Cliffo

First off, let me wish success to all trying to get residence in Portugal before December 31st. Challenging stuff but worth it.
I live in Aveiro now and it's a great place. I'm thinking about making a move to Foz do Arelho next year. Normally, I'd head down there to check out the area but being frustrated by the seemingly endless restrictions. At age 70, I'll have to be patient. I don't want to push my luck.
I'd love to have views and opinions from anyone familiar with the area about things like walking groups, meetups, shopping, medical facilities etc etc. Perhaps something about how you found it dealing with local officials in Camara, Financas etc. I have had only positive experiences in Aveiro and wonder what it might be like if making a move to Foz do Arelho or Caldas da Rainha.
From my armchair, it looks great. Hope you can find a few moments to share your experiences.
Many thanks.

dingg

Lived there for 8 months, camara and Finanças are OK to deal with, typically Portuguese they have good and not so good but on the whole they are OK.

You can go through 3 weather systems in the space of 500m in foz, they don't call it fog do arelho for nothing.

I live about 10km inland the other side of caldas and can be in 28deg full sunshine, drive to foz and it takes around 20 minutes but it can be misty and only 20 degrees. A bank and a few cafes and restaurants a couple of mini markets in the village and beach bars too. It gets hectic during the Portuguese holiday period and you will not get parked anywhere near the beach.

Hth
Eta caldas-da-rainha is a great little town 👍
Join Facebook group 'silver Coast our home' you will find all about walking groups and everything that you are looking for.

Cliffo

Thank you so much. I'll check out the Facebook. Aveiro has quite a few foggy mornings itself but I love the Atlantic wildness.

riv

Are there any of these Atlantic towns / villages where one can still get a house in hearing distance of the sea ??

BTW, if you like Aveiro so much what is the motivation for moving to a different town a bit further south?

Ju' wondrin'

Cliffo

Good question. Mostly due to itchy feet and an irrepressible urge to explore.

dingg

Yes but they're not cheap and take some horrible weather at times in the winter, best avoided if you want to live there full time imo

Rambling archer

Have a look at Sao Martinho do Porto and its friend across the bay Salir do Porto if you need to be near the sea, the latter being cheaper and seemingly developing all the time, the former being a real touristy spot on a lovely bay sheltered from the Atlantic rollers. Weather much the same as Foz dA ... My suggestion would be to look a bit inland, perhaps beyond the range of hills north of Caldas, or up the valley near Rio Maior/Santarem where summers are hotter but winters slightly less damp and fog-prone. Still less than an hour to the beach and cliff-walks. Caldas is only 10 minutes by car to Foz dA and is a good market town with rail links to Lisbon and Porto, motorway access, and quite a large and active expats community of a variety of nationalities.
Welcome to the ¨Forum!

Cliffo

Thanks. I will check them out. I like the idea of Foz do Arelho because it is so close to Caldas which seems to be a lovely town.

Rambling archer

I don't think I would think of Caldas as a "lovely" town in that its historic features don't really give it the charm that some Portuguese towns have, but it is a proper town, thriving in normal circumstances, with all the commercial aspects filled, and honest in providing all you need - plenty of historic bits and touristy bits all around of course! Suggest that when circumstances (Covid-19) permit, you get down there and explore a little ... hope you like the area!

riv

For info.............which of these ( or other ) towns would you accord the accolade 'lovely' to ?

Pilou

I live in the Algarve, but I like to go on low-season holiday to Caldas da Rainha, Obidos and the lagoa of Obidos/Foz do Arelho.
We love to be near the sea and the beautiful lagoa of Obidos, but we would not like to live there. A lot of humidity and in the low season Foz do Arelho is empty.
Caldas is beautiful with a very rich history. Caldas is alive all year round. Not far from the sea (+/-12 minutes).

Sao Martinho do Porto is empty in the low season and extremely busy in the high season. A lot of expats live in Alcobaca, not far from Sao Martinho do Porto. I love Alcobaca. Small but beautiful.

But I would go for Caldas da Rainha, because of the rich history, the thermal baths and lots of shops in and around. Good climate and not far from the sea. Lots of expats too.

riv

What is the lagoa of Óbidos like ? I assume it is fairly safe for swimming, as calm ? But then again is the water a bit stagnant ?

Are there different towns / villages around the Lagoon ? Which to go for ,if any, to avoid 'touristy' tat and development ?

Interesting that you make the effort to travel from Algarve to that area.

Rambling archer

On the Foz side the lagoon empties into the sea so there is a beach area below that part of the town, most of the rest of the lagoon is marshlands with fairly thin roads and tracks meandering through. On the Peniche/Obidos side there is a newish golf course and a villa development going down to the small quiet village of Casal da lapinha and Praia do Bom Successo facing Foz. Access to that area from Caldas is a bit rural and twisty in the kinds of roads available, so much easier to go to Foz for the beach.