The Portuguese government's high hopes for the practically ignored Beja airport to become a hub for low-cost airlines have been dashed. The blow to Beja came after the vice president of Ryanair publicly stated that the airport “does not interest” the Irish airline. Beja Airport, which is located in Alentejo between Lisbon and the Algarve, [...]
People planning on jetting off for a break in Portugal these Easter holidays may have to resign themselves to packing waterproofs and warm clothes – rain has finally arrived! Although this may disappoint holidaymakers, locals are breathing a collective sigh of relief that the heavens have opened. This winter has been the driest in Portugal [...]
Since the Algarve's only motorway, the A22, became a toll road just a few short months ago, the spirited fight to have them abolished has gathered significant pace. Early March saw expat newspaper, The Algarve Resident, announce that the European Commission had ruled the tolls illegal on grounds that they prohibited free movement within the [...]
Residents of Essex who own a second home in the Algarve are looking forward to the launch of flights to Faro airport from Southend International. Daily Easyjet flights to the sunshine destination begin on 5th April, with the frequency increasing as the summer season begins. While residents of Essex and East London now have an [...]
If you have purchased a rental holiday property in Portugal, you’re probably keen to begin to promote it and start seeing revenue from holiday lets. At this point, it’s advisable to make peace with the fact that it will take a bit of time to tick all the necessary legal and logistical boxes before you [...]
Resident expats in Portugal and anyone with a holiday home there will be no stranger to the frequent roundabout car checks and random police stops that occur in the country. While officials deny that there is no policy in place to actively hunt out fines, English newspaper, The Portugal News, has reported that the value [...]
Too many Brits are buying property in Portugal without using a surveyor, despite being unfamiliar with Portuguese construction methods and the risk of their properties being susceptible to damage. “The method of construction in Portugal is completely different from northern Europe because a lot of Portugal is liable to earthquakes,” said Robert Levin, a surveyor [...]
Brits living on the Algarve with any questions about life as an expat should go along to one of two, or both, events hosted by the Algarve’s British consulate in March. The British consulate’s role is to provide support to British nationals resident in Portugal. Attending one of its “Consulate in the community” events gives [...]
British people with older TV sets in their Portuguese holiday homes may find a blank or fuzzy screen next time they visit the country. Portugal’s national roll-out of digital television is now underway. The Algarve’s main analogue transmitter on Foia, in the Monchique region, has been switched off, as has the main transmitter for Lisbon. [...]
An estate agency based in Portugal has found a great new way to ensure that people wanting to invest in Portuguese property can get the funding they need to live the dream. Bank lending in Portugal, like much of the rest of the world, is very tight as banks try to protect themselves against lending [...]