Portugal has spent a decade being described as cheap, and it is no longer as cheap as that reputation — Lisbon and the Algarve in particular have moved a long way. It remains, by a clear margin, the best value in western Europe, running roughly 25 to 30 percent below Italy for a comparable trip.
The daily lines
| Line | Mid-range, per person per day |
|---|---|
| Accommodation | €65–100 per room |
| Food and drink | €40–60 |
| Transport | €10–15 |
| Sights and activities | €10–20 |
| Total, mid-range | €120–200 |
For a couple sharing a room, a week comes to roughly €1,100–1,700 all in, excluding flights. At the budget end — guesthouses, set lunches, trains — €55 a day per person is achievable and not austere.
The set lunch, which is the whole trick
The prato do dia — dish of the day — is served at lunchtime in ordinary cafés and small restaurants across the country for €8 to €12. It typically includes soup or bread, a substantial main, a drink and a coffee.
This is not a tourist deal; it is how Portuguese people eat lunch. Taking your main meal at midday, at a place with a handwritten board and no English menu, and eating lightly in the evening will cut your food budget close to half while improving what you actually eat.
Two prices worth memorising. A bica — Portuguese espresso — is €0.80 to €1.20 at an ordinary café. An imperial, the small draught beer, is €1.50 to €2.50. If you are paying appreciably more than these, you are in a place priced for visitors, and there is almost certainly a better one around the corner.
Where the money goes wrong
- The couvert. Bread, olives and cheese arriving unrequested at the start of a meal are not free. They are charged if eaten. Send them back if you do not want them; nobody is offended.
- Lisbon and the Algarve in August. Both price like different countries in high summer. The Algarve in particular doubles.
- Taxis from Lisbon airport. The metro is direct, cheap and fast.
- Eating on the main square. The rule that holds across southern Europe: one street back is a third cheaper and usually better.
Where to spend instead
- Trains. Portugal's intercity rail is good and inexpensive, and the Lisbon–Porto line takes under three hours. There is no case for a hire car if you are doing cities.
- A car for the Alentejo or the Douro. Conversely, the rural interior is where a car earns its keep — and the Alentejo is the cheapest and least visited part of the country.
- Pastéis de nata, obviously, but from a pastelaria rather than a queue with a brand.
- The still wines. Portuguese reds from the Douro, the Dão and the Alentejo are among the best value in Europe and are dramatically underpriced relative to their quality.
When to go
April to June and September to October. The summer is hot inland — the Douro and the Alentejo regularly exceed 40°C — and the coast is busy and priced accordingly. Winter in Lisbon and Porto is mild, wet, very cheap and perfectly viable; the Algarve in winter is quiet and warm enough to walk in.
September and early October are the best weeks of the year: the Atlantic is at its warmest, the harvest is on in the wine regions, and prices have dropped from August.
A word on the Italy comparison
If Portugal runs 25–30% below Italy, the same mid-range Italian day lands at roughly €165–260. That is an inference from the differential rather than a directly measured figure, so treat it as an order of magnitude — but it matches the experience of anyone who has done both in the same year.
The practical consequence: a fortnight in Portugal costs about what ten days in Italy does. If time is the constraint, go to Italy. If money is, Portugal gives you four more days.
The short version
- Mid-range: €120–200 per person per day. A week for two, about €1,100–1,700 excluding flights.
- Take the prato do dia at lunch. €8–12, and it halves the food budget.
- Bica €0.80–1.20, imperial €1.50–2.50. Use these as your price compass.
- Send the couvert back if you do not want it.
- Trains for cities, a car for the Alentejo and the Douro.
- September and early October are the best weeks of the year.