Porto, a coastal city in the northwest of Portugal, has long been relegated to Lisbon’s shadow, but it’s finally commanding global attention for its culinary offerings.
25.08.2023 - 15:03 / skift.com
The number of foreign tourists visiting Portugal surpassed eight million in January-June, making it the best first half on record, official data showed on Monday.
The National Statistics Institute said nearly 8.2 million foreigners stayed in Portuguese hotels in the period, up from 6.3 million a year ago and 7.4 million in the first six months of 2019, a record year for tourism before the COVID-19 pandemic crippled global travel in 2020.
Tourism, a key driver of Portugal’s economy, accounted for almost 15% of gross domestic product before the pandemic.
Visitors from Britain made up the largest share of total arrivals in the first half, with over one million visitors, closely followed by the Spanish and U.S. markets.
In June, the United States, which has significantly grown as a source of tourism to Portugal, represented the second-largest group of foreign visitors.
The INE said the hotel sector registered 13.6 million guests, including local travellers, in the first half, while total hotel revenues increased 32% year-on-year to 2.5 billion euros ($2.73 billion).
In a separate report, the INE said the number of passengers who travelled through Portuguese airports in the first six months jumped almost 30% from a year ago and rose 12% compared to the first half of 2019.
According to the International Air Transport Association, international travel reached around 90% of pre-pandemic levels this year, with the rebound being led by visitors to Southern Europe.
Porto, a coastal city in the northwest of Portugal, has long been relegated to Lisbon’s shadow, but it’s finally commanding global attention for its culinary offerings.
Portugal’s flag carrier TAP said on Wednesday that it swung to a net profit of $25 million (23 million euros) in the first half of 2023 on strong revenue growth, boosted by booming tourism, and forecast a strong performance for the remainder of the year.
To give civilisation the slip, head north to Serra da Estrela Natural Park, where the country’s tallest mountains punch above valleys that echo with goat and sheep bells. At Senses on the banks of the Mondego River, you can camp under the fruit trees or glamp in a bell tent, safari lodge or yurt. Wild swim in the river with the otters and hike into granite heights, returning to eat at the farm-to-fork restaurant. By night the Milky Way shimmers in some of the country’s darkest skies. Pitches from €15 (£13), tents from €45 (£39), B&B.
A former fishing village that’s become one of the most posh spots in Portugal, Comporta is still gathering steam. Between the rice fields, cork forests, and long white beaches, there has been a slew of new openings this year, as well as upgrades to existing properties (and some that needed no changes at all) and lots of construction in the works. Here’s what’s worth a look—especially now that the peak summertime crowds have started to head home.
Straddling the mouth of the Douro River with elegant bridges and painted houses tripping up gentle hillsides, Porto has soared in popularity with travellers in recent years. Many come to sip and slurp at the city’s historic port wine houses, climb the narrow streets lined with baroque churches and 19th-century merchants’ houses, and bounce between cafe terraces in the labyrinthine Ribeira district. But equally appealing is the call of the outdoors – Porto’s riverside views and coastal position encourage all manner of active pursuits, from paddleboarding and kayaking to bridge climbing and e-biking. Here’s the perfect itinerary for an active weekend break.
Salgados Golf Course is an 18-hole par-72 layout originally designed by Pedro Vasconcelos in 1994 and renovated by renowned landscape architect Álvaro Mano in 2012.
Rail travel is all the rage this summer and Portugal is getting on board with a new offer.
Spain’s national rail operator has recently launched new routes connecting to major cities in France.
There are few wine regions in the world as instantly recognisable as Portugal's Douro Valley. Its vineyards rise in striking symmetry from the banks of the Rio Douro, which charts a 557-mile-long course across northern Portugal before spilling out into the Atlantic at Porto. The Alto (Upper) Douro lies at the sweet spot where the Marão and Montemuro mountains meet, shielding the land from unforgiving westerly winds. In doing so, they create ideal microclimates for the area's 250,000-odd hectares of vertiginous vineyards, yielding super-concentrated, deeply flavoured grapes.
There are many reasons to fall in love with the Azores, a Portuguese archipelago in the middle of the Atlantic that’s often called the Hawaii of Europe. The islands are green; they’re lush; they’re beautiful. And there’s a lot of delicious cheese. They’re also still places that are still largely free from mass tourism, and they’re home to a growing number of delightful boutique hotels. These are some of the loveliest.
Designated protected areas make up almost a quarter of Portugal's landmass, and while this Iberian country has just one national park — Peneda-Gerês, on the Spanish border in the far north — there are 24 natural parks and other protected landscapes for nature lovers to explore. Often etched with hiking trails that lead you through pine-clad hills, wildflower valleys and high pastures, these areas make prime spots to catch a glimpse of native fauna such as horses, eagles, lizards and even dolphins in the wild.
Registering a record performance for the first six months of the financial year, Dubai state carrier Emirates Airline on Thursday reported a net profit of $1.08 billion for the first half of the financial year, compared to a loss of $1.6 billion for the same period last year.