Portugal Travel Resources, Boa Viagem

Portugal is my favorite country. To begin with, it was love at first sight or, shall we say, after the first cup of coffee.

Portugal Travel Resources

You see, after becoming too familiar with Spanish rare and less-than-perfect rest areas, entering Southern Portugal was a relief. The very first Área de Serviço had an excellent (and much needed) strong coffee which was served in a cute tiny cup with a saucer. How cool is that! In other words, this was the art of making the first impression in action.

Like the perfect dish, Portugal has the magic mix of ingredients that makes it irresistible. Hospitable unassuming people. Fascinating, albeit controversial at times, history. Rich and intricate culture. Yummy food and great wines. Above all, it is the land that would make any aspiring photographer swoon and go into overdrive. It is also surprisingly affordable. In brief, Portugal is the ideal country for slow travel.

Lisbon or Porto come to mind first. However, smaller locales are worthy competitors. Did you know that Sines is the birthplace of Vasco da Gama? On the other hand, would you prefer Portuguese Hobbitat?

Amazing sunset
Amazing sunset near Lisbon

Why Portugal Travel Resources Is The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread

Coming to any new place is a bit intimidating. Staying there for a prolonged period of time could be challenging. Ideally, your host acts as a conduit for any local information. Sometimes, for whatever reason, it doesn’t work. Meanwhile, life happens. You may get sick and need a doctor. Your hair gets out of control and needs a trim. Even trash collection may present a problem. Don’t laugh, it happens more often than you think.

I was clueless about how things worked in Portugal when we came there. Back then, I wish I could have some kind of guide for quick reference. I appreciated any help and advice I could get from locals. I also turned every digital stone so to speak in search of any relevant information. Ultimately, I ended up with a list of Portugal travel resources. It helped us survive and enjoy the country. Today, I am sharing it with you hoping that it would allow you to save precious time.

In truth, this Portugal Travel Resources list is not about what to see and do in Lisbon or Portugal. Indeed, this is not a visitor guide. You need to look somewhere else for this kind of recommendations. There are plenty of websites and blogs offering this information. That said, Portugal Travel Resources includes a small section where I provide links to local tourism authorities websites.

Since we stayed near Lisbon, the majority of links are about the capital area. The Portugal Travel Resources is a work in progress. If you have a useful link that is missing, send it my way. I’ll be happy to review and add it to the appropriate section (or create a new one).

Enough talk, let’s get down to business

Every trip begins with research. That’s where our universal Travel Resources shine. Sorted out what you must do before leaving? Travel Planning is next.

Portugal Travel Resources » General Information

Portugal Travel Resources » Visa Information

Portugal Travel Resources » Government

Portugal Travel Resources » Health & Medical

Portugal Travel Resources » Transportation

Portugal Travel Resources » Communications

Portugal Travel Resources » Accommodations

  • Airbnb remains the best option for mid-term housing (i.e., 1-6 months). However, Lisbon is a trendy destination. Hence, in the middle of the city, the prices are high. The quality of accommodations is subpar in touristy neighborhoods. Granted that in popular areas a place looks worn out, questionably clean(to put it mildly) with some appliances in need of repair. While this may be true, we found a reliable solution to this problem. Going outside of the center of the city does the trick. Lisbon has a reliable public transportation, so getting around is not a problem. Furthermore, living across the river saves tons of money. In fact, life is much cheaper in Setúbal area. Look for housing in Almada, Seixal, Montijo.
  • Uniplaces – an interesting alternative to Airbnb. It is a Lisbon-based online marketplace for booking student accommodation. However, Uniplaces is not just for students. Anyone can look for a room or house there, even though the majority of their users are students. TB Note: we haven’t used their services
  • CasaSapo – the leading Real Estate Portal in Portugal. If you are looking  for long-term rent in Portugal (6+ months), renting privately is the best option
  • CustoJusto – Craigslist or Gumtree counterpart. As with all other classifieds websites around the world, be careful with scams.
  • Imovirtual – real estate aggregator. Search for long-term places for rent is one of the services
  • Idealista – real estate aggregator. Among other options, you can search for long-term places for rent
  • Something you should be ware of, when booking hotels online in Portugal (from Travelling Claus)

Portugal Travel Resources » Utilities and such

Portugal Travel Resources » Coworking Spaces

Portugal Travel Resources » News & Culture

Portugal Travel Resources » Shopping

  • CustoJusto – classifieds marketplace similar to Craigslist in the US or Gumtree in the UK and Australia
  • OLX – classifieds marketplace similar to Craigslist in the US or Gumtree in the UK and Australia
  • Feira da Ladra – Lisbon Flea Market
  • Radio Popular – online consumer electronics store
  • Seaside – online shoe store

Portugal Travel Resources » Tourism

Portugal Travel Resources » Blogs

More posts about Portugal

… and some travel tips too

A few words about us and how our nomadic slow travel journey had started.

Published: November 2017. Last update: April 2019

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Portugal: what, where, how
Portugal: what, where, how

 

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28 thoughts on “Portugal Travel Resources, Boa Viagem”

    • Thank you, Agness. It is surprisingly difficult to find some practical information about a place never been before or even a new country in general. It is even more challenging for the places where locals speak languages I do not know. Hopefully, these resources would save time for someone who is planning to come to Portugal.

  5. Thanks for all the tips! All these looks are super useful when planning a trip. Hope to go to Portugal soon. It’s one of the places I regret not going to when I lived in Belgium.

  7. Thank you for putting together a list of resources! I love how you included links to important things from SIM cards, ATMs, to useful Portuguese phrases!

  9. This is fantastic and the timing is perfect. I’ll be in Portugal in about 2 months and this comprehensive list of resources is exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for compiling it together on one place.

  10. You’ve put together a super helpful article for visiting Lisbon and Portugal. It’s a small country, but packed with so much to see and experience. I love the fact that a shot of strong coffee won you over too – the power of a good cuppa!

  12. Thanks for compiling literally everything I could think to wonder about Portugal, and then some! This is an amazing tool not only for travelers, but for expats as well! I’m so excited to experience the “perfect dish” that is Portugal as soon as possible!

  13. This is a great roundup of online resources. I wish more bloggers would come up with posts like this, especially listing the health and medical ones. Accidents happen, and you never really know. Great post!

    • Great to hear from you, Cheryl :). Thanks for the tip about your Berlin resources. I was there once on a short visit more than a year ago. Perhaps, it’s time to plan another trip using your insights 😉

  15. What a resource Elena, as always. Well done.

    So neat how you noted the shift from Spain to Portugal was invited, and much needed. I spoke to a well known travel buddy of mine – a big name brand ambassador on Twitter – who noted the same thing. He actually went as far to say he was not a fan of Spain as it was not travel friendly, all things considered, but how Portugal was fabulous. Travel friendly, inviting, much English spoken and a change up from its neighbor.

    Ryan

    • Great to hear from you, Ryan 🙂 Thank you very much for your comment. I, actually, like Andalucia’s rugged nature and colorful culture, but it’s better to have magic carpet as a way of travel there.

  16. Great idea for a post! Moving to a foreign country – even where the first language is yours – can be so confusing what with all the different laws and policies for the bigger things (like medical issues) and smaller things (like trash collection!)

    • Thank you, Shannon :). I agree. Every new place we’d been to brought up some puzzles. Some were just funny like coming back from my first outing in Tbilisi and realizing that without knowing the Georgian language I had no clue which button to push to get to my place. Needing to communicate with a doctor in Sicily to take care of my unfortunate bout of ear infection was much more serious. The doctor didn’t speak English, I do not know Italian, so we ended up communicating in Spanish. Speaking of trash collection, in Taiwan garbage trucks play music just like good old ice cream vans.

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