Two weeks ago I attempted to answer a few of the questions I received from my readers. There is one question I didn’t attempt to answer, though I am asked it frequently. At least once a week, I get an email or WhatsApp call that includes the question, “Where should I live?” I’m sorry … but that is a question only you can answer for yourself.
Portugal’s Diversity
While Portugal is a relatively small country, it has a great deal of diversity. And while we have traveled a bit during our first 15 months, keep in mind we were locked down for at least the first four. So there are many, many parts of this country that we have not explored.
Everyone has told us that the population of Vila Real de Santo Antonio will increase by at least 50% in August … so we are hoping to “get out of Dodge”. If we do, we expect we will begin our travels by traveling north through the center of the country via the EN2. Some call this the Route 66 of Portugal. (Note: our travel plans may be altered if we find that the house is at a critical point of construction. We are not sure if the contractor’s crew takes off in August like the rest of Portugal. Speaking of construction: we hit a huge milestone this week … tão emocionante! But you will have to wait till next week to read all about it.) But I digress…
So, I can’t tell you where you should live. But I can share with you some of the questions I suggest people think about when they ask me this question. You can consider all of these from the comfort of your home, wherever that might be.
Remember, Size Matters
I wrote before about the size of the town Denise and I wanted to live in. The Goldilocks Principle is one way to start thinking about where you want to be. If you love big city life, there are only 10 to consider. Lisbon with a population of 500,000+ and Porto which is about half that size are the obvious choices. According to the 2021 census, there are only 7 places with populations north of 100,000. Coimbra, a college town in the northern-central region, and Lisbon’s neighbors Setúbol and Almada come in just under that 100,000 mark.
Now as you are looking at these figures, keep in mind one important thing. If you ask your Google machine, what is the population of Cascais you will get a number north of 200,000. You see Google is looking at the area from the ocean in the west to Carcavelos in the east. This is the Municipality of Cascais which is within the Lisbon District and is composed of many Parishes, e.g. Cascais e Estoril. If you ask me, Cascais is the town within the yellow circle above … a much, much smaller area. I don’t know the exact population of the area I consider Cascais…but I suspect it is less than 20,000.
If even this number is too large for you, at the other end of the spectrum, you have towns like Monte Francisco which is about 6 km from us and has a population of only 700 residents. I am sure as we travel through central Portugal we will find even smaller villages. (I am reminded of our travels in OLGA, our motorhome, through farmland in the US. We would drive for miles and then see a sign that said XYZ Town, Population 18 … which would cause me to wonder, who do you date?) Again, I digress…
Why Size Matters
There are several important considerations when we talk about size. Of course, there are cultural and entertainment considerations. But there are others as well. You need to ask yourself these questions:
Do I intend to learn Portuguese? — You can get by in cities and touristy places like Cascais without ever learning Portuguese. If you intend to live in Portugal I suggest you try to learn the language! But I know many, many non-Portuguese speaking residents that get by with an “obrigada” and a “Bom dia”. However, if you are going to live in a smaller town, you will need to learn at least some Portuguese.
Do I need to live near a hospital? — I must admit moving to VRSA has been a bit of an adjustment as it relates to healthcare. While there is a clinic affiliated with our private insurance in town, it is a “primary care facility” that can do some testing and physical therapy. To see a specialist or to have surgery, you must get to Faro, a 50-minute drive. Being that far from an acute care facility makes some people nervous. However, this doesn’t mean you have to live in a city! You can live 15 minutes from a hospital and still live in a small town. Eg. Chelote is a village of fewer than 400 people within 7 km of a major hospital in Faro. But, if you are concerned, scout out the hospitals before you zero in on an area.
Do I intend to own a car? — We were able to live comfortably in Cascais without a car. By utilizing the public transportation system, rideshare services, and an occasional rental car when we wanted to travel we got along just fine. Buying a depreciating asset was a hard pill for me (not Denise) to swallow. We only did so once we decided to move south. That is not to say you must own a car if you live in Algarve. We know an English woman that has lived in VRSA for 8 full years and doesn’t own a car! To go to one of her favorite restaurants, she takes the 26-minute train ride, then walks 45 minutes. Yes, she is quite fit. We are also fit but wanted more convenience.
Climate
I know the climate is a major consideration for many of the people that I speak to. And, yes, we are a bit more tolerant of heat than many people. (Remember, we used to live in the desert!) But as you consider temperature, keep in mind the following: the greatest temperature variation is when you move away from the coastline, rather than north and south. EG. here are the average high and low temperatures for the month of March:
Porto: 18/9 degrees Celsius
Lisbon: 18/10 degrees Celsius
Algarve: 19/10 degrees Celsius
Not a big difference!
Even in August, where we find the greatest variation, the difference is only 7 degrees Fahrenheit: Porto 25/16, Lisbon 28/18, Algarve 29/19. To further illustrate my point, I looked up the temperature of Peso da Régua, a town 126km due east of Porto. Its average August temp is actually higher than Algarves at 32 degrees Celsius. (BTW: want to convert celsius to Fahrenheit quick? Multiply celsius by 2 and add 30. It will get you real close.)
For me, the biggest difference is in rainfall. In Porto, on average it rains 49”/year and there is some precipitation during 147 days of the year. Compare this to Algarve where we average only 19” of rain over 53 days of the year. Personally, I will take a scorching hot, sunny day over a gray, rainy day anytime…but that’s me. Some people don’t mind the rain.
Other Considerations
Of course, there are other considerations…like your budget. As I wrote before, many of the people that I have spoken to recently have been “surprised” at the price of Portuguese real estate. Unfortunately, they have read too many International Living articles with headlines like: “Rent an Apartment for less than $500” and/or are not familiar with our local mortgage practices. But by spending some time on Portuguese real estate sites, as frustrating as they may be, you can get a feel for perhaps the most variable cost of your Portuguese budget.
This post was not intended to be an exhaustive list. It is just a place to start. Internet searches…YouTube videos…Blogs and Vlogs…Google Maps…Google Earth…etc. are all useful tools to assist you in your research. Some of us moved to Portugal without even visiting for a day. Crazy…yes, but true. But while exploratory visits will help…spending 6 weeks as a tourist is probably not enough. That is why, for most people, we recommend that you rent first. Take your time…you probably need to live in an area for at least 6 months to truly assess whether it meets your needs. We have friends that spent 6 months in Porto, are now in Parede for a year, and then will likely move again. They intend to continue doing this until their mind and body say, “Stop…this is the place.” Of course, this approach takes patience…more patience than either Denise or I had. While we are enjoying VRSA, I sometimes wish we had taken more time. Only time will tell if this is our forever home.
Always enjoy reading your posts! This one sounded like you were talking to me...
Nancy- always a pleasure to read your writings. And I love your humor. It will be interesting to see what summer brings.