Just go, C!
I'm Charity, a proud auntie, wine lover, semi-nerd, and dreamer who can't stay in one place for too long.
WHAT'S UP, GANGSTERS?!? It feels SO good to be back to travel blogging. I feel like a missing piece of my heart puzzle has been found and put into place. I won't go into a whole life story about the past few years since I last blogged. I am simply going to pick right back up where I left off and tell you a little about PORTUGAL! I don't really have any major reasons why I picked Portugal, other than I got a smokin' flight deal. Ha! Sometimes that's all the inspiration you need, right?? Though, I will say that Portugal has been on my radar for a while, especially since I'd seen it popping up on all the "must travel" lists in the past several months. It seemed to have a lot to offer, so that combined with the flight deal, I figured it would be a great country to visit. Turns out I hit the nail on the head! Portugal, despite its relatively small size in comparison to other countries (it's roughly the same size as the state of Maine), really packs a bunch. Vibrant, picturesque, exciting cities; tons of historical significance; incredible coasts and beaches; mouth-watering fresh seafood (and I'm not even a big seafood person); desserts and pastries (more on THAT delicious topic soon); excellent wine; warm and friendly people; lots of English-speakers - it's a fabulous destination for a variety of reasons. My Portugal itinerary was as follows: Days 1-3: Lisbon with a day trip to Sintra Days 4-6: Salema and the Algarve Days 7-8: The Douro Valley Days 9-11: Porto Day 12: Back to Lisbon to return home I have zero regrets about how I laid out this trip. I think I spent the perfect number of days in each location to ensure that I could fit the trip within 2 weeks. Of course, had I more time, I certainly would have extended the number of days in Lisbon and Porto and added a few more cities to the itinerary. But, I felt good about how much I was able to squeeze into two weeks while still having time to relax. I will create separate posts for each of the places/areas I visited in Portugal because this blog could easily turn into a novel if I tried to include everything in one post. For this particular blog, I want to share my itinerary as well as some general tips and tricks for traveling in Portugal. Flights: I am a member of Scott's Cheap Flights. I have a paid membership which allows me to get constant emails and updates on flight deals based on selected airports of my choosing. This includes "mistake" fares. I absolutely love this site but to be honest, it really only makes sense to have a membership if you take at least 2-3 international flights per year. Otherwise, just use Google Flights or Momondo. Rental car: I used Zest to book my rental car for when I was in Portugal. I rented starting the day I left Lisbon (because there's no sense in having a car while you're in the cities) and dropped it off again when I returned to Lisbon. Zest is kind of like a booking.com for rental cars. It's an aggregate site that allows you to choose from various rental sites based on price, reviews, etc. I am very satisfied with my booking experience with Zest and recommend it to others. One very important thing to note, particularly for us Americans, is that manual cars are much more common in Europe than automatic transmissions. If you can drive a "stick" then you will have a much easier time, and pay much less, when reserving and renting cars. Fortunately, I had experience with driving a manual - though a bit rusty, for sure - but was able to get back into the swing of it fairly quickly and easily. Thank goodness. (The car drop-off experience was interesting, though, haha - will have to tell that tale later on) Secondly, our SUV and truck-loving American selves will also struggle with navigating the narrow and winding roads throughout Portugal, so best to stick with a smaller car. In some cases, you literally will not be able to pass through some streets, especially in the cities, if you have a bigger car. You will usually get the best prices when you book in advance. I booked in January for my mid-April trip and paid only $218 USD for 9 days. Prices definitely go up the closer to your trip date, and during high tourism seasons, so plan accordingly. When it comes to pumping gas in Portugal (and Europe in general, really), bear in mind that they use a different system than we do ;) so you will be purchasing fuel per liter, not per gallon. Fuel stations will either allow you to pay at the pump or you will need to pay inside first. It took me some time to figure out how many Euros it would take to fill up the rental car I was driving. You may have to make a few stops before you get a good sense of how many liters and how many Euros will work for your particular car and journey. Reservations: Are they necessary? One of the only snags I dealt with in Portugal was making reservations for the wineries in the Douro Region. Long story short, if you plan to visit ANY wineries, check first to see if they require reservations. Some don't, but many do. I was turned away from several wineries because I didn't make prior reservations. Lesson learned. Booking a wine tour with a tour company in advance will also alleviate this frustration for you. (Speaking of tours, I highly recommend downloading the app Get Your Guide to book your tours in Portugal!) In Lisbon, if you want to catch a Fado show, then I highly recommend making reservations for this, as well. I will discuss Fado in further depth whenever I post about Lisbon, but it really is a must-do in my opinion. If you're staying at a hotel in Lisbon, they can make recommendations of restaurants that offer Fado performances (most likely in the Alfama district) and also call for you to make reservations. Give yourself at least a 2-3 day advance window to book this. Additionally, I would recommend making dinner reservations in cities like Lisbon and Porto. I recommend using the app The Fork to make your reservations. One thing to note is that the Portuguese eat dinner much later than we Americans do - often between 7-10pm, so bear that in mind. Some restaurants are actually closed in the afternoons until dinnertime. Is Portugal safe for solo and female travelers? 100% yes, I would absolutely recommend Portugal as a safe country to travel to, particularly for solo female travelers. One thing about Portugal that may appeal to new and/or solo travelers is that a large number of the population speaks English. Since Portuguese isn't a widely popular language internationally, the Portuguese often learn at least a 2nd if not a 3rd language when they go to school. Often, those languages are French, English, and/or Spanish. This makes traveling a piece of cake for Americans who pretty much only speak one language. ;) (Not judging but kind of judging) I am not someone who does a lot of walking after dark in foreign countries, but I think if you stuck to the main touristy areas, you'd be ok. Uber is very common and safe here so don't be afraid to use it. As with any country, be mindful of pickpocketing and be mindful of your surroundings, no matter where you are or what time of day you're in. Common sense stuff, really. I have SO much more to tell you about Portugal, and I will, in time. I hope this has been useful information for anyone who may be interested in traveling to this beautiful country in the future!
Please comment with any questions or just general thoughts about this blog. Thank you very much for reading. It's great to be back. :)
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AuthorHi! I'm Charity. I'm from Omaha, Nebraska, USA. I quit my job in October 2016 to travel the world. Archives
June 2022
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