Portugal Travel Guide

Moliceiro boats bobbing in Aveiro

PHOTO: RUI MORAS DESOUSA

Portugal is one of Europe's least-explored corners and still something of a hidden gem.

For nearly 50 years until 1974, this former colonial power languished behind an isolating dictatorship. Since being welcomed into the European Community in 1986, Portugal's affluence and profile has been rising steadily. Portugal is no longer dismissed by travellers as a mere slither of land to the west of Spain.