When beginning the plans for this trip there was no grand idea of where to start, just that we had to go. So I pulled up a google map, picked a point, and bam! – we had a plan.
Portugal
Just a glance at this map can tell you why we are choosing to start in the little pacific country. There is nowhere to go but onward! Since we are planning to camp and ride to cut costs, there is a lot of research we need to do on each place we visit. Everywhere will have different laws for cycling, camping, length of stay, etc.
As it turns out, flights from our corner of the world to Portugal are hella pricey, so it might be best for us to fly to London, UK with one of our national companies and then catch a European flight to Faro or Lisbon.
Getting there
September flight to London – 800/per
– I have been doing some basic travel hacking, enough to earn at least one of our tickets there.
London to Porto – 48
London to Lisbon – 78 (it totally makes sense that Lisbon is closer to London than Faro but way pricier, right?)
London to Faro – 58
Timeline : Mid to late September
Average temperatures:
Day: 23 Night: 19 Rain: 16 days, 80mm
Attractions and events : September 8 – Our lady of Nazare festival
Mostly we want to cycle, eat, and meet people. This will be our first stop of our tour and we don’t want to push things too hard, let us get in the groove a bit first. We want to swim, surf, dine, and soak in a new place. We will of course stop for some sight seeing in Lisbon but we would rather decide as we go than plan too much in advance.
Accomodations: According to Rick Steeves, everything is so affordable its not worth camping to save money. “Wild camping” can result in some hefty fines because of issues with litter and fires in the past. Isn’t it swell how the sh*ts of the world ruin it for everyone?
According to Camping Portugal, there are over 100 campgrounds in Portugal averaging about 4euros per person and 2.5euros for the tent, though most of these campgrounds are parks so it’s hard to know if you have to pay per person if you are paying to camp. The 2 star campgrounds are about 4.5/night/person.
Food: Thanks to Anthony Bourdain, we know to anticipate all kinds of fish on this leg of the trip, and we could not be more pleased! Paprika is the spice of choice
Coming up next…
Next month I will open my Workaway account to start booking work stays for us which will help plan our route a little better. I think we will start in Porto and cycle our way down the coastline. Between Workaway and Couch Surfing I think we will meet lots of interesting people to guide us further.
Until then meus amigos!
– Bonni –
This post was originally published February 28, 2017. As we continue to plan and learn (and reveal our identities!) I will update it with our plans, links, and post how things actually went after each adventure!
Bonni Blue Breakaway 