Portugal Travel Guide

Portugal's landscape unfolds in astonishing variety from a mountainous, green interior to a sweeping coastline. Celtic, Roman, and Islamic influences are evident in the land, its people, and their tongue. The long Atlantic coastline means that most of Portugal's tumultuous history has centered on the sea. From the charting of the Azores archipelago in 1427 to their arrival in Japan in 1540, Portuguese explorers unlocked sea routes to southern Africa, India, eastern Asia, and the Americas. The great era of exploration, known as the Descobrimentos, reached its height during the 15th century under the influence of Prince Henry the Navigator. But the next several centuries saw dynastic instability, extravagant spending by monarchs, natural disasters, and foreign invasion. Order came in the 20th century in the form of a right-wing dictatorship that lasted more than 40 years, until a near-bloodless coup established democracy in 1974.

Experience Portugal

• Top Reasons to Go to Portugal

Cities in Portugal

• Lisbon

• Porto

• Sintra

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