2015 is well on its way to becoming another “record-breaking year” for Portugal and the Algarve’s tourism sectors.
While the government says it is focused on keeping tourism on a roll, the Algarve’s tourism board (RTA) has revealed the region’s hotels are doing better in 2015 than last year. Even British Prime Minister David Cameron is said to be planning another holiday trip to the Algarve.
The Portuguese government has given security forces the green light for a national “video vigilance” plan.
The measure has been published in State newspaper Diário da República under the Lei-Quadro da Política Criminal (LQPC) and involves equipping public spaces known for having a lot of activity as well as “elevated criminal statistics”.
A Chinese website is purporting to be putting 1,500 luxury properties in Vale do Lobo up for auction, for prices between €900,000 and €1.5 million.
Both Vale do Lobo management and the national association of real estate agents have reacted with surprise, suggesting that not only is the news hard to imagine but that it is also “abusive”.
A 29-year-old Portuguese student has gone missing from Brighton University in the UK, sparking fears for his safety.
As we write, Facebook appeals are being shared throughout the net with friends asking for any information on the whereabouts of Diogo Manuel Martins Alves Moreira.
It has taken nine no doubt heart-searching years, but the parents of 20-year-old Ruben Gois, killed in a road accident in Albufeira almost a decade ago, have finally won closure.
Their disputed claim to the FGA - the fund that covers traffic accidents when there is no valid insurance cover or when there is no-one found to blame - has been upheld by the Supreme Tribunal of Justice which ruled that €120,000 in damages should be paid.
Portugal has been named the 18th most reputable nation in the world, ahead of countries including America and France in an online list published by Forbes magazine.
Put together by the Reputation Institute (RI) it is designed to rank 55 countries with the highest GDPs.
The wave of public support for former PJ investigator Gonçalo Amaral has hit a new record this week, with over €50,000 now amassed to help him fight his appeal over the €500,000-plus damages awarded against him in the long-running civil action taken out by the parents of Madeleine McCann.
But as supporters shared the news, calling it a victory for “people who put their heads above the parapet”, an internet campaign trying to prove “there is no appeal” and that Amaral is simply raising money under false pretences is trying to gather steam.
As anyone who has lived and worked in Portugal for any time will know, the Portuguese are unconcerned about initials.
They seem perfectly content to have a health service abbreviated and widely referred to as ARS, and see no amusement at all in the decision to call a citizens’ advice bureau a BUM.
Now another group of clearly very lateral thinkers has come up with a new political party with the obscure campaign initials of PURP.
