My only experience was traveling in a few Greek Islands in March and being in Paris during March. Some days in Greece were really cold and windy and Paris in March forget about it and go to Nice (which I did)
How is the weather in Portugal ( not Algarve) or in the Mountains (Porto to Lisbon)?
I can look the weather up in Google but wondering if I should wear my wool coat (which got really cold in the rain during December Christmas Markets)? Or should I bring my puffy jacket and layer?
The simple answer is always appropriate layers. And that includes a good rain jacket/wind breaker. Hat and gloves don't take up much room. And shoes that are waterproof -- not water resistant. I am sure problem with your wool coat is that it became wet from the rain.
We were in Lisbon and Porto March 4-13, 2020. The weather in Lisbon was lovely--sunny, 60s-low 70s, and windy at the beginning, and we wore jeans, long sleeve shirts, and a lightweight fleece jacket mornings. Afternoons, the jacket was not needed. Then evenings, we wore a light cardigan under the jacket. We moved to Porto the middle of the trip, and it was gray and misting when we arrived so we layered a rainproof jacket with hood over the fleece. The next couple of days it was sunny and warm again with no wind. Then we circled back to Lisbon toward the end of the trip, and it was high 70s with no wind.
We have friends who took the same trip two weeks before us. They also had sunny, warm weather in Lisbon with no wind at all, but they had pouring rain most of their time in Porto.
We loved Portugal. Hope you are blessed with the same beautiful weather we experienced.
Maybe the easiest way to answer your question is - I’ve lived here six years and don’t own a wool coat. And have never felt the need for one. Porto will be cooler than Lisbon and both could be quite rainy but as the others have pointed out, layers are the way to go.
We have wonderfully sunny warm days all winter - interspersed with rain and cool temps. Think 50’s (F) for highs and 40’s for lows. I experienced close to freezing temperatures once in Porto in February but it didn’t freeze. Depending on your winters where you live, Portugal will be great as long as you don’t mind rain.
All this said - be certain to inquire if your accommodations have heat. The houses in Portugal aren’t well insulated and have limited heat, so can get miserably cold despite the relatively mild winters.
BTW - neither Porto or Lisbon are in the mountains.. Both are pretty much at sea level with hills. Serra da Estrela are the only mountains in Portugal and they are small mountains at that.
