Portugal
Palacio Nacional de Pena, Sintra photo by StaraBlazkova (wikimedia commons)Portugal is an unspoilt and often overlooked country compared to its neighbour Spain. However it has many gems that visitors will be hard pressed to find in the more popular areas of Europe, unless you get off the beaten track. Portugal is a country of traditional villages, lively cities, scenic countryside, marvellous beaches and a number of World Heritage sites. Another huge plus for visitors with motorhome rental or campervan hire here is that unless you travel in the peak months there are a very large number of places that you can stay overnight for free.
If you travel north or south of the capital Lisbon you will find incredible places to visit. In the north old cities such as Porto, famous for its fortified wine called Port, the much undiscovered and wild beaches of the Costa Verde or Green Coast. Inland the area holds other secrets such as medieval towns and centuries old vineyards and to the south the fishing villages of the Costa Azul and one of the most popular areas for motorhoming the sunny Algarve with its excellent camp sites. Portugal is also more than just good scenery; it’s the place for visitors who enjoy every type of outdoor activity from hiking and horse riding to windsurfing and big game fishing. There are many benefits to motorhome rental or campervan hire but especially here in Portugal, it gives you somewhere shelter on the deserted wild coast from weather, whether that be the scorching sun or the amazing wind, it allows you to stay overnight at that secluded beach where there isn’t a hotel to be found for miles, but best of all it allows you to travel at your own pace and really get to experience this beautiful country.
In Portugal there are a great many places to stay overnight, there are the traditional campsites and farms a few suitable areas on the motorway network and Aires. The Aires are a little less common here than in France and Spain but are located in the areas which you will need them, so as long as you plan your route carefully you shouldn’t have any problems. The other huge bonus of Portugal is that all along the coast (apart from the Algarve in July and August) you will be able to camp on the beach front and in the woods and forests of the interior free of charge.
Portugal is an incredible place to holiday in a campervan hire or motorhome rental vehicle because there are just so many opportunities to see somewhere new everyday and take things at your own pace, you can’t go wrong.
For more information on Aires and some of the campsites visit the links below which give detailed locations for motorhome and campervan stopovers. The Aires page is in Dutch but a translation tool will easily change it into something you can understand and the camping site has an English flag to change the language.
http://www.campercontact.nl/cc_land.php?c=pt
http://www.vayacamping.net/portugal/index.asp?lang=es
Algarve Motorhome Rental
The sunny Algarve with its Mediterranean climate and relaxed atmosphere is a popular place to holiday all year round and whether you come for the championship golf, the beaches, the food, the architecture or the wildlife you will find it all here. Stoll around the narrow streets or wander along the wide open beaches, for visitors with campervan hire or motorhome rental the Algarve has it all.
Faro Motorhome Rental
Faro is often overlooked by visitors to the south of Portugal as they usually arrive on a flight and drive straight out the nearby beaches and resorts of the Algarve. However Faro has a lot of history and despite suffering some earthquake damage there are still a lot of Moorish and even Roman remains to be seen here.
Lisbon to Oporto Motorhome Road Trip
Although not as well known as the routes around the Algarve in the south, a road trip along the western side of Portugal is a great alternative. For visitors on a motorhome rental or campervan hire holiday this route will take you through some of the more traditional areas and unspoilt countryside, for a different view of the country.
Porto Motorhome Rental
The city of Porto, also referred to as Oporto, is Portugal’s second largest city built along the banks of the Douro River. The city’s historical centre the Ribeira district is a UNESCO World Heritage site so there are plenty of beautiful buildings and winding streets to get lost in, perhaps not the best thing to do with a motorhome rental or campervan hire vehicle, find a place to park and get lost on foot instead.
Portugal Geography
Bordering Spain to the north and east and with 586 miles of coastline to the south and west, Portugal and its Atlantic islands of the Azores, Porto Santo and Madeira are all wonderful places to enjoy motorhome rental and campervan hire. The country is split in two by the River Tajeo with the north having a combination of maintains and plateaus and the south, as far as the Algarve being rolling countryside. The Algarve in the very south of the country has some incredible fine sandy beaches; as has the island of Porto Santo, as well as some outstanding rock formations. The beaches are clean and the sea is turquoise but remember, this is the Atlantic so the water can be rather ‘bracing’ at times which is very welcome during the summer months but no so in the winter! Portugal’s coastline is not only an attraction for human visitors the area around Rio de Aveiro, known as the Venice of Portugal, is a series of lagoons rich in sea birds and fish.
Portugal Off the Beaten Track
Much of Portugal is probably considered off the beaten track, apart from its cities and the main coastal resorts of the Algarve you’ll never feel that you are anywhere but the real Portugal. A campervan hire or motorhome rental is a great way to see some of Portugal’s best kept secrets; in fact some of these places are so undiscovered that even in the height of summer that you can be totally on your own.
Top Places to visit in Portugal
We know that Portugal is famous for its beaches, so besides that what are the ten best places to visit for visitors with a motorhome rental or campervan hire?
Top Roadtrips in Portugal
Portugal has endless amounts of open roads, great for campervan hire vehicles. Do as much or as little as you please and whether you are interested in beaches, the mountains of the interior, or the wild outdoors of the north you will have no trouble finding something you enjoy here.