Already planning your next holiday? Forget France and Spain. If you want sun, sand and pristine water, it doesn’t get much better than Portugal’s southern coast. But if you’ve never been before, how do you choose where to stay in the Algarve when there’s such a superb choice of stunning locations in this part of the world? Stay in the …
Read More »Follow in My Footsteps: The Santa Cruz That Isn’t on Google Maps
Most people think of California or Tenerife when they think of Santa Cruz. If you Google the Santa Cruz in Portugal, you’ll get the town on Madeira Island. Yet there’s another one. Just an hour north of Lisbon is Santa Cruz, an idyllic stretch of sandy beaches, oceanside cafes and boutique hotels. Santa Cruz is also home to the annual …
Read More »Follow in my Footsteps: Visit the European Surfing Capital of Peniche
Day two of my tour through central Portugal brought me to Peniche. If you’re a surfer or enjoy other water sports, this small town is your best choice in Europe. The city of Peniche is built on a small peninsula about an hour and a half north of Lisbon. With barely 15,000 people, it doesn’t even make the top 50 …
Read More »Follow in my Footsteps: Fish, Funiculars and 100-Foot Waves in Nazaré
My week in Portugal was primarily about best surfing locations. It’s been years since I was on a board, and I wasn’t quite ready to surf the waves in Nazaré, which can get over 100-feet high in the winter! Everything else I found the town was simply wonderful. Nazaré was the first stop on my tour of central Portugal. Taking a …
Read More »Spending a Week in Central Portugal
For my 45th country, I teamed up with Visit Portugal and Centro de Portugal to explore the best surf spots and historic towns in central Portugal. Guided by the energetic Jose of Madomis Tours and Joao of Naturexperience, I learned how to surf (again), saw the location of the highest-ever surfed wave (78 feet!), strolled through beautiful villages, slept in amazing …
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