europe

Spurred by Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460), the Portuguese discovered precisely what Columbus was seeking – the fabled Indies. They also charted new sea routes halfway around the world to destinations as far as Japan.

One of Europe’s best-kept spa secrets is Furnas, a live volcanic showpiece located on the eastern side of São Miguel island in the Azores archipelago of Portugal.

There’s no place in Portugal quite as remote as Corvo, a single volcanic crater island set bold as brass in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

When the Portuguese voted for their favourite land and seascapes as part of the 7 Natural Wonders opinion poll, the outcome was a genuine showcase of the country’s most magnificent and much-loved vistas.

Roughly rectangular in shape and with a population of around ten million people, Portugal has much to offer the modern visitor – young and old alike.

Bordering the south-western edge of the Iberian Peninsula, with around half of its periphery surrounded by water, Portugal’s shoreline has been a source of attraction as well as a gateway to the rest of the world for hundreds of years.

Boating in the Alentejo on Alqueva Lake, Europe’s largest reservoir, is an immensely pleasurable experience, but it’s the eeriest of feelings cruising leisurely over the top of a once-vibrant village now completely submerged by water.