The Portuguese Way walking holiday

Planet

We believe that walking trips are the best way to experience a destination. This slow style of travel not only affords you more time to appreciate your destination, but can positively contribute to the regions that host you.

Travelling on foot has minimal impact on your environment, and allows you to explore in a sustainable manner. The Portuguese Way passes through hamlets, villages and towns; and remains less popular than the Camino de Santiago through northern Spain.

Where possible we also choose properties which are working to improve their sustainability like the Quinta Sao Miguel de Acros, who have installed solar panels to help heat the water and provide power.

We are aligned with “Leave No Trace”, an international organisation that has set the global standard for outdoor ethics. Through targeted education, research and outreach, its mission is to ensure the long-term health of our natural world while maintaining sustainable recreation in nature.

Our Waste Management Policy encourages our travellers to take their own reusable water bottles, coffee cups and reusable stuff sacks to avoid single-use plastics. We follow this same philosophy in our office as well as on the trail, in our London office we have banned single use coffee cups and water bottles. We use recycled paper in our office, and are working towards reducing the amount of paper we use, and we recycle all our paper and plastic waste.

People

In the regions that we travel through, tourism is a valuable source of income for many local people, so we aim to ensure that your money benefits the community that hosts you. We try to maximise the positive benefits of tourism and give you the most authentic travel experience possible by opting for family-run lodgings and small hotels. For example, when available, we book the family run Casas do Rio, where you will receive a warm welcome.

During your tour we encourage you to purchase your lunch/snacks from local shops; it will give you a chance to meet the local people, and can encourage genuine cultural exchange. Tip : If you are in the market town of Barcelos on a Thursday, the Campo da Feira, or market square, becomes one of Portugal’s most atmospheric marketplaces, and ideal place to pick up some local products.

In 2000 we developed the award winning Responsible Travel Guidebook, which presented our Travel Group’s comprehensive policies on sustainable travel. Over the years our Responsible Travel Guidebook has evolved to meet the ever-changing landscape of sustainable travel. In March 2018 The Thoughtful Traveller booklet was launched, which is an easy-to-read document that empowers travellers with suggestions about how they can be part of the solution and collectively make the world a better place when they travel. Everyone is encouraged to read the Thoughtful Traveller ebook before departure.