About Portugal

Portugal has a rich seafaring past, superb beach resorts, wistful towns and a landscape wreathed in olive groves, vineyards and wheat fields. Littered with UNESCO World Heritage sites and graced by one of Europe's most relaxed and attractive capitals, it also remains refreshingly affordable.

Savouring life slowly is a Portuguese passion, and much of the best is humble - traditional folk festivals; simple, honest food drowning in olive oil; music that pulls at the heart strings, recalling past love and glories; and markets overflowing with fish, fruit and flowers.

Portugal's high season is mid-June to mid-September. The Atlantic tempers the Mediterranean climate down south, where summer temperatures regularly reach 30°C (86°F). The climate is temperate, and you'll find agreeable weather just about everywhere (except in the Alto Douro and the Alentejo where summers can be painfully hot and droughts common) from April to October, and nearly year-round in the Algarve. Overall the wettest season is from November to March: the soggiest regions are in the extreme north and in the Serra da Estrela mountain region in the country's centre. The ski season is from January to March, but February is best.