Destination Guides & Maps - Portugal

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Capital City: Lisbon. Population: 3,319,900

Language: Portuguese. While many people now speak English, you will also find that French (as well as Spanish) are also widely spoken.

Population: 9,979,450

Area: 35,655 sq miles (92,345 sq km)

Currency: The Euro (from 2002)

Visa: Nationals of all EU countries can stay up to three months in any half-year without a visa.

Geography: Located on the southwest part of the Iberian peninsula, Portugal is bordered to the north and the east by Spain - and to the south and west by the Atlantic.

Portugal is the westernmost point of Europe. Principal rivers, which flow east to west from across the Spanish border are the Douro, Tagus and Guadiana.

Portugal is mountainous to the north, while south of Lisbon are the plains of the Alentejo, the country's main agricultual area.

The main holiday area lies on Portugal's south coast in the Algarve. Portugal also includes the Atlantic islands of Madeira and the Azores.

Religion: Roman Catholic.

Time: GMT (GMT + 1 from last Sunday in March to Saturday before last Sunday in October).

Electricity: Voltage: 220 volts at a frequency of 50 Hz. All sockets follow European two-pin standards.

Emergencies: Dial 112 at any time of the day or night wherever you are in Portugal.

Telephone: Country code: 351. Outgoing international code: 00

To dial Portugal from the UK: Dial 00351

To dial the UK from Portugal: Dial 0044

Regional codes have recently been abolished: all Portuguese phone numbers are now nine digits. If you have a number with an old code (01 for Lisbon, for example) replace the 0 with a 2 and you should get through.

Telephone kiosks, which are well distributed (cafés and bars nearly always have one) work with coins, specific cards (Telecom cards) and credit cards.

Telecom Cards are on sale at Telecom Portugal shops, at post offices and at some kiosks and tobacconists. All telephone kiosks indicate the nearest place where these cards can be purchased.

Post: Post offices - correios - are open from Monday to Friday from 9am-6pm. Central Post Offices and those at airports are open on Saturdays.

Stamps are sold at post offices, street kiosks and at all locations marked with a red horse, or a white circle on a green background.

Business hours:The normal opening hours for shops are from 9am-1pm and from 3pm-7pm (working days). From January to November, shops close at 1pm on Saturdays.

In December shops are open from Monday to Saturday from 9am-1pm and from 3pm-7pm. There are also a large number of shopping centres that are open for longer periods, generally from 10am-midnight.

Restaurants: open for lunch from 12noon-3pm and for dinner from 7pm-10pm. Longer hours will apply in the larger resorts, but the Portuguese generally don't go in for the late dining hours of their Spanish neighbours.

Banks: open to the public from 8.30am-3pm over the five working days.

Pharmacists: working days: 9am-1pm and 3pm-7pm; Saturdays: 9am-1pm. By dialling 118 or consulting the daily newspaper, you can find out which is the nearest pharmacist on duty.

Internet/E-mail: Internet cafés can be found in many towns and cities; some post offices also offer internet facilities.

Tipping: Check to see whether your hotel/restaurant bill will have a service charge; otherwise tip at around 10 per cent of the bill. Add 10 per cent for tips for taxi drivers, for service in cafes and bars etc.

BBC World Service: From time to time these change. MHz 12.095; 9.410; 6.195; 3.955

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