Our programmes
Rural Northern Portugal suffers from depopulation as young people tend to head to the cities for work, leaving older generations to manage on subsistence agriculture. That’s why we make sure our programmes not only bring money into these marginalised communities, they also make local people feel appreciated and motivated.
The nature of our self-guided programmes enables us to work in very quiet villages with small locally-owned, family-run hotels, cottages, guesthouses and restaurants.
Our packed lunches and picnic baskets are sourced from local suppliers and we encourage our guests to experiment with traditional Portuguese dishes at family-run restaurants, which are usually made from fresh, locally-sourced ingredients and offer an insight into local culture as well as supporting the local economy.
During a stay in the various villages, we invite clients to observe, sample, and if possible purchase, traditional crafts and quality produce, thus helping to keep local traditions alive and make older residents feel valued as well as supplementing their income.
Our people
The Portugal Green Walks management and admin team consists of locally-employed specialists, most of whom grew up in the town / area where the office is based and have strong ties to the local and wider communities throughout the Northern Portugal region.
Our guides live in the areas in which they work.
We meticulously screen all of the service providers that we work with, ensuring that they operate in a professional, reliable manner and also that they have a certain distinctive authenticity and a genuine desire to share their enthusiasm with our visitors in a way that fits with our responsible travel policy.
