My husband and I are planning a 3 week trip to Portugal for this coming fall (2017) - leaving in mid -Sept through the beginning of Oct. We were planning about 4-5 days in Lisbon and Sintra, then renting a car to travel around the country... probably going south first then traveling up through central Portugal and into the north (Douro Valley) and Porto. Our return to Lisbon would be down the Atlantic coast and we would leave for home from Lisbon. I have a couple of questions.. One is about the fires in the country... are they generally in the central part or around Coimbra? Because we would definitely wish to avoid those areas - which means should we avoid central Portugal in general? Related, is a question about the fires in general, and should we put off our vacation until things calm down? Also, how much of a hassel is it to deal with the Fatima pilgrimage (Oct 13).. Are there generally tourists and pilgrims around for days before and after the actual date??? Thanks for any help.
Carol Powell
Posted by
Cascais, Portugal
1666 posts
It would be impossible (almost) to predict where fires will break out between now and mid September. I've read about many fires this summer but only got a hint (smoky skies) of one here in Cascais. And, hopefully, by the time you are here, things will have calmed down. If you plan your trip north of Lisbon for later in your trip, it would be even better as the potential for rain increases in October. Eucalyptus trees are the biggest problem since they burn so fast and they are more central and northern. I think you can keep on top of them by checking news sites.
Visiting Fatima would likely be a short visit, so it wouldn't be difficult to avoid a busier time. IMO there are much more interesting things to visit in central Portugal.