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History, culture, and nature in perfect balance
Portugal has an exceptional range of well-protected landscapes and nature areas, lots of leisure activities, and an overwhelming cultural heritage, where tradition and modernity blend together. Its cuisine, fine wines, and hospitable people, make this a great destination for the responsible traveller. In March 2019, Portugal won the Best of Europe Award for sustainable tourism at ITB Berlin, the world’s leading tourism fair.
Not sure where to go?
Explore the options for a responsible trip
Destination is recognized for their sustainability practices
Destination has been awarded and certified for sustainability
Good Travel program certified businesses
GOOD DESTINATIONS
Discover impact-driven destinations that were certified or recognized by their efforts
Águeda
Development in the Pateira de Fermentelos lagoon needs to be aligned with sustainability practices to ensure its biodiversity is not harmed. To ensure this is possible, Agueda found a way to combine the promotion of the destination with the enhancement of the nature present. This also involved implementing intitatives to make the destination accessible to all. This resulted in an increase in visitor numbers and a stronger community involvement.
Arouca
The unique characteristics of Arouca Geopark are natural and cultural heritage. they are structural anchors for sustainable tourism. The main attractions are the Route of Geossites, Passadiços do Paiva on Paiva Valley, Giant Trilobites of Canelas and the Birthing Stones of Freita Mountain and Monastery of Arouca, old villages and walfram mines. Under Paiva River is the longest Pedestrian Bridge of the world nominated Arouca 516. Arouca Geopark is an special geotourism destination classified as UNESCO Global Geopark.
GOOD TO KNOW
Sustainability
Portugal has a strong commitment to Sustainable Tourism which is the main focus of the National Tourism Strategy 2027. The “+ Sustainable Tourism Plan 20-23” , recently launched, is also an important tool to stimulate circular economy, carbon zero and a responsible recovery in tourism sector.
The Portuguese “Green Destinations” here presented are important stakeholders to reach Portugal’s sustainable goals.
Tourism & People
Portuguese people are genuinely friendly and hospitable and human rights are very well respected in Portugal.
In the pandemic situation that we live since march 2020, the tourism sector is all mobilized to provide the sanitary security requirements through the adoption of the Clean and Safe Stamp. Portugal was the 1stcountry in Europe to get the “Safe Travels” Stamp from WTTC, recognizing our commitment with providing safety for all.
GOOD TRAVEL TIPS
Getting there
In mainland Portugal, main towns and cities are well connected by trains and coach services. By car there are two types of motorways: the traditional motorways with toll booths and those with an exclusively electronic toll system.
By rail: CP (Portuguese railways) offers train services from Vigo, Madrid and Paris.
By coach: International routes are operated by Eurolines, Internorte and FlixBus.
By air: Airports all over the country facilitate international connections. Don’t forget to offset your carbon footprint if you choose to travel by plane.
Waste separation for recycling
For separate waste disposal, remember this color code:
GREEN bin for glass, BLUE for paper and cardboard, YELLOW for plastics and metal, RED for batteries and WHITE for reusable clothing.
Religious celebrations
Portugal is rich in religious local celebrations, they are precious and deserve our full respect. These are not events created for tourists, so apart from Carnival, please do not interfere. However, if there is a market connected to a celebration, this is your opportunity to buy the best local products available in the region.
Hot or busy in Lisbon?
Lisbon offers you some nice day trips. You can take a local ferry from Cais do Sodré to Casilhas, crossing the Tejo river and offering wonderful views towards the capital. For day trips, consider the train to Sintra’s lush woodlands and romantic cultural heritage; the beaches of Cascais; or to taste great wines in Torres Vedras. Plan ahead to experience your green holiday in Portugal to the fullest!
GOOD PLACES TO STAY
Luís Araújo
President of Turismo de Portugal
Turismo de Portugal, the national authority for tourism, is committed to proceed a path of Sustainability, helping our stakeholders – private and public – to implement the best practices in order to preserve our natural and cultural values, to reach a balanced development for communities and business and of course, to provide an authentic and unique experience to all tourists.
This commitment is also reflected in several initiatives that Turismo de Portugal has taken at European and global level: we recently joined Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) and the Portuguese Plastics Pact and we maintain an active participation in the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and in the presidency of European Travel Commission (ETC).
Our purpose remains: to make Portugal one of the most competitive, safe and sustainable destinations in the world.