Portugal in Profile
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.
The Exuberance of Youth
One of Portugal’s lesser-known but much-savoured wines is vinho verde, so called because the grapes are picked young and the wine is mostly drunk just a year or two after […]
Exploring Northern Portugal
The green and pleasant north of Portugal is a place of traditional merry-making where annual festivals are ablaze with colourful costumes, lively processions and frenetic folk-dancing followed by a feast of […]
The Hilltop Shrine of Bom Jesus
Dazzling in the theatricality of both its location and conception, Bom Jesus is a place of pilgrimage like no other – a Jacob’s ladder of religious symbols topped by an imposing […]
(Hand)-Made in Portugal
The Portuguese have a very strong attachment to their beliefs, customs and capabilities, which thankfully means that Portugal’s traditional art of handicrafts hasn’t been discarded as a result of the […]
The Last Old Place
Latin but not Mediterranean, cosmopolitan but not crowded, Portugal is a country where much of the population still lives as people have always lived – in small, peaceful villages far away […]
Father of the Nation
One of the most legendary and influential figures of Portugal’s long and chequered history is Afonso Henriques, the country’s first king.
Coast to Coast
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 […]
The Citânia de Briteiros Settlement
Approached through attractive wooded hills in the lush, green Minho region of northern Portugal, Citânia de Briteiros is one of the most impressive archaeological sites in Europe and by far […]
Meandering Through the Minho
Crying out to be traversed and fully explored, the Minho region in the north-western corner of Portugal is the oldest and arguably the most characteristic part of the country.