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Spain’s coastal neighbour to the west, Portugal is best recognized by its colourful tile mosaics, often showcased in glossy travel mags. These actually reflect the country’s Islamic, African and Mediterranean trade influences, and this cultural fusion can also be tasted in traditional Portuguese food, which is known for mixing fresh seafood with trade route spices and flavourings like piri piri (small, fiery chili peppers) and olive oil. In Portugal's capital, Lisbon, enjoy a sunset hike up the steep hillsides that overlook the Rio Tejo, or take a scenic train up north to Porto, home of Port wine and one of the oldest cities in all of Europe.
The Portuguese have adventure in their blood, and today the epic voyages of Magellan and Vasco de Gama have given way to weekend pilgrimages to the Azores, a group of nine volcanic islands, or mistérios, located far out in the Atlantic. Here among the craters, caves, hot springs and rock formations is an aquatic nature refuge that houses some of the best whale and dolphin watching in the world; in fact, this island archipelago is a rest stop for about a third of the world’s species of marine mammals. Since Portugal is one of the warmest European countries, with an average temperature of 15°C (55°F) in the north and 18°C (64°F) in the south, you can enjoy summer diving, hiking and adventuring year-round.
One of the oldest cities in the world, the sun-kissed coastal capital of Portugal, Lisbon, lies between the azure blue waves of the Atlantic Ocean and the magic of its legend-shrouded Seven Hills. Once a stop-off on the road for Greek hero, Odysseus, its Mediterranean climate and myriad mix of Roman, Moorish and late-Gothic heritage make it irresistible to the modern traveller.
read morePorto is unmistakably beautiful - a hotbed of crumbling grandeur, creativity, culture, home to Port wine and host to happy. Portugal’s second largest city, Porto is tucked up on the north-western corner on the banks of the Douro River, sandwiched between the Atlantic coastline and the wondrous Douro Valley.
read moreOne of the oldest port cities in Portugal spanning almost 3000 years, the Phoenicians founded Alcácer do Sal more than a thousand years before Christ.
read moreConsidered the “Hawaii of Europe”, the Azores are a hidden Atlantic oasis. Uninhabited until the 15th century, this far-flung archipelago was created by volcanic eruptions and is mountainous and geologically diverse — its quiet beaches only disturbed by the sounds of whales and dolphins.
read moreThe tiny hilltop Pico do Refúgio on the lush volcanic island of Sâo Miguel in the Azores plays host to a creative palette of art, design and heaps of nature.
read moreLocated in the stunning setting of São Miguel, Açores, the Pico do Refúgio is a place with art in its blood. Once the home of sculptress, Luisa Constantina de Ataíde da Costa Gomes, the farm at Rabo de Peixe has been run by the family of current owner Bernardo Brito e Abreu since the Seventeenth Century.
read moreLisbon's sleek MAAT is the city's latest cultural hub, where the worlds of architecture, art and tech collide - a museum of force in glazed ceramic form.
read moreLisbon, Portugal's legendary capital simply bursts with heritage, azulejo tiles, Pastéis de Nata & art - this is a design guide you can shop, see & drink.
read moreA Lisbon shopping guide for those under-the-radar gems spanning fashion, antique tiles, vintage furniture, design den interiors & all things children's gifts.
read moreThe gift of a hotel stay is a great present for a birthday, Christmas, a Wedding present or just a thank you gift. Shop online for hotel gift cards, and vouchers.
read moreTravel to Portugal's fairy-tale den of Sintra, just outside Lisbon, for a world full of rolling hills and castles, once referred to by Byron as "glorious Eden".
read moreChillax in one of the Azores’ favourite ‘hot’ spots (pardon the pun) in São Miguel's fave thermal spring, a striking feat of architecture amidst sublime nature.
read moreMeet Lisbon's internationally acclaimed graffiti artist Diogo Machado, known for his work as Add Fuell, as he stencils tile designs onto the one and only Casa Amora, in a city full of graffiti art.
read morePorto for culture seekers - we explore the Serralves Foundation comprising of a dusty pink 1930-40s’s Art Deco villa designed by Porto architect José Marques da Silva, a landscape-specific contemporary museum designed by Álvaro Siza.
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