What to Wear in Spain & Portugal - Ladies (Sept./Oct.)

I think leggings would be too hot. I pack cropped pants or capris, and long light weight pants. . I shop at REI, Orvis or athletic stores as they sell tops that are light weight, wrinkle free, and wash/dry quickly, qualities you need for travel. When I return home, I pack my travel clothes away. You have to pay extra to get clothes that work well. I do not spend a fortune at all but always get compliments when I travel. And these clothes last a long time.

Thanks, Suki! Great ideas! I will be on the lookout for sportswear. Thank u!

If you shop online try Sierra Trading Post. It's part of the TJMaxx group. Sierra Trading has a fair amount of athletic and "athleisure" clothes that are great for travel. The online REI garage/outlet also has great bargains. I just bought several tops from Uniqlo which I think will be good for travel. Haven't tried them out yet. Other brands to consider include Columbia, Prana, Ex Officio and Carve Designs. I know there are others. That's just what comes to mind.

Just wear jeans and any permanent press blouses you already have. Long sleeves are good because you can roll them up if it gets warm.
There is no need to go buy extra clothing for Spain. What do you wear in the summer/fall at home? Jeans do not have to be washed every time you wear them, in fact, you don't need to wash them at all according to the folks that make Levis.

Where in Spain are you going? If to the south, I think jeans would be too hot. From personal experience I can tell you that polyester and poly/cotton tops will be unpleasant.

Cotton blends usually look a lot better than pure cottons when you take them out of your suitcase. I find cotton/modal (rayon) much better than cotton/poly in hot weather. Online merchants like Lands End or Eddie Bauer may have cotton/modal T-shirts in a variety of styles and sleeve lengths.

For pure cotton tops I just head to Macy's, though it carries its cheapest line (Karen Scott) only in some stores.

I have been amazed that 100% rayon/modal pants are not hot and clingy in the heat, and the ones I have (a long-ago purchase from Coldwater Creek) look perfect right out of the suitcase. I haven't had any luck finding something comparable in a full-length solid color, however.

My favorite recent purchase is a pair of PrAna pants that are 97% nylon. They look great right out of the suitcase, are water-repellant if you get caught in the rain, dry fairly quickly after washing and are lightweight to pack. They are not budget-priced, though.

If you take a small squirt bottle, you can mist wrinkles and hang the clothes to dry. I find that works well, though it's better if you don't have to do it at all.

Thank you! I love the ideas!
I always take one pair of jeans on my trips. I will check those online stores and am sure I will find a few tops that will work great for this trip. I just don't want to have to worry about pressing clothes. I do use wrinkle remover spray which only works on some fabrics, and I hang my clothes in the shower in hopes that some of those wrinkles will disappear in the steamy room. Thank you again!!!

Yolanda, I hang any wrinkled clothes in the bathroom so when we shower, the steam takes care of the wrinkles.

Yolanda, saying "Spain & Portugal" is enormously vague as the climate changes wildly from one end to the other. Also, whether you're going to be in rural areas or city areas, inland or coast, etc might possibly warrant a different response. Finally, knowing what venues (if any) do you intend to visit might also influence.

Where exactly are you going to visit and what sort of activities have you planned?

Hello ENRIC - Sorry I forgot to include that info. Below is our itinerary. We will be spending some beach days, doing a little hiking, visiting a few museums, cathedrals and the normal sightseeing stuff. This is a last minute trip that I've just started planning, so I am still working on what we will try to see in each stop.
This is our itinerary:
9/13 - Fly into Madrid
9/14 - Burgos - 2 ½ hrs.
9/15 - Burgos
9/16 - Santillana del Mar - 1 hr. 51 min.
9/17 - Santillana del Mar
9/18 - Picos de Europa/Potes - 1 hr. 15 min.
9/19 - Picos de Europa/Potes
9/20 - Oviedo - 2 hrs.
9/21 - Oviedo
9/22 - Santiago - 3 hr. 22 min.
9/23 - Santiago
9/24 - Finesterra - 1 hr. 15 min.
9/25 - Finesterra
9/26 - Porto - 3 hr. 18 min.
9/27 - Porto
9/28 - Porto
9/29 - Douro/Tras Os Montes - 1 hr. 6 min.
9/30 - Douro/Tras os Montes
10/1 - Coimbra - 2 hr. 4 min.
10/2 - Coimbra
10/3 - Nazare - 1 hr. 11 min.
10/4 - Nazare
10/5 - Lisbon - 1 hr. 28 min.
10/6 - Lisbon
10/7 - Lisbon
10/8 - Evora - 1 hr. 28 min.
10/9 - Evora
SPAIN:
10/10 - Caceres (stop in Merida - make our way back up to Madrid) - 1 hr. 41 min. To Merida and 56 min. To Caceres
10/11 - Madrid Fly Home - 2 hrs. 55 min.

Diane - FOR SURE! It works!

The shower thing never works for me.
I shop my closest. I am not afraid to admit I have knits of various weights as well as polyester (woven) trousers in various weights.
Check wunderground or similar website for actual historical weather temps and precipitation for each of your cities and then compare to what you wear at home.
Test how things react to sink washing at home - as far as dry time. Consider that if you can hang things quite wet, the drip dry will stretch out some of those wrinkles. If you smooth them out a time or two as well, it may help.

Busy prints mean wrinkles show less ;-)

Maria, we usually do laundry at a laundromat after our two week point, then we might do it again before we fly home just because it makes me crazy to bring home dirty clothes! Some of our accommodations have washers and a couple have dryers. So, we can wash as we go, and that means we can bring less clothes with us. I need to quit worrying about trying to be stylish and just be comfortable! ; )

Hi Yolanda,

• Except for Lisbon and probably Porto and Oviedo, the rest of your itinerary is very "rural" and/or "towny", so no need for packing dressy outfits.
• If you intend going out in Lisbon in the evening, or certain places in Oviedo, some might require to dress a tad smart casual -not business or anything of that sort, just a bit more than jeans and t-shirt, if you catch my drift.
• Weather-like, September tends to be "wet" -same than April-May- and especially in the region you intend to visit. You'll come across rain, probably more than you'd expect, especially in the northern bound part of your trip.
• Temperatures in Sept/Oct in Galizia, Minho, Douro and Asturias tend to be around 23ºC/75F and 14ºC/58F. Note however those inland areas (Burgos, Picos de Europa, etc) those can be half of that at that time of the year. Winters there can be quite harsh.

Not wanting to meddle, but IMHO you're spending far too little time in each place, you're going to be spending your trip driving around. Just sayin'

Off the top of my head, some restaurants I remember and I would probably stop by:

In Santillana del Mar: Parador de Santillana Gil Blas, Pasaje de los Nobles and Gran Duque
In Burgos -where you want to eat "lechazo", of course: Asador Los Trillos or the famous Ojeda (worthwhile, but not cheap!)
In Oviedo: El Raitán or La Corte de Pelayo and for some quick bite La Paloma, Tierra Astur and El Raspón
In Lisbon: A Casa do Bacalhau, Marisqueira Nunes, Gambrinus or Solar dos Presuntos and for some very down-to-earth quick bite eateries, Tasquinha do Lagarto, Merendinha do Arco or Zé da mouraria -popular among taxi drivers!

It's a mix of very casual places and more formal places, I like food, I don't care much for "pretentiousness and the lot"

Enjoy!

I missed your post with your itinerary. As Enric says, there is little time in any place. Clearly it is a road trop, but have you considered all the time around what you consider to be road time? Like the packing,repacking, getting gas, wrong turns, medieval towns with no signs, one way streets, etc? Even if you can manage doing it in less than the half day recommended consideration, it will be exhausting. But, maybe that is your preference and seeing a cou try from the car is your thing. The lancscape can be lovely. I just want to support Enric's concern, particularly if these plans are not cast in stone. Also, would you reconsider driving to Madrid airport the day of the flight and be somewhere closer that 3 hours away? Unless it is a night flight home, there is some prudency for doubling that time (at least) because you know stuff happens.....

Hi Maria,
Not sure if I thanked you for the comments regarding clothing. I love the idea of prints hiding wrinkles! hahha!

I appreciate your comments and concerns. We are old pros at traveling like this. We more than likely won't be returning to either country, so we wanted to make sure and hit these spots. We don't unpack our bags. For the two nighters, we just grab our carry on bag which has our toiletries, jammies, clean undies. Some of the places we've decided to spend two nights are because we were driving through and people recommended we stop and see certain things. We will see a few highlights and allow for some relaxation, as well. Or we may get somewhere and decide to just walk around the town and stay close to our B&B or apartment. I know it is gonna be a ton of driving, but we are totally fine with it.

I keep going over the itinerary looking to see what I can cut out to spend an extra night or two somewhere else, but I haven't been able to figure that out.

We will be arriving in Madrid the day before our flight. Thank you for pointing that out as I'm actually short one night! So I have to rethink the itinerary and definitely cut something out. Anyway, we always plan our trips that way and arrive the night before our flight of our departure city to ensure we make it there OK and on time. Also, we stay close to the airport the night before to avoid any traffic issues.

So, I have to refigure the itinerary and cut out a stop.

Thanks again for all your help and ideas. Yolanda

Yolanda, I travel like you and am doing a similar trip this summer. I tried the 'base' idea last summer and did not like it, so its back to short stays for us.
Check the weather on the Atlantic coast. When I checked last week it was 70's and raining. The pants I bring are Kuhl Splash roll-ups. They can be pants or capri's. I also bring a pair of 100 weight Smartwool leggings (they look like regular leggings) or my Athleta black tights (but my daughter is taking those this year). I wear them under skirts or shorts, and on airplanes where I get on the plane in shorts but want a warm layer bc planes can be so cold ( I go to the bathroom and put on the leggings). The leggings weigh so little and take so little space but look perfectly nice under a skirt and allow for planning for various weather without adding weight and taking up space in my carry-on

Jessica - Thanks! And great idea to bring along a pair of leggings and you are right, they take up so little space. I just can't do those wild prints. I look crazy in them! I'll be checking temperatures and will definitely bring appropriate clothes. I gotta find a pair of waterproof type comfy shoes.

Travel clothing sold for that purpose tends to be made out of polyester and poly knits which I find excruciatingly miserable to wear -- like wearing a plastic bag. I wear cotton denim black jeans in winter and always have silks to wear underneath. In hot weather, a skirt really works best and I have a great wrap skirt in lightweight cotton that I love -- it is a black and white print that I wear with a black fitted T. Linen slacks also work in hot weather. You don't need much -- just plan to launder underwear and tops every few days -- they dry fast in Spain. If you have a basic color then you can dress it up for dinner or whatever with a colorful overblouse worn as a sort of jacket. I also have a lightweight dressy jacket that is made out of one of those poly materials that doesn't wrinkle and which works fine as something to throw on on top for the opera, concert or nice restaurant in the evening. But base layers for me are cotton and linen in warm weather.

I also bought some sort of bohemian cotton pants at a market in Spain a few years ago -- sort of black and grey stripe that are super cool in hot weather and again work with my ubiquitous black tshirt -- alas I have not been able to find more of those as they are very airy and cool in hot weather.

My go-to travel pants are a pair of black wide leg linen blend pants that I got from Old Navy. They are so comfy and lightweight. I usually wear them on the plane. I can wash them in the sink and they dry quickly. You can dress them up or down.

I have several Croft and Barrow 3/4 sleeve tops that I got from Kohl’s. They are a polyester spandex blend that is super soft, lightweight, dries fast and doesn’t wrinkle. I bought every color they had. I plan to bring them on our next trip.

Travel4fun
Thanks!! I have similar pants I plan on bringing. And I like the idea of the Kohl's tops. Three quarter sleeve are exactly what I like to wear. I'll probably pick up about three colors. But I better check my closet first! lol!

I have several JM Collectibles tops from Macy's that I've taken on many trips. They're inexpensive on sale, get no wrinkles when packed, weigh almost nothing, and take up little space in the suitcase. They come in 3/4 sleeve length, especially in fall, winter, spring. I've also gotten a top and a black lightweight sweater from the Investments collection at Dillards. They're a bit more expensive but I've worn the sweater at home and on trips for years and it still looks good.

Chris, Thank you! I will definitely check into those. Unfortunately, I don't have a Dillard's anywhere near me, but I have a few light sweaters so I will see what kind of mix matching I can do. Thanks again!