Where to head when the sky opens up:

Comporta: just an hour south of Lisbon on the sandy coast of the Alentejo– this is the new hotspot where the “fashionable European crowd goes off the grid.”  Set north of the Tróia Peninsula, and near the Sado Estuary, Comporta is a refined retreat between dunes and pine forests.  

Tomar: Once a home to the Knights Templar, this culture rich city is just 90 minutes north of Lisbon. With great squares, eateries, castle, churches, and a newly restored Jewish quarter Tomar has it all – except the crowds. 

Madeira has been a winter vacation spot for centuries, with temps in the 70s, amazing hiking, seafood and volcanic landscapes – it is the place to go from fall to spring.

Surf: Don’t miss the massive waves of Nazaré where you might spot surfer Garrett McNamara. Once a fishing town, today Nazaré is a busy beach resort – with a long sandy beach, fresh seafood, and now a mecca to the world’s top surfers seeing huge waves.