12 Things NOT to do in Portugal

What not to do in Portugal! Learn the etiquette before you get here!

-Some guy named Dave in Portugal

[tukimicetk]

Just as a quick note. It's totally normal to eat stuff like burgers, pizza, etc... with your hands in Portugal. Some places are fancy, and most pizza places offer the option in case you want to eat it like that. But by no means is it impolite or not ok to not do so, that's how most people eat it.

[sandrosilva]

If you are an elderly person, someone with a disability or a person accompanied by a baby, you have the right, by law, to get ahead of the queues.

[EnclaveEmily]

#1 is what annoys me the most. It's like we don't exist as a country and some people think that just because we're near Spain that means we're basically the same. It's super disrespectful, especially when considering we had to fight for centuries to *not* be subjugated by Spain

[BotBruh]

About doing U turns, it's entirely acceptable, you just have to know your 3 point maneuver and signal properly, like you mentioned in a different video, people don't really signal (unfortunately) but as long as you signal and do the maneuver quickly. Another tip I can tell you is that if someone is behind you and you want to pull that U turn, signal like you're going to pull over to the side, let them pass, and then signal the maneuver and make your turn

Edit: Make sure to always thank people by waving your hand at them, it mitigates the impatient driver's anger *typically*

[MariaTorres-hcuq]

Portuguese here! For me, the worst any foreigner can do is act like they belong to a superior race...that gets my red Portuguese blood boiling... Do your "smartass" number with me, and you are done...
The other day a woman started talking to me on the street, in what she thought was "Spanish", it's not the Spanish I mind, but her friend said "She doesn't understand you!" to which I replied in English: "No Madam, it's the way you addressed me that is wrong... What about "Good morning" or "Could you please help me?".
Going to a country and thinking the people there are dumb and witless is a big no-no.

[alexandregoncalves]

As an actual Portuguese, here are the tips :
Never criticize Portugal, and always respect the country and the Portugueses.
No speaking loud in the street or bad attitudes.

We do not expect foreigners to speak our language, if you try speaking Portuguese it's great obviously.

Most important, stay calm, if there is no danger, there's no need to make a scene.

[dantheraccoon]

As my grandma says:
"If you're going to catcall a woman in Portugal, don't be surprised if she wacks out a wooden spoon at your face" and I think that's accurate 😂

[qyovdpy]

Португалците са може би най–милите хора, които съм срещала в Европа. Същевременно горди с историята си. Обичам страна ви! Сърдечно от България!

[gomey]

The Portuguese are very polite and civil people and it's always a joy going there. I especially love the north of the country. Yes, learning some Portuguese phrases can go a long way, and it's such a beautiful language so it's worth doing. Coming from Ireland, one thing I like is that you won't see local people out at night falling around drunk. It feels so much safer and pleasant. If you do they're probably foreigners on holiday, but please don't treat Portugal like a giant holiday camp. Have some respect for the culture, be polite and considerate to others, and you will be made feel very welcome. Much love to our Portuguese friends. ♥

[MissShotGun]

Really happy to see a foreigner being respectful and actually trying to learn about portuguese culture and rules. Turists mostly come here to party hard away from responsibilities and most of the time just cause trouble, lots of noise and trash and overall seem like they are the kings and queens and that we, the locals, are just background views to serve them. Its so important to travel with conscience and willing to discover and learn about the country you are traveling to. Portugal in general really likes the fact that people want to come visit, its a nice thing that we can travel the world and get to know different people. Just be aware that while you are here on vaccations, having fun, the rest of us live here everyday, are trying to go to work and live ours lives and we appeciate if you dont make that difficult for us. Thank you for the videos, its so important that you share your knowledge and create awareness for better travelling practices. Subscribed 🔥

[TheAquarius]

Oh and if you find yourself in a Portuguese pavement during or right after raining ALWAYS try walk on the black stones, ( no, im not jocking lol ) the white cobblestones are like wet glass when it rains, the black ones offer better grip.

[ruigomes]

You can eat with your hands if you want, but it's not very common for us because we were taught that it doesn't look good to eat with your hands in public... but pizza burgers or fries (if not served on a plate) can be eaten with the hands also the "churrasco" 😉

[raisnaix]

Loved this! Every thing I learn about this culture makes me love it more and more.

[goncalosimao]

As Portuguese, I just want to add a few points:
1- Not speaking Spanish: There is no problem in speaking Spanish, the most important thing is to have "communication", there is only a rivalry between the Portuguese and the Spaniards that is easily understood if you know how the country "Portugal" was created .
2- Don't expect others to speak English: Yes, a lot of the older Portuguese population doesn't know English and other people from abroad like Brazil don't either, but sometimes it's just for lack of practice, because English is only spoken in school classes and never trains in real life so be a little patient with people because nobody is perfect, even i am aware that i make some syntactic errors even though i speak english for over 9 years (any problem, google translate can help a lot)
3-Don't be impatient: I have nothing to say about this one, it depends a lot on the number of employees and customers.
4- Do not eat with your hands: Attention, there is no rule that prohibits you from doing so, it is just good to know how to "read the restaurant's atmosphere", if you enter a pizzeria and see people eating in an "organized" way, it is respectful to the others follow the same pattern, but nothing prevents you from eating with your hands if that's easier, but then go to a toilet to wash your hands before starting your meal.
5- Do not drive one-way in a parking lot: If you want to drive in foreign countries where the driving rules are different, it is advisable to inform yourself about the rules and signs of the country where you are, because not everything is universal like the STOP sign .
6-Do not make U-turns: If you are going to do this, do it in the shortest possible time and only if there is the possibility of walking in the opposite direction, because it is useless to make a U-turn if it is a one-way road.
7- Do not stay in the fast lane: There are usually 3 lanes, the left lane is for those who want to walk at a minimum speed of 50~70 km/h, the middle one to pass the right lane and the left lane is only to walk very fast, but be careful, if the right side is empty it can be used as if it were the left side.
8- Do not approach women in public: Nothing to comment.
9-Do not disrespect elderly women: It's not just the ladies, gentlemen, they also come into this rule, the elderly deserve some sensitivity because they've been through a lot in this life and contain teachings that only age can provide, Respect others in the way who would like to be respected and don't turn a blind eye to their needs, because one day, you will be one of them.
10- Don´r forget good shoes: For those who want challenges, you can wear hard-soled shoes and try to climb the roads of Lisbon and Porto, but it is advisable to wear good shoes, because everything that goes up, comes down.
11- Don't drink like you do...: Portugal manufactures the most awarded wines and beers in the world, in addition to one of the strongest drinks in the world, Bagaço, so be careful with the alcoholic value that the drinks have, because you certainly don't have the Portuguese genes developed over the centuries to withstand such drinks.
12- Multibanco is already present in many places, but don't expect them to accept ATM in fairs and older restaurants.

I hope it helped :)

[hannofranz]

I'm a German living in Spain. As far as my experiences with travelling in Portugal are concerned, I want to say the following. For speaking Spanish fluently, I thought it would be closer to the people to communicate with them in Spanish rather than English. I've learned that many Portuguese prefer speaking English so fine with me. I've made it a habit to ask them in my broken Portuguese what language to speak whether English, Spanish or French. It's definetely not a good idea to direct to Portuguese straight away in Spanish.

[SinMissils]

2:59

I wanted to elaborate on the number 4 here as a Portuguese myself, yes, our culture is very heavy on fork and knife, but it also depends on context and types of food, you can sometimes spot people eating hamburguers or pizas with the fork & knife if you go to a more fancy and expensive restaurant or the moment is very important as it is a way to show etiquette and respect, but if you're just going to mcdonalds, pizza hut, other fast food chains or hanging out with friends, we actually do eat certain foods with our hands for more ease, like pizzas, hamburguers, chicken legs, shrimps, etc.

It very much depends on wether you're in a situation where you're being more formal/respectfull or not.

[nickburton]

Spent 2 months in Portugal and learnt quite a bit. People appreciated it.

[ijoseluis]

Thanks alot.
As a Portuguese, I totally confirm these statements and corresponding advices.
This information is a precious contribution to the public hygiene in touristic times.
Be welcome and... polite.

[samuelrodrigues]

I am a Portuguese-American and I’ve been wanting to visit where my Family Lineage has came from. Thank you for posting. I’m 37 now and hope to visit soon.

[__MPires__]

Laughed really hard at the first thing 😂 yeah don't speak Spanish with us.
Something that I'd love to add though: knife and fork arr widely used and considered more polite. However a lot of people do eat with their hands, specially burgers, pizza etc. It's not that uncommon.