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Original poster

Cheap holiday abroad

19 replies

Casarossa · 19/08/2022 07:47

2 adults, 2 kids going to a self catering apartment in Portugal. Am I deluded to think we can get away with spending a small amount there? My thinking is to do a big food shop in Lidl or the likes there and it would be similar to doing a big shop here.

The beach is free, the pool is free, playground is free. Were renting a car so will have to pay for fuel for that.

What other unexpected expenses might we have?

OP posts:
Original poster
Casarossa · 19/08/2022 07:50

Or is there anything we should bring with us to save money? Eg beach towels I got cheap here so will save that little bit when we get there.

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Funkyslippers · 19/08/2022 07:51

Yes you can totally do that. We did a big shop at their big supermarket and prices were similar to here. One thing I couldn't find were any ready meals but you might be more successful in Lidl. We ate out most nights but had breakfast and lunch in the apartment otherwise it would have been a stupidity expensive holiday

Campervangirl · 19/08/2022 07:51

If you're going to a holiday resort there may only be tourist supermarkets where you'll pay over the odds.
Get on Google and find a supermarket that locals use

Original poster
Casarossa · 19/08/2022 07:54

Thanks @Funkyslippers that was my thinking re breakfast and lunch. Not sure what we will do for dinners - maybe a mixture but my thinking is if we were home we would be cooking anyway and I'd rather cook there than here!

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Basilandparsleyandmint · 19/08/2022 07:55

as long as you are content to picnic/ make dinner every night and not do anything apart from beach/ pool and no treats while out etc then I can’t see what else you would need to spend money on.
We do the Eurocamp holidays and so are self catering. We do do local tourist things though and go out for drinks / ice creams etc
take some ice packs from home and bring a cool bag as otherwise if you are making sandwiches they might not keep so well if you are out and about all day.

Funkyslippers · 19/08/2022 07:55

We had beach/pool towels included. One thing you might have to pay for is a safe. We had one in our room but didn't end up using it. If you have room in your suitcase take some food from home like breakfast cereals and tea bags

Original poster
Casarossa · 19/08/2022 07:55

@Campervangirl have spotted a Lidl 5 mins drive away (away from the beach) so we will try that 🤞

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Funkyslippers · 19/08/2022 07:57

Casarossa in that case take with you things like stock cubes as you don't want to be buying a whole pack there. You can take/str

Funkyslippers · 19/08/2022 07:58

Sorry didn't mean to press Post so soon! You can steal a few sachets of salt if you go to a restaurant (we also ran out of sugar so took a few sachets from the local cafe, we did buy drinks there!)

rookiemere · 19/08/2022 08:00

If you have decent luggage allowance and you have the space, I'd bring along any favourite food stuff like cereals and those tiny bottles of concentrated diluting squash. Pasta and sauce for first night if you get in late.

I found European supermarkets expensive for a lot of things now compared to UK, so just be careful when you are shopping.

Callisto1 · 19/08/2022 09:40

You might find that the place you're staying at is quite hot. And depending on air con you might want to avoid all cooking!

Original poster
Casarossa · 19/08/2022 11:34

Thanks some really good ideas here.

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Eyesopenwideawake · 19/08/2022 11:38

500gm of salt is about 50c in Lidl - no need to steal it! There's really no ready meals in Portugal (although Lidl's lasagne is lovely - about €3 which easily feeds 4) so you are going to have to cook if you don't want to eat out. As you've got a car, try getting away from the tourist area and look for small local restaurants - a 3 course lunch inc. wine, water and coffee can be had for around €10.

sbwtgir22 · 19/08/2022 11:45

Currently in Portugal and I've been surprised how expensive everything is. On par with the UK both for food shopping and eating out (some wine in restaurants is cheaper).
Our car hire was eye wateringly expensive too - have you sorted that as if not you may be shocked at how much it is (due to car hire companies selling off their fleets during lockdown and now not able to deal with demand).
On the plus side, the weather and beaches are lovely!

Deux · 19/08/2022 11:52

I was in Greece this summer and some things I’d wished I’d taken with me are: rubber gloves, cleaning cloth/micro fibre cloth, washing powder tablets for 4 or 5 laundry loads, instant noodles, stir in pasta sauce, stir fry sauce sachets. Laundry detergent was very expensive and in large pack sizes.

I shopped at Lidl and didn’t find the prices very different from here. We did a mix of eating out and cooking.

Costacoffeeplease · 19/08/2022 12:05

I live in the algarve, where are you staying? Anywhere near Lagoa as the fatacil starts today and has a lot going on for a small entrance fee?

Doggydarling · 19/08/2022 12:15

When packing try including some tubbaware type containers for holding salads etc for picnics, its nicer to add filling to sandwiches/rolls just before eating so they don't go soggy.

Original poster
Casarossa · 21/08/2022 16:39

Thanks, some really good ideas here.

We have the car hire sorted and yes it did seem to be double the price of any car we have hired before.

Were staying in praia da rocha so will check out the distance to lagoa.

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Costacoffeeplease · 21/08/2022 23:13

Praia da Rocha to Lagoa is about 10 minutes by car. Fatacil is on until next weekend, when it’s the Carvoeiro local festa too. There are lots of supermarkets in the area, Lidl, Aldi, Pingo Doce, Auchan and Continente

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