Portugal – how much money to take for a vacation and how much did a trip to Portugal for a week in October 2017 cost me.
Portugal is a very pleasant country for inexpensive travel. Food prices are low here, housing is on average cheaper than in others European countries Oh. In addition, Portugal has free beaches, natural beauty and stunning ocean views.
All calculations are given for one person at the average rate of 1 euro = 70 rubles.
Plane tickets to Portugal
The first step was to plan the route and buy tickets for Cologne-Porto and Lisbon-Hamburg with Ryanair.
Today you can fly to Cologne from Russia very cheaply using the services of Pobeda airline. Just be sure to read the airline rules to avoid unpleasant situations and unnecessary expenses - low-cost airlines are strict about this.
According to my plan, I was moving from Porto to Lisbon. I compared all the options and prices and came to the conclusion that the best way to get from Porto to Lisbon is to buy train tickets in advance.
Find detailed price comparisons and instructions for buying cheap tickets from Lisbon to Porto.
- train ticket Porto-Lisbon: 9.5€.
How much money to take for travel on public transport
In both Porto and Lisbon, to pay for travel on public transport you need to buy a travel card (0.5-0.6 €), and then put money on it or buy travel tickets.
- travel to Porto: 2.55 € (card + trip from the airport) + 4.15 € (24-hour pass) = 6.7 €;
- travel in Lisbon: 5.5 € (card + 1 metro trip + Cascais round-trip) + 5 € (1 metro trip + Sintra round-trip) + 6.15 € (24-hour pass) = 16.65 €.
Intercity travel (from Porto to Lisbon): 9.5€ (665₽).
City transport (Porto+Lisbon): 23.35€ (1635₽).
How much money do you need for housing in Portugal?
As I already noted, you don’t need a lot of money for housing in Portugal. It all depends, of course, on personal preferences and the required level of comfort, but on average, housing prices here are quite pleasant.
- in Porto, a room on Airbnb near the center using a bonus, 3 nights: 2410₽
- in Lisbon, a bed in a 3-bed female room with breakfast in the City Hostel Lisbon, 4 nights (1000₽ discount on booking.com): 4100₽
- Find best price for housing in Lisbon you can
Can return 1000 rubles, having booked accommodation on Booking using my link.
There is a huge amount in this city, it’s simply pleasant to walk around it. Therefore, I personally don’t see any point in buying a tourist card in Porto.
- boat trip: 10€;
- Serralves Museum and Park: 10€.
Entertainment in Porto = 20€ (1400₽).
If you plan to visit a lot of museums and similar establishments in Lisbon, it is better to purchase a Lisboa card. First, I advise you to familiarize yourself with my selection, where you will also find a calculation of how profitable it is to buy a Lisboa card.
- park in Sintra: 6€.
Entertainment in Lisbon = 6€ (420₽).
Total money for entertainment in Portugal (Porto + Lisbon): 26 € (1820₽).
To be honest, I'm a little shocked. 🙂 After all, before writing the article, I didn’t even think that I had to pay so rarely for entry tickets in Portugal. At the same time, I wasn’t bored at all and was on the move all the time!
How much money do you need for food in Portugal?
I didn’t have any problems with food in Portugal at all! Cheap and tasty.
I deliberately did not write a general figure, but described what the amounts were made up of. Smaller numbers mean trips to the supermarket, higher numbers mean trips to restaurants.
- food in Porto: 5€ + 0.22€ + 4.14€ + 1.5€ +1.9€ + 8€ + 4.5€ + 1.52€ = 26.78€
- food in Lisbon: 1.96€ + 7.2€ + 1.94€ + 11€ + 1.54€ + 11.15€ + 13€ + 6.91€ = 54.7€
Cost of food in Portugal for a week: 81.48€ (5700₽).
A trip to Portugal for a week cost me 21,770₽
So how much money should you take to Portugal? For 7 days in Portugal, I spent approximately 142 € (9940), another 93 € (6510 RUR) for housing, and the cost of plane tickets from Europe and back was 76 € (5320 RUR).
A trip to Portugal for a week cost me 21,770 rubles turnkey (including housing and air tickets)! And, believe me, the impressions from such a trip are much greater than from reclining on the territory of a hotel in Turkey or Thailand.
Thus, the cost of staying in Portugal for one person was approximately 2,350 rubles per day (including accommodation). Naturally than more people travels, the lower the average cost per day will be due to lower housing costs.
– the search engine will select and compare everything possible options moving between cities.
By the way, about Omio (GoEuro). Now you can get from them bonus 10 euros For the first booking - you need to register on the website, in personal account In the “Referral Bonus” section enter the promo code tatiag5q5f3w
I hope now you have an idea of how much money you need in Portugal and what the price level is in Lisbon and Porto. If the article was interesting to you, please share it with your friends on social networks using the special button below.
Happy travels!
Banking and currency exchange
Work in weekdays from 8.30 to 15.00, some bank branches in Lisbon and tourist areas close at 18.00, and in large shopping centers Algarve open daily from 9.00 to 21.00. ATMs of the national system "MULTIBANCO" operate around the clock.
The most convenient way to exchange money is at Lisbon airport (favorable rate, lower commission fee), in banks and hotels the rate is lower, and the fee is higher (in banks the commission is 0.5%). Exchange rates in different banks may differ significantly from each other. Some commercial banks do not charge commissions for transactions under 30 euros. In some private shops and markets you can pay in US dollars.
Traveler's checks are accepted everywhere and have a better rate than cash, but the fees are quite high (up to 13%), with the exception of American Express checks, which can be exchanged without a fee at Amex. Euro checks with a check guarantee card are exchanged in many banks. MasterCard, American Express and Visa credit cards are accepted everywhere. In all tourist centers There are ATMs ("multibancos").
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The euro (currency symbol: €; bank code: EUR) is the official currency of the countries of the European Union (EU), is in circulation in 15 states known as the “Eurozone” (Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Finland, France, Germany, Greece , Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain). The euro is also used in 9 other countries, 7 of which are in Europe. It is thus the common currency of more than 320 million Europeans. Considering territories that use euro-linked currencies, almost 500 million people around the world depend on the euro. With a turnover of 610 billion euros since December 2006, the euro is the currency with the largest total amount of currency in global circulation, even ahead of the US dollar.
In 1999, the euro was offered to global financial markets as a currency of account, and on January 1, 2002, banknotes and coins were put into circulation. The Euro replaced the previous European Currency Unit (ECU) at a one-to-one ratio.
Based in Frankfurt, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Eurosystem (composed of the central banks of the Eurozone countries) oversee and manage all operations in the euro. As an independent central bank, the ECB has exclusive power to set monetary policy. The Eurosystem is involved in the issuance of banknotes and coins, as well as their distribution across all countries, and in the operation of the Eurozone settlement systems.
Although all European Union (EU) countries can be admitted to the Eurozone if they agree to certain monetary requirements, not all EU members have chosen to accept the currency. All states that joined the EU before the Maastricht Treaty came into force in 1993 committed to accept the euro according to the exchange rate.
This treaty obliged existing members to introduce the euro into circulation; however, Great Britain and Denmark achieved the abolition of this requirement for themselves.
Sweden refused to adopt the euro following a 2003 referendum and bypassed the requirement to adopt the euro by not supporting this membership criterion. In addition, three microstates of Europe (Vatican City, Monaco and San Marino), although they are members of the European Union, have adopted the euro as single currency participating countries. Andorra, Montenegro and Kosovo adopted the euro unilaterally, although they were also not members of the EU.
Coins
The euro is made up of 100 cents (sometimes called Euro cents, especially to distinguish them from US cents or former currency in a particular country). All euro coins in circulation (including €2 commemorative coins) have the same denomination (value) side, indicating the first 15 EU countries. From 2007 or 2008 (depending on the country that issued the coin), this "old" map will be replaced by a map of Europe, which shows countries outside the EU, such as Norway. The coins also have a national side, with a special image chosen by the country that issued the coin. Euro coins from any country can be freely used in all countries that have adopted the euro.
Euro coins are issued in denominations of €2, €1, €0.50, €0.20, €0.10, €0.05, €0.02, and €0.01. In the Netherlands and Finland, by law, all cash transactions are rounded to the nearest five cents to avoid the use of €0.02, and €0.01 (See also the linguistics article on the euro.)
The €2 commemorative coins were issued with changes to the design of the national side of the coin - in connection with the summer holidays in Greece. Olympic Games. These two euro coins are legal tender throughout the Eurozone. Coins of other denominations were also issued, but were not intended for widespread circulation. Coins issued later can only be legally used in the country of origin.
Germany
Greece
Italy
Spain
Cyprus
France
Netherlands
Portugal
Austria
Ireland
Belgium
San Marino
Slovenia
Luxembourg
Malta
Monaco
Vatican
Finland
Banknotes
All euro banknotes have the same side design for each denomination. Banknotes are issued in denominations of €500, €200, €100, €50, €20, €10, €5. The design of each of them is related to the general theme of European architecture of various periods. Windows or gates are depicted on the front side of the banknote, and bridges are depicted on the reverse side. It is noteworthy that these architectural objects do not actually exist, so as not to provoke envy and controversy when choosing which cultural monuments should be depicted on banknotes. Some higher denomination notes, such as the €500, are not issued in some countries, although they remain legal tender in the Eurozone.
Clearing system, electronic payment transfer system.
All money transfers within the Eurozone should cost the same as transfers within the same country. This also applies to retail payments, although the ECB may use some other payment methods.
Payments by credit/debit cards and withdrawals from ATMs throughout Europe are also subject to uniform tariffs. The ECB has not standardized the processing of payments for “paper” payment orders such as cheques; They are currently only valid within a single country.
The ECB has established the TARGET (Trans-European Automated Real-Time Gross Settlement Express) clearing system for large euro transactions.
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Graphic image of euro
A special graphic euro sign (€) was designed based on the results of a public opinion poll, selecting 2 options out of ten. And then the European Commission chose one of them as final version. The winning project was created by Belgian Alain Biglier. The official version of the creation of the euro sign is disputed by Arthur Eisenmenger, once the leading graphic designer of the EEC, who claims that he created the sign as a common symbol of Europe.
According to the European Commission, the symbol is “a combination of the Greek letter upsilon, denoting the importance of European civilization, the letter “E” (for “Europe”) and parallel lines in the form of an equal sign, denoting the stability of the euro.”
In addition, the European Commission has calculated the exact dimensions of the euro logo, indicating the background colors and the sign itself. Although the Commission insisted on this particular spelling of the symbol, most designers have made it clear that they plan to create their own variations.
The placement of the graphic image of the currency is different in all countries. There are no official standards for the placement of the euro sign.
Another advantage of the ultimately chosen character is that it is easy to type on the keyboard by typing a capital letter "C", pressing the "spacebar" followed by the "equals" sign.
Single economic and monetary space
History (1990 - today)
The common provisions for the euro in the European Union were established by the 1992 Maastricht Treaty to create economic and monetary unity. In order to go to new currency, countries belonging to the EU had to meet strict criteria. For example, the country's budget deficit should not exceed three percent of GDP, its debt ratio should be less than 6 percent of GDP, it should have low inflation and interest rates close to the EU average. Under the Maastricht Treaty, Great Britain and Denmark received exemption from the transition to a single monetary area, which led to the creation of the euro.
Economists involved in the creation of the euro - Robert Mundel, Wim Duesenberg, Robert Tollison, Neil Dowling, Fred Arditti and Tomaso Padoa-Sciopa (Macroeconomic theory, see below.)
Due to the difference in national rates, all payments between national currencies had to be carried out through conversion into euros. The exact value of these currencies in euros (with exchange rates established at the time the euro was introduced) is shown on the right.
Exchange rates were determined by the Council of the European Union based on the market rate on December 31, 1998, so that one ecus was equal to one euro. (The European Currency Unit was the EU unit of account; it existed on the basis of the national currencies of the member countries; the ECU was not an independent currency.) The Pan-European Agreement 2866/98 (EC) of December 31, 1998 established such exchange rates. This could not have happened earlier because at that time the ECU was closely linked to the exchange rate of other currencies (especially the pound sterling).
The procedure for the final recalculation of the drachma into the euro was different, since at that time the euro had already existed for two years. The conversion rate for the first eleven currencies was determined a couple of hours before the introduction of the euro; for the Greek drachma it was established several months earlier, under agreement 1478/2000 (EC) of June 19, 2000.
On the night of January 1, 1999, the euro was introduced into non-cash payments (travelers' checks, electronic transfers, banking transactions, etc.). When the national currencies of the Eurozone countries ceased to exist separately, their exchange rates were fixed relative to each other, practically making them mere non-decimal parts of the euro. So the euro became a replacement for the ecu. However, notes and coins of the previous currencies remained in circulation as legal tender until the release of new notes and coins in January 2002.
The replacement period, during which old banknotes and coins were exchanged for euros, lasted about two months, until February 28, 2002. The official date for the cessation of the use of national currencies as legal tender varied among countries. The very first country was Germany. On December 31, 2001, the mark officially ceased to be used, although the exchange period lasted for another two months. February 28, 2002 is the end date of the replacement, when all national currencies ceased to be legal means of payment in the Eurozone countries. However, even after the official date, all currencies continued to be accepted in the state central banks of European countries with restrictions of several years or no restrictions at all, for example, in Austria, Germany, Ireland and Spain. The very first coins to go out of circulation were the Portuguese escudo, which became worthless after December 31, 2002, although the banknotes are subject to exchange until 2022.
Slovenia joined the Eurozone on January 1, 2007, followed by Malta and Cyprus on January 1, 2008.
Eurozone
- The Euro is the official currency in Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain. These 15 countries together make up the Eurozone or Euro territory. Less officially, it is also called “Euroland” or “Eurogroup”. In addition to these territories, the geography of the euro as an official currency also extends to the colonies: French Guiana, Reunion, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Saint Bartholomew, Saint Martin, Mayotte and desert island Clipperton, French Southern and Antarctic Territories; Portuguese autonomous regions Azores and Madeira; Spanish Canary Islands.
- Based on a bilateral agreement, the European microstates of Monaco, San Marino and Vatican City mint their own euro coins on behalf of the European Central Bank. However, they are strictly limited in the total amount of coins they can issue.
- Andorra, Montenegro, the Republic of Kosovo, Akrotiri and Dhekelia have adopted the euro as the official currency for investment and monetary transactions without participation in the European system of central banks and without the right to issue coins. Andorra has entered into the process of negotiating an agreement on the issue of money in the same way as in the case of the microstates of Europe.
- The currencies of several possessions and former colonies of EU states depend on the euro. Among them French polynesia, New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna (CFA franc), Cape Verde, Comoros and fourteen Central and West African states (CFA franc). See "Currencies Dependent on the Euro".
- Even though the euro is not legal tender in Denmark and the UK, some shops in these countries accept euros, especially international department stores in major cities and in shops in Northern Ireland, on the border with the Irish Republic, where the euro is the official currency. Also, the euro is widely used in Switzerland, even in government organizations, such as Swiss Railways.
Prospects
Countries that joined the EU before 2004
With Greece's accession in 2001 and until the EU's enlargement in 2004, Denmark, Sweden and the UK remained the only EU members to retain their national currency. The situation for these three oldest member states was different from the newer EU members; they did not have a clear timetable for the adoption of the euro:
- Denmark rejected several points of the Maastricht Treaty after it failed in a referendum. On September 28, 2000, another referendum on the euro was held in Denmark, ending with a result of 53.2% of votes against joining the Eurozone. However, Danish politicians propose resuming discussion of four controversial points. In addition, Denmark targets the krone exchange rate to the euro (€1 = DKK 7.46038 ± 2.25%), since the krone exchange rate remains under the control of the European Economic Community. Although Greenland Faroe islands are not members of the European Union, they use the Danish krone (in the Faroes it is the Faroese krone) and therefore also depend on the EEC.
- Sweden: Sweden is obliged to adopt the euro under the 1994 Agreement when economic conditions warrant it. Although other conditions were met, the krona never entered EEC II, preventing Sweden from joining. In 2003, a popular referendum rejected joining the Eurozone and Sweden has no plans to adopt the euro. The EU has made it clear that it turns a blind eye to this, respecting Sweden's position and recognizing Sweden "de facto", but this does not apply to other countries that joined the EU from 2004 to 2007.
- The UK was exempt from joining the eurozone under the Maastricht Treaty and is not obliged to switch to the euro. Although the government attempts to join the union by proving that economic conditions meet all the requirements (meeting the "five economic criteria"), the issue has never been brought to a vote.
- The UK was forced to withdraw sterling from the EEC (predecessor to EEC II) on Black Wednesday (16 September 1992) due to confusion between its parity and economic performance, so that the pound is not included in EEC II.
Countries that joined the EU after 2004
Since 2008, nine more states have joined the EU with their own currency; however, all of these countries are required to adopt the euro by accession agreement. Some of these countries have already joined the exchange rate control mechanism of the European Economic Community, EEC II. They plan to join the Eurozone in the following order (EEC III):
- January 1, 2009 - Slovakia
- January 1, 2010 - Lithuania
- January 1, 2011 - Estonia,
- On or after January 1, 2012 - Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Czech Republic, Poland and Romania.
The accession of Lithuania and Estonia, scheduled for January 1, 2007, was postponed due to high inflation rates in these countries. Some of these currencies have a floating exchange rate against the euro, while the rest were unilaterally pegged to the euro before joining the EEC II. More detailed information see the article "Mechanism for controlling the exchange rate of the European Economic Community, the exchange rate against the euro and individual articles on currencies."
The Czech Republic initially planned to join EEC II as early as 2008 or 2009, but the current government officially pushed back the date to 2010, stating that the country would not be able to meet economic criteria before then. The deadline has now been extended until 2012.
Latvia also planned to join the Eurozone in 2008, but inflation rates exceeding 11% led to refusal because the country did not meet existing requirements under council rules. Now the government has officially postponed this event to January 1, 2012, although the head of the central bank of Latvia believes that 2013 should be considered a more realistic date.
Poland's finance minister stated his belief that publicly announcing Poland's accession date would be the "wrong tactic."
Other sources question the reality of the entry of the Czech Republic, Lithuania and Estonia even within these time frames.
Fifth report on " Practical training to further expansion of the Eurozone" was presented on July 16, 2007, according to it on this moment only Cyprus, Malta (introduced the euro in January), Slovakia (2009) and Romania (2014) have officially set approximate dates for the transition to the euro.
Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia have already completed development of the design of the obverse side of their future coins.
Today in Portuguese shops, cafes and entertainment centers Euros are calculated. Although the history of money in Portugal is much older than the introduction of the euro into circulation upon joining the European Union. What do we know about national currency Portugal?
Portuguese money: historical background
After the revolutionary year of 1911, the escudo currency came into circulation among the Portuguese. One escudo was then equivalent to 100 reals, and replaced them as a constant currency until the introduction of the euro in 2002.
The new monetary unit was distributed not only in Portugal itself, but also in the country’s colonies. The denomination of the banknotes was as follows:
- 1, 2, and 5 escudos;
- 10, 20, and 50 escudos;
- 100, 500 and 1000 escudos.
The final series of paper money was decorated with portraits of historical figures who had accomplished great things. geographical discoveries. Di Barros, Cabral, Dias and da Gama were chosen to grace the latest editions of the escudo.
Later, a 5,000 escudo banknote appeared in circulation. The coins of this currency were called centavos. Escudos and centavos were issued in both “iron” and paper equivalents.
Euro in Portugal today
Having joined the European Union, Portugal launched a new currency into monetary circulation - the euro. Now the coins there are euro cents, and banknotes are equivalent to money in all EU countries.
Tourists note that prices for housing, food and entertainment in Portuguese lands are significantly lower than in all of Europe.
Cards are accepted almost everywhere in Portugal. Tips are usually included in the bill, and ATMs are found in all major establishments in large cities.
The most favorable exchange rates for foreign currencies can be found in state banks and large exchange offices. It is also profitable to exchange money at Portuguese airports, as in banks.
The country's central banking institutions are open from 9 am to 3 pm. IN holidays they serve customers until 12 noon. Sometimes in small state markets and in small shops dollars are accepted for payment.
Portugal is a country where tourists feel great. There are many ancient attractions in the Portuguese territories, and hotels with a good number of stars offer truly European service. Arriving in Portugal, it is enough to have some cash in euros; all other payments can be made by bank card, even in rural areas.
The euro has been the official currency of Portugal since 1999 (cash payments since 2002). This means that all financial transactions are carried out in Euros. Naturally, dollars or any other currency will not be accepted anywhere here. But if you nevertheless came here with dollars, you can easily change them at any exchange office in the city center. It will be more difficult with rubles or hryvnia, but such exchangers can also be found.
Until 2002, the Portuguese escudo was in circulation in Portugal. Portugal was among the first countries to adopt the euro as its main currency.
Where to change money in Lisbon
The exchange office is called in Portuguese agência de cambios, find the exchange office closest to you in Lisbon using the link.
Cash in Portugal (in Lisbon)
When preparing for a trip to Portugal, it is better to make sure in advance that you have small denomination bills, ideally no more than 20 €. It is not customary here to pay with large bills, and even 50 € may be refused, say, in a small coffee shop or a small private store. There is no need to quarrel with anyone about this, they won’t understand you anyway. The Portuguese are not used to large bills, and they may indeed not have change. We are not talking about 100€, 200€ or 500€ bills at all. If you can still have a hundred in some large store or restaurant with a large bill, then forget about the 200€ and 500€ bills altogether. In many stores where there are a lot of tourists, there may even be warnings at the checkouts that €200 and €500 bills are not accepted.
Credit cards in Lisbon
Of course, the most convenient way pay when traveling - bank cards (credit or debit). But in Portugal, an unprepared tourist may encounter a little difficulty. In Portugal, all cards issued are Multibanco, and some places may not accept your international card.
Let us explain: Multibank is a common network that unites 27 banks that use a unified system for processing monetary transactions. Thus, cash withdrawal for Multibank cardholders at any ATM in the country is free of charge.
All large stores We accept credit cards issued in other countries for payment. But if this is a small coffee shop not in the city center, then most likely you won’t be able to pay there with a foreign card. And even if you see a terminal at the checkout, it may not accept international cards. Many small businesses do not install terminals for accepting cards other than Multibank because they will have to pay a higher commission for each transaction.
If you want to pay with a card for purchases, but do not know whether cards are accepted here (and there may still be Visa and MasterCard stickers at the checkout), then show your card and say that it is a Visa card. A visa here is called any credit card, which does not belong to the Multibank system, even if in fact it is a MasterCard card.
They may accept your card or tell you that only local cards “só Multibanco” (“from Multibank” - only Multibank) are accepted here.
ATMs in Lisbon
Everything is simple here. If you are traveling with by bank card(credit or debit) you can withdraw money from any ATM (maximum 200€ per transaction and 400€ per day). You don't have to look for a specific bank. Thanks to the unified Multibank system, the commission for withdrawing cash from any ATM will be the same and will only depend on your bank. All ATMs have the same interface and menu in English.
