As most of you know, Mike and I just returned from a river cruise. On the cruise, we were asked many times why we like living in Portugal. Since we get asked this question A LOT (which is understandable), we tend to go on autopilot with our answers. This morning, I had some time for reflection and wanted to dive deeper into our responses.

☀️ The Joy of the Slow Pace

One of the biggest and most beautiful changes is the shift in rhythm. Life in Portugal moves at a delightfully unhurried pace—they call it calma. We now prioritize long, leisurely lunches and patio dinners with friends over trying to find time for these activities, as we did when we were in the States. Portugal offers an incredible, almost radical, emphasis on work-life balance and simple daily pleasures. While we no longer have work-life balance ourselves, we are surrounded by many who do, and it is refreshing to view this way of life. As we have mentioned in previous posts, there is an adjustment to this slow pace, but once it settles in, it becomes one of our favorite parts of living in Portugal.

🏡 Your Dollar Stretches Further

For many Americans, the difference in cost of living is a breath of financial fresh air. While major cities like Lisbon and Porto have seen prices rise, housing, groceries, and especially dining out are generally much more affordable than in most U.S. metropolitan areas. A delicious espresso often costs less than a euro, and the public healthcare system is widely accessible and incredibly inexpensive compared to U.S. costs. Although we are eligible for the public healthcare system as residents, we feel it is better for us to utilize private healthcare insurance and leave the free healthcare to the native Portuguese. Our private healthcare is excellent and costs us around 6,200 euros per year for both of us. We find we can enjoy a high quality of life without constantly watching our budget. The downside is that we buy and drink a lot of wine—a good bottle here costs only 3 to 4 euros.

🤝 A Warm Welcome, With a Catch

The Portuguese people are known for their genuine warmth and hospitality, consistently ranking high on global expat surveys for friendliness. This was what originally drew us to research Portugal. English proficiency is excellent, especially in major cities, which makes settling in much easier. In the Algarve, where we live, a large majority of the people we come in contact with speak English. However, we were not prepared for the bureaucracy—things move veryslowly, and we really have to practice our patience and maintain a good sense of humor for those administrative tasks! Once again, the adjustment period was a real challenge for us. On a positive note, we finally received our visa extensions; it only took them a year.

Our goal was to truly try to integrate as much as we could into Portuguese culture.o do this we felt learning some European Portuguese was key. While locals are happy to speak English, making the effort to say “Bom dia” and order your “cafe” in Portuguese is the fast track to making deeper connections. Mike is better at this than I am. He practices 30 minutes a day. I go hot and cold with learning it. I have the basics down, and sometimes that is enough for them to feel you are trying. This goes back to the warm welcome thing, they love that you make an effort. They are not snooty or judgmental if you make a mistake.

We have a wonderful life here—trading speed for sunshine, stress for seaside strolls, and huge bills for affordable living. I think it will always require us to embrace the motto: relax, smile, and trust that things will get done… eventually.

Our goal was to truly integrate as much as we could into Portuguese culture. To do this, we felt learning some European Portuguese was key. While locals are happy to speak English, making the effort to say “Bom dia” ( good morning ) and order your “café” in Portuguese is the fast track to forming deeper connections. Mike is better at this than I am; he practices 30 minutes a day. I go hot and cold with learning it. I have the basics down, and sometimes that is enough for them to feel you are trying. This goes back to the warm welcome thing; they appreciate that you make an effort. They are not snooty or judgmental if you make a mistake.

We have a wonderful life here—trading speed for sunshine, stress for seaside strolls, and huge bills for affordable living. I think it will always require us to embrace the motto: relax, smile, and trust that things will get done… eventually.