NEWS

Why do so many Germans now want to emigrate to Portugal (Part IV)?

13 Feb 2024 min reading

In 2022, more than 2.1 million Germans made it to Portugal via Portuguese airports alone and another 1.5 million guests from German-speaking countries such as Switzerland and Austria. These are figures that statistically suggest that Portugal's popularity in Germany continues to grow and the same applies to Switzerland and Austria. These figures do not take into account the hundreds of thousands of campers who find refuge in Portugal every year to live in the warm during the winter.
This also happens on the Costa Prata of the central coastal region of Portugal to Sintra on the way to Porto along the coast. There are the coastal towns of Peniche and Lourinhã, which have become known in Germany through the reality series on Vox "Die Auswanderer", in which the Messerschmidt family describes their construction of a surfer camp, and shares the joys and tears of their lives in Portugal with an audience of millions in front of the screens.
Likewise, of course, the world record of Sebastian Steudtner the German Big Wave Surfer from Bavaria in Nazaré is known to most Germans as well as this fantastic place on the Atlantic, where you can not only see great sports but also eat fantastic fresh fish delivered directly by the fishermen to the restaurants on site. Here you will not only find the well-known Big Waves that hit the cliffs with a height of 30 meters and offer a great backdrop for anyone who would like to take a selfie on site, but you will also find several kilometers of white sandy beach like in the Caribbean where you can cross-country skiing and enjoy the sunset over the Atlantic with a good bottle of Portuguese wine.
In addition to the coast, there are also other things to see such as Santarém with its Gothic downtown and Fatima, the most important Portuguese cult place in the heart of Portugal, about which Cardinal Ratzinger the German Pope Benedict XVI. said on May 13, 2010 in Fatima that - Who believes that the prophetic mission of Fatima is finished, is wrong. This is even more true in times like today when we are at war in Europe. The Portuguese are very religious and Fátima is a place of pilgrimage that is usually visited by most Portuguese at home and abroad at least once in life. Here one fulfills the promises made to oneself and the Virgin Mary when the child was born healthy, when the father recovered after a serious illness or if one has only found the right life partner, one comes to Fátima and thanks for the fulfillment of his request to the Virgin Mary and the 3 shepherd children.
Fátima belongs to the district of Leiria with a wooded hinterland full of charming towns, monasteries and castles, Leiria promises culture and relaxation.
Many of the sights, such as Leiria Castle and others, are UNESCO World Heritage Sites, where you can experience an authentic side of Portugal.
Here you will find the Monastery of Batalha, south of Leiria, a masterpiece of Portuguese Gothic in Manueline style, as well as the Monastery of Alcobaça, a UNESCO World Heritage Site from the 12th century, and the castle town of Óbidos, known for its chocolate and cherry liqueur. And if you want to hike it goes on to the natural parks of Serra de Aire and Candeeiros, where there is a wide range of attractions such as the sites of fossils of larger dinosaurs and limestone caves that are simply wonderful to look at.
This region is less crowded with tourists, but has everything you need to spend a nice holiday as it is at least as scenic as the Algarve. This is where connoisseurs and locals spend their summer holidays.

NEWS