{"id":4053,"date":"2026-11-11T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-11-11T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/?p=4053"},"modified":"2026-11-04T04:05:28","modified_gmt":"2026-11-04T04:05:28","slug":"we-spent-the-winter-in-portugal-instead-of-ireland-and-it-cost-less-than-our-heating-bill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/we-spent-the-winter-in-portugal-instead-of-ireland-and-it-cost-less-than-our-heating-bill\/","title":{"rendered":"We spent the winter in Portugal instead of Ireland and it cost less than our heating bill"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>We left a damp, gray <strong>winter<\/strong> behind and flew south with two carry\u2011ons and a stubborn <strong>idea<\/strong>. What if we traded radiators for sunshine, and came out with more <strong>money<\/strong> left over? It sounded naive, but the math \u2014 and the sky \u2014 felt boldly <strong>simple<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Within a week, the chill in our bones had been replaced by a slow, glowing <strong>warmth<\/strong>. The sea turned our mornings into <strong>rituals<\/strong>, the hills into gentle <strong>habits<\/strong>. When the first utility bill landed in our inbox, we laughed out <strong>loud<\/strong>. \u201cSo that\u2019s it?\u201d I said. \u201cThat\u2019s the cost of being <strong>warm<\/strong>?\u201d<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>\u201cBack home, I used to stand by the boiler and feel guilty,\u201d my partner <strong>admitted<\/strong>. \u201cDown here, the sun does the <strong>work<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>By March, the numbers told a clear <strong>story<\/strong>. We hadn\u2019t just escaped the <strong>cold<\/strong>. We\u2019d sidestepped the worst bill of the <strong>year<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>Why we swapped drizzle for sunshine<\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>We love <strong>Ireland<\/strong>, but our house leaks heat like a stubborn <strong>sieve<\/strong>. The thermostat creeps up, and so does our quiet <strong>panic<\/strong>. We work remotely, so our location is mostly a <strong>mindset<\/strong>. The question became less \u201cwhy go?\u201d and more \u201cwhy <strong>not<\/strong>?\u201d<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Portugal ticked the soft, human <strong>boxes<\/strong>. It\u2019s friendly, safe, and gloriously <strong>walkable<\/strong>. Winter daylight actually feels like <strong>daylight<\/strong>. Caf\u00e9s brim with good <strong>coffee<\/strong>, and \u201cbom dia\u201d lands like a tiny <strong>gift<\/strong>. We chose a small coastal <strong>town<\/strong>, close enough to Lisbon for weekend <strong>culture<\/strong>, but priced like a working <strong>place<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>What it really cost<\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>We didn\u2019t chase luxury; we chased <strong>comfort<\/strong>. Our apartment was bright, modest, and a five\u2011minute stroll from the <strong>sea<\/strong>. The building had decent insulation and a tiny <strong>heater<\/strong> we barely used.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>\u201cHonestly,\u201d I said after the first week, \u201cI forgot what my toes feel like when they\u2019re actually <strong>warm<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s what a month looked <strong>like<\/strong> for two people:<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<ul><\/p>\n<li>Rent for a one\u2011bedroom near the coast: around \u20ac800, fully <strong>furnished<\/strong>  <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<li>Utilities (electricity, water, gas): about \u20ac90 in <strong>winter<\/strong>  <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<li>Supermarket runs: roughly \u20ac300\u2011\u20ac350, with fresh fish and local <strong>veg<\/strong>  <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<li>Eating out: \u20ac150\u2011\u20ac200 for simple lunches and a few <strong>dinners<\/strong>  <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<li>Transport: \u20ac40 for trains\/buses, plus the odd <strong>Uber<\/strong>  <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<li>Flights from Dublin: \u20ac120 each, booked early and <strong>light<\/strong>  <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<li>Coworking or faster home internet top\u2011up: \u20ac30\u2011\u20ac50, depending on the <strong>month<\/strong><\/li>\n<p>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Even counting flights, our total monthly spend came in under what we pay for winter heating and higher grocery costs in <strong>Ireland<\/strong>. The shock wasn\u2019t that Portugal was \u201ccheap\u201d; it was that we needed far less <strong>heat<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>Daily life on the coast<\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Our days were simple and <strong>sunny<\/strong>. Mornings started with oranges the size of softballs and a <strong>walk<\/strong>. By 9:00, we were online with strong <strong>Wi\u2011Fi<\/strong> and stronger <strong>espresso<\/strong>. At lunch, we\u2019d split a grilled sardine platter on a shaded <strong>terrace<\/strong>, the kind of meal that makes you feel quietly <strong>human<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Afternoons belonged to work, headphones, and a humming <strong>room<\/strong>. Evenings belonged to the salt\u2011scented <strong>air<\/strong>. Sometimes we climbed the cliff path and counted surfers like moving <strong>commas<\/strong>. Sometimes we sat, said nothing, and let our email <strong>fade<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Locals were kind in a way that felt <strong>unshowy<\/strong>. A market vendor slipped extra parsley, \u201cpara sopa,\u201d with a wry <strong>smile<\/strong>. The baker waved us in from the rain that never really <strong>came<\/strong>. \u201cIt\u2019s winter,\u201d she shrugged, \u201cbut not the sad <strong>kind<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>Work, internet, and visas<\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Remote life needs solid <strong>infrastructure<\/strong>. Internet speeds were good, and backups were <strong>plenty<\/strong>. We kept SIM cards with generous data, and a caf\u00e9 list ranked by outlet <strong>location<\/strong>. Calls were crisp, time zones easy, and our clients noticed only that we sounded strangely <strong>cheerful<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>We stayed within the standard 90\u2011day Schengen <strong>limit<\/strong>, timed to stretch the grayest <strong>months<\/strong>. If you want longer, talk to an immigration <strong>pro<\/strong>; rules shift, and surprises are best kept for <strong>dessert<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>Trade\u2011offs we didn\u2019t expect<\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Yes, there were trade\u2011offs, some charming, some slightly <strong>sharp<\/strong>. Our apartment had tile floors that stayed cool in the <strong>mornings<\/strong>. We missed friends, our messy local <strong>pub<\/strong>, and the way Irish weather forges immediate <strong>kinship<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>But we gained other <strong>textures<\/strong>. We learned to eat later, to walk slower, to carry a light <strong>jacket<\/strong> just in case a cloud remembered its <strong>job<\/strong>. We learned a handful of Portuguese words beyond \u201cobrigado,\u201d each one buying us disproportionate <strong>warmth<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought I\u2019d miss the fire most,\u201d I said one <strong>night<\/strong>. \u201cTurns out, I miss the kettle\u2019s <strong>song<\/strong>.\u201d Then we made tea, opened the balcony door, and listened to the ocean instead of the <strong>boiler<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>Would we do it again?<\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>In short: <strong>yes<\/strong>. Not because it\u2019s a hack or a magical <strong>shortcut<\/strong>, but because it made us feel more <strong>alive<\/strong>. We worked better. We slept <strong>longer<\/strong>. We spent less without thinking like <strong>accountants<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re tempted, keep it <strong>simple<\/strong>. Choose one town. Book a month, not a <strong>week<\/strong>. Pack layers and an open <strong>plan<\/strong>. Say \u201cbom dia\u201d to everyone, and let the sun do a little heavy <strong>lifting<\/strong>. The bills will be gentler, but the real dividend is the color that comes back to your <strong>face<\/strong> \u2014 and the way your days feel newly, beautifully <strong>useful<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4089,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4053","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4053","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4053"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4053\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4076,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4053\/revisions\/4076"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4053"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4053"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4053"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}