Portugal has always been influenced by the sea. The Portuguese are very conscious of themselves as a seafaring race; mariners like Vasco da Gama led the way in the exploration of Africa and the Americas, and until thirty years ago Portugal remained a colonial power. The vibrant capital, Lisbon, has enough going on to please most city devotees, while along the coast nearby, and further south on the well-developed Algarve, there are sophisticated beach resorts. But in its rural areas this is still a conspicuously underdeveloped country, and there are plenty of opportunities to experience a lifestyle that has changed little over the last century.

Roughly north of the River Tagus, or Tejo – which cuts across the country at its midpoint – the people are of predominantly Celtic and Germanic stock. South of the Tagus, where the Moorish and Roman civilizations were most established, people tend to be darker-skinned and maintain more of a "Mediterranean" lifestyle. The 1974 revolution came from the south – an area of vast estates, rich landowners and a dependent workforce. More profoundly even than that, emigration and colonial power have altered people's attitudes and the appearance of the country. Returning emigrants have brought in modern ideas and challenged many traditional rural values, while the colonies brought African and South American strands to the country's culture: in the distinctive music of fado, sentimental songs heard in Lisbon and Coimbra, for example, or in the Moorish-influenced architecture.

Scenically, the most interesting parts of the country are in the north: the Minho, green, damp, and often startling in its rural customs; and the sensational gorge and valley of the Douro, followed along its course by the railway, off which antiquated branch lines edge into remote Trás-os-Montes. For contemporary interest, spend some time in both Lisbon and Porto, the two major cities. And if it's monuments you're after, the centre of the country – above all, Coimbra and Évora – retains a faded grandeur. The coast is virtually continuous beach, and apart from the Algarve and a few pockets around Lisbon and Porto, resorts remain low-key. Perhaps the loveliest are along the northern Costa Verde or, for isolation, the wild beaches of southern Alentejo.