How Living in a Small Town in Portugal Changed My Life

Have you visited a place on your travels that changed your life?

A place where it just feels right? I’ll forever be grateful that I found my piece of paradise on the other side of the world.

I’m excited to share it with you how living in a small town in Portugal changed my life.

Welcome to Lagos.

Bom Dia Lagos

Shortly before 5am, the morning dawn slowly lit up the still water below.

Looking through the windows of our apartment onto the artificial lagoon, I could make out the rock wall and chalk-coloured apartment buildings surrounding me. Not a hint of wind disturbed the towering palm trees that stood still, silhouetted against the morning sky.

“Opening the ranch slider quietly to not disrupt the silence, I stepped onto the tiled, white floor on the apartment deck, breathing in the already warm morning air.”

I inhaled deeply and closed my eyes. I knew at that very moment that I had found my happy place. A place that was not even on my radar only a few weeks earlier.

I now call Lagos my ‘Accidental Paradise’ – a place where my dreams were born.

An Accidental Paradise

Coming to Lagos came about purely by chance.

We ended up in the town on the Algarve Coast, you guessed it, by accident.

It was a way to extend the trip of a lifetime that had already taken my family over three continents and twenty countries over several months. We had a unique opportunity to make this trip continue even longer, yet we needed to slow down.

“The breakneck pace of long -term travelling with a young family can be draining.”

After whittling down a list of destinations from across Europe, the appeal of Lagos golden beaches, warm, sunny climate and Portuguese culture was the clincher when we decided to make Lagos our home for the next three months.

Those factors alone were seducing enough. However, the relatively cheap cost of living in Portugal, along with sunshine and affordable accommodation made Lagos tick so many boxes.

A Little More About Lagos

Lagos is a historical port town on the southern coast of Portugal with a permanent population of just over 30,000 people.

The population expands significantly in the summer, as the golden sands and sandstone cliffs in Lagos are the location of some of Europe’s most spectacular beaches. Beaches and a unique culture that attract holidaymakers from all over the world.

An ancient seaport with hundreds of years of history, Lagos is famously the home of Portugal’s ‘Age of Discovery‘.

“Portuguese explorers such as Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama and Ferdinand Magellan led the pioneering days of exploration over the ocean in the 15th and 16th centuries.”

A time when discovering new lands meant building empires.

Over the next three months, I embarked on my own journey of discovery in this town. Along the way, I would not only discover many things about myself but other historical sites.

Like its city fortress, an ancient fort located at the harbour entrance and the 16th-century city walls that circle the old town district.

Narrow roads and colourful pavements are designed with individual stones in a traditional form of paving called Calcada. These paths and roads form mosaic artworks and patterns that intersect the lively town centre and snake their way through town.

You can walk through the central part of town in an hour, yet the tasty cafes, vibrant restaurants and cork-influenced craft stores are enticing enough to stay a lot longer.

The Morning in Lagos

As the morning sun dawned, it had a different glow to it.

The sun let off an intense glare that forced me to reach for my sunglasses as the temperature increased quickly, despite being mid-September.

Our apartment was in one of several apartment blocks on the ‘Marina de Lagos’, a modern marina full of yachts and boats with flags on their bows from around the world.

Wandering along the shores of the marina, we spotted people rising out of their boat cabins, stretching their bronzed skin that looked like it hadn’t seen a winter in years.

“The pace of life on the marina seemed to be slower. Everything seemed slower.”

The people we passed were smiling at us and each other. We passed local cafes and restaurants, busy preparing the outdoor furniture for another busy day of serving espresso coffee and the Pastel de Nata (the local sweet delicacy) on the waterfront.

Friendly nods and waves came our way from the cafe workers on our gentle stroll along the water as if they knew us already.

Walking over the small pedestrian harbour bridge, the ‘Ponte Basculante’, I watched schools of fish in the blue harbour waters below, with their scales glistening in the early morning sun.

The clear sky was the brightest blue as I breathed in the salt air again. Lagos felt perfect.

And it wasn’t even lunchtime.

The quiet morning was eventually disturbed by the sound of small motorboats taking smiling tourists to the ‘Ponte de Piedade‘ and the famous ‘grottos’.

“Lagos most popular tourist attraction, the grottos are a series of spectacular sandstone cliffs and caves. Formed and carved by the relentless Atlantic Ocean, the grottos are perfect for exploring by a small boat or kayak.”

Enthusiastic vendors line the harbour boardwalk, selling these unmissable boat trips to explore the caves every morning. Some vendors are more extravagant than others, bringing a smile to many faces.

The grotto trip vendors share the wide pavement that lines the harbour with a busy gypsy market, selling everything from cork souvenirs to beach towels or anything bearing the image of Portugal’s most famous export, Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Best Beaches in Europe

As a holiday destination, Lagos is all about the beaches. They are insanely good.

The bonus is there are several to choose from, all within walking distance from town.

The sunshine and warm, reliable weather on the Algarve is a magnet for sun-worshippers from all over Europe.

Yes, the peak of summer brings the crowds (and the heat) but the number of beach options available within walking distance compared to other places in Europe is a luxury.

When we arrived in September, the weather was still in the high twenties every day. The beach became our go-to spot, for the first couple of months anyway. It was never a chore to leave the beach, as several beach bars and restaurants lined the shore to cater for any thirst or hunger pains.

Living in Lagos

As the days and weeks passed, people got to know us.

Our faces became familiar. The locals recognised we weren’t your regular tourists.

Smiling waiters and waitresses at local cafes quickly learned our drinks and snacks – they even politely smiled at our attempts at Portuguese.

One of the first words that our one-year-old spoke was a perfectly pronounced ‘Obrigado’ (thank you) in our favourite cafe.

Unlike some towns on the Algarve coast, Lagos is a town with a year-round economy, not one just catered towards the summer crowds. As winter closed in, I noticed some bars and restaurants in the town centre started to shut their doors for their annual break.

Plenty of places continued to remain open and continue trading, it was just all a bit quieter.

“We missed the buzz and vibrancy of the warm months, but the bonus was we got to enjoy the Portuguese culinary experience without the wait for a table.”

I became a regular at a couple of bars in the town, joining a mixture of expats and locals for football and World Cup rugby matches in the evenings. It quickly became apparent that beyond any spectacular beach or ancient fort, the joy of becoming part of a local community made these three months the best of my life.

The feeling of connection after being accepted into a new community, beyond what the average tourist experiences, is a special one.

Every morning I jumped out of bed. Every morning I felt alive more than I ever had been. Not because I had to, but because I could.

“Living in Lagos gave me a sense of gratitude and inspired me to change how I should live my life.”

To live a life in the present, wherever we were. It is so easy in our modern world to develop a mindset of resentment or regret.

Living in the future doesn’t work either, our dreams or plans could be dashed at any second. Living in the present, as I experienced for those three months, left me feeling more fulfilled and purposeful than at any other time in my life.

Looking around, I soon realised that many of my new friends in Lagos lived that same way. They were actually like us.

People who had chosen a life of contentment instead of concentrating on gaining material assets and conforming to the expectations of society. People who had chosen a simpler life instead of careers in the city.

Their stories had a similar theme.

A theme of how constantly trying to fit into a society that always demanded more and more nearly broke them.

“Some of these people had come to Lagos on holiday, many years ago in some cases, and just never left.”

Every night back at our apartment, we talked for hours about our futures and what lives we would live when this whole adventure was over.

I began writing my book. The future we talked about became a plan.

Lagos was the inspirational setting for all of this. It would all take time though. Before anything could happen, we had our lives back home to deal with

Those three magical months in Portugal not only changed the original ending of our adventure.

It could also become a part of the sequel.

It was apparent that Lagos had become more than a long holiday – it was where we wanted to return to for even longer. It felt like somewhere we could call home.

An Emotional Farewell

Leaving Lagos on a rainy December morning, I took a final stroll through the now quiet town that had captured our hearts.

The hot, late summer sun in September was now just a memory as I passed beneath the Christmas decorations lining the streets.

On that walk, a couple of things came to mind.

The first was that I was never more sure that we would return. The second was how rarely it had rained during our three months. It felt like blue skies the whole time.

The fact it was raining on my last day was fitting for my mood.

Every step felt heavy as each step was a step closer to leaving. I could feel the lump in my throat as I bit my lip walking through the town.

“For the first time in my life, I felt like I was leaving somewhere I genuinely did not want to leave.”

Lagos felt like home.

I continued my slow walk past the colourful buildings in the old town, passing the restaurant owners setting up their tables for the day who waved at me like every other day.

Not that they knew I was going anywhere, they probably assumed they would see me the next day. It was not to be.

That was in December 2019.

“We planned to return in April 2020, with a suitcase full of dreams. We had left Lagos feeling inspired, with a little of its soul in our hearts and determined to return”

Then the world changed.

By March 2020, the world was quickly closing its doors as the Covid-19 pandemic took hold.

Millions across the globe fell ill and died, economies crashed and businesses collapsed. Tourism fell to its knees and the world came to an abrupt stop.

“So instead of landing in Lagos permanently as we planned to, our dreams were shattered and our lives took an unexpected detour.”

Like millions of others around the world.

But there is hope. The world has emerged from the slumber of the Covid years. The world quickly came alive again.

Will our journey take us back to Lagos as we had planned? I hope so. I think about the place every day.

Whatever happens, Lagos changed our lives. Most importantly, we are incredibly grateful that we had a taste of what we wanted our lives to look like in the future before the world went mad.

A spark that we found in our ‘Accidental Paradise’.

How do I get to Lagos?

From Faro:

Faro is the main Algarve airport, located approximately one hour east of Lagos.

Direct flights from dozens of European and UK cities land daily, servicing the whole Algarve region.

Multiple companies offer shuttle transfer options from the airport to Lagos and other Algarve towns, be sure to shop around as the main highway connecting the Algarve is a toll road.

For an easy ride, make sure the toll fee is included in your quoted fare. Fares start from about 80 euros per vehicle (up to 3 passengers).

From Lisbon:

The most affordable and quickest option is a bus. Frequent direct bus services depart between Lagos and Lisbon taking an estimated 3hrs 40mins. Check timetables for details

Indirect train services also operate, with a change required at Tunes. Trains are much slower, taking approximately 5 hours in total.

Best Things to Do in Lagos

1 – Visiting the ‘Grottos’

These are a must-do when visiting Lagos.

Multiple tour companies, most of them located along the marina, offer similar trips in small boats out to the nearby grottos. Prices start from 20 Euro for the two-hour tours – it is well worth it. Don’t be shy to do a little negotiation either.

Trips from most tour companies run year-round and offer other excursions such as fishing trips and dolphin sightseeing. My partner did the dolphin one with my son and loved it.

2 – Ponta di Piedade

A ten-minute drive on the ‘Tourist Train’ from the town centre or an easy thirty-minute walk out of town following the coastline gets you to the Ponta de Piedade.

Ponta di Piedade is a series of high sandstone cliffs with walking trails overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

The towering cliffs are above the ‘grottoes’ that the boats visit throughout the day. The ocean views are spectacular, with 20-metre sheer drops to the dramatic ocean below.

Walking these trails does require some care, so keep to the trails, or if you dare, be very careful as the wind can get up and you don’t want to be anywhere near the edge when it does.

3 – The Beaches

Dona Ana Beach

Dona Ana has a well-deserved reputation as one of Europe’s most photogenic beaches – it is easy to see why.

Golden sands and sandstone cliffs form a natural bay, sheltered from the wind, that leads to the most spectacular turquoise waters.

Dona Ana is one of the few European beaches I recognised before arriving in Europe. It was a pleasant surprise to find this on my doorstep.

Only a twenty-minute walk from town, Dona Ana Beach is easily accessible by staircases at either end of the beach. The local tourist train ‘Linha 2 Blue Route’, or the bus ‘A Ondha’ are other ways of getting there from town.

Be sure to arrive early to secure a good spot because it got pretty busy, even late in the season.

Meia Praia

Just around the corner from our apartment, you can find my favourite beach – Meia Praia.

Despite not having the dramatic cliffs for the perfect Instagram photo like Dona Ana Beach, Meia Praia has a 4km long undisturbed coastline leaving plenty of room for you to find a spot away from the crowds.

Only a ten-minute walk from town across the harbour bridge, Meia Praia became my go-to for the perfect place to relax for an afternoon. Many of our beach days finished at one of the local seafood restaurants or cafes that are hidden behind the dunes.

Praia da Batata (Potato Beach)

The story goes that a ship came aground near this beach carrying a load of, you guessed it, potatoes.

Don’t let this ambiguous name fool you, Praia de Batata is an absolute gem.

The closest beach to the town centre (and busiest), Praia da Batata can be found right next to the harbour entrance.

At only 160 metres long, Praia da Batata is not as big as nearby beaches, but for pure accessibility to town with the spectacular sandstone cliffs for that perfect photo, this beach is perfect.

I found all beaches perfectly safe for swimming (Disclaimer: I grew up by the ocean, so my confidence in ocean waters may be different from others).

When we visited (September-December), I could count on one hand how many times the swell could potentially cause issues for unconfident swimmers.

My list of favourites listed above all has lifeguard patrols during the warmer months for those requiring that extra bit of safety.

4 – Visit the Lagos Fortress (Forte Da Ponta Da Bandiera)

Located at the harbour entrance, next to Potato Beach is the 17th Century town fort. A small entrance fee is required.

Food and Drink

The culinary options in Lagos never disappointed. From beachside cafes and restaurants to five-star dining, there is somewhere for you.

If seafood is your thing, then you will love Lagos.

Grilled sardines are a local favourite amongst other ocean delicacies such as tuna and octopus. The seafood is all caught and sold locally at the fish market in town.

My personal favourite was the swordfish, I could never resist it, wherever I went.

The Piripiri chicken was also never a disappointment and best of all, the prices were very reasonable. Mains cost anywhere from 8 – 20 euros per dish, with the local dishes at the lower end of that spectrum.

You can also find the usual Italian, Indian and burger joints throughout town to suit those with more familiar tastes.

As a wine lover, Portugal delivered. Particularly with a type I had never heard of before. Simply called ‘Green Wine’, the name is deceiving as this slightly sparkling white wine was an absolute treat. Slightly lower in alcohol volume, it was perfect with every meal.

Both the food and drink, especially local brands, is very affordable. Especially compared to the rest of Europe and the world. I would rarely pay more than 5 euros for a decent bottle of wine in a supermarket.

Accommodation in Lagos

Lagos has a wide range of accommodation available.

From centrally located hostels (starting at 20 Euro per night) to luxury resorts and hotels dotted throughout the town. Short-term accommodation is easy to arrange through the usual booking providers such as Booking.com, Agoda or Airbnb.

Our personal experience was a little different.

As we stayed for three months just outside the peak season, we negotiated a weekly rate of 150 Euro with the apartment owner via Airbnb. This worked out to be less than half the normal price. We had negotiations with a handful of apartment owners before arriving, and considering our length of stay each owner was more than happy to discuss a reduced rate.

If you plan on staying in Lagos out of peak season (or any other destination), then definitely consider contacting owners directly to discuss a reduced rate.

So on that note, now it’s your turn.

Have you been to a place that has made you feel the same? Have you visited somewhere that influenced your life in the way that Lagos did for me?

I would love to hear about it in the comments.