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Portugal in November

Hello,
My wife and I are considering going to Portugal this November, and just started planning and exploring. We are mid-30's with a variety of interests. I'm a lover of history and she enjoys art and architecture. We both love our food and drink, and try to adopt Rick's temporary local philosophy whenever possible. We would likely leave Florida on 11/21 and head back home on 12/3. This would give us 10 full days not counting the day we arrive or leave.

Has anyone been during this time? I know it is the offseason, but this is the time that makes the most sense for us since we are getting extra vacation days with the Thanksgiving holiday. We are primarily concerned with areas shutting down or with limited access. We went to Germany during the holiday last year and had no issues with closures or limited access in the bigger cities, but some of the smaller places were shutdown to an extent (Rothenburg a little, Fussen nearly completely).

We normally try to do multicity flights, but the deal we found round trip from Lisbon will be hard to turn down. So we will likely start and end in Lisbon. From what I have read, Lisbon will be fine, but are there areas that are best skipped this time of year? Or on the other hand, areas that are even nicer in late November? Lisbon was actually the first European destination I ever visited, but that was in 1998 and in March. I am sure a lot has changed and I have forgotten nearly everything.
Thanks,

Posted by
2545 posts

We visited Portugal then. It was cool/chilly but we enjoyed the country and I'd do it again. Everything we wanted to see was open, although hours may be a bit less than during warmer times of the year.

Posted by
6113 posts

November will be cooler, but most places will be open. I would avoid the Algarve at that time of year, as some resorts will be dead, but with only 10 days, there is plenty to keep you occupied between Lisbon and Porto.

I would have 5 days in Lisbon, 2 in Evora and 3 in Porto.

Posted by
1826 posts

Ten million people live in Portugal and, only recently, has it become a bigger tourist draw from outside Europe. The only days pretty much everything closes is Christmas and New Year’s Day. Everything. ( with the possible exception of smaller Algarve towns) will be open. Even places like Obidos, that pretty much live on tourism, don’t close down in the winter. In fact, there are lots of Christmas fairs but they likely won’t have started before you leave.
I’ve found traveling within the country in the off season to be better because of the decrease in tourists. And, the winters here have some rain but don’t ever get really cold - and you have a better chance of really large waves, crystal clear skies, etc.