processions, and pilgrimages happen monthly throughout the country. Churches are ornate and worth visiting to take in the inspiring Portuguese Colonial, Baroque or Gothic architecture. Dress like a local with covered arms and longer shorts or skirts when you enter; light a candle for someone you love, or for Saint Christopher, the patron saint of travellers.

Soulful Fado music is quintessentially Portuguese and can serve as the soundtrack for your travel experience. Hauntingly beautiful and classified by UNESCO World Heritage, Fado is another quintessential expression of what it is to be Portuguese. You can hear it at night in a fado house, a traditional neighbourhood, or at lively bars and nightclubs. Enjoy a captivating array of sounds and environments, from reggae to African music, new wave, indie or electronic. All are good excuses to share a drink and dance the night away!

In Portugal, it’s best to select a region and a style of travel as an indicator of the best time to visit.  Those who enjoy physical activities such as hiking, nature walks, golfing, cycling, meandering cobblestone streets without breaking a sweat; perhaps the cooler days of the spring or fall are more ideal. Fall sees vibrant leaves on the trees and vineyards in the north and festas to celebrate the harvest abound. There are fewer visitors to Portugal during these shoulder seasons and hiking through the hilltop villages dotted throughout the country is quieter. The summer in Portugal is a dream for anyone interested in water sports or the beach life. The Alentejo coast and the Algarve are alive and full of action from June-August when kite boarders, swimmers, beach bums and even scuba divers descend on the sapphire waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Summer is the busiest time to visit anywhere in Europe, but the influx of visitors does make the larger cities feel more alive and hopping. Jazz, rock, classical and other music festivals, soccer games and outdoor patios add a pulse to Portugal which seems to override the crowds.  

In the north, places like the Douro Valley where grapes bask in the sun and the breeze is still, it’s best to adopt a slow pace. Perhaps sip a tonic and tawny by the water’s edge and dream about wooden Rabelo boats taking wine to England hundreds of years before. Winters are damp and cool, with lots of rain and often deep fog in the mountains and hillsides. The cooler weather makes for a cozy time, ideal for scarves and art galleries, museums and belly-warming cuisine paired with a black Touriga Nacional and live, fiery Fado.

Portugal is a country of endless stories. From the people who work the Douro Valley vineyards, singing while they hand pick grapes destined for port wine, to the fashion forward clothing designers of cosmopolitan Lisbon, to the families who have run the same beach side cafés specializing in Algarvean espadarte fumado (smoked swordfish) since Napoleonic Wars; the people of Portugal are as intriguing as their history.  Fado music which is considered the sound of the Portuguese soul, is a plaintive saga which begs to be heard. Even the blue painted tiles called Azulejos, silently whisper tales of conquest, war and love from the walls.

This is a country which prides itself on its long-standing independence; the legends of Portugal are part of why this country is worth a significant chunk of time to peruse. This means a savvy traveller will allow extra time to see, hear and experience all that Portugal has to offer by not cramming into too many activities into their day. Make modest daily plans with the option to meander. A smattering of the language such as a warm obrigado/a (thank you) is appreciated. Strike up a conversation with locals about current day politics or what Christian Ronaldo is up to as the captain of the national soccer team at a local coffee shop to feel like you live there.

Dinners are eaten late in Portugal, giving active travellers time for rest after a solid day of exploring. The Portuguese dress elegantly and somewhat conservatively.  With excellent clothing and shoe stores available the country over, save some room in your bags for local fashions which you can wear out in Portugal and back home.

Steaming, fragrant bowls of caldo verde with a glass of amber tawny port on the banks of the snaking Douro River. Chewy, bite size snails with a crisp beer along the salty Atlantic. Black coffee with fãlakey, a custard-filled pastry, along the cobblestone streets of Lisbon; the cuisine will delight you. From casual dining at a train station to the foodie fantasy of high-level fusion gastronomy, Portugal is a land to indulge your taste buds.

Bounty from the ocean is the backbone of Portuguese fare. Fresh or salted cod may be the quintessential Portuguese fish and should be sampled in one of the 350+ ways to prepare it, but other seafood such as clams spiced with hot piri piri and saffron are distinctive in Portuguese flavours. Meats feature prominently with hearty dishes of wine-soaked pork and beef and pork stew with beans; ideal to fend off the cool winters in the north. A multitude of dried sausages, often served as starters, even before you’ve ordered them, are best paired with a fresh green wine or a Super Bock beer from the bottle.  Olives are abundant and so is the use of olive oil which is produced locally. Vegetables such as kale, beans and potatoes are used in many dishes, however there are few vegetarian options in most restaurants in the country. Seeking out modern Portuguese menus with new takes on traditional food, is not only interesting, but will satisfy more complex taste buds or dietary requirements. The larger cities of Porto and Lisbon for example, have seen an explosion of sophisticated boutique restaurants in the past decade.

The Douro Valley is one of the most scenic wine regions in the world and produces Portugal’s pride and joy: port. A complex category steeped in history, tasting a 40-year-old tawny port while watching workers tend to grapes along terraced vineyards built by Cistercian monks in the 12th century, feels like a commercial for the ultimate wine country life.  Vinho verde is a young fresh wine which from Minho in the north which should be enjoyed at lunch or along the waterfront. With hundreds of grape varietals grown across Portugal, there is sure to be a wine to suit your palate.