The bustling market town of Caldas da Rainha on Portugal’s Silver Coast celebrates its annual Festa da Musica, or Music Festival, in August. Founded in 1485 by Portugal’s Queen Leonor around the medieval hot springs on the site, and lying within the Estremadura region only 50 minutes drive from Lisbon, Caldas da Rainha (or the ‘Queen’s Springs’) is one of Portugal’s most historic spa towns, now building a fresh reputation as the region’s leading cultural centre.

The Silver Coast, a stretch of spectacular coastline that runs for approx 150km north of Lisbon up towards the fishing town of Nazare, is now a popular second home destination for buyers keen on Portugal but disenchanted with the Algarve’s high property prices and in search of a more authentic rural lifestyle.

Since the new A8 motorway opened in 2000, cutting 30 minutes off the journey time to Lisbon’s international airport and opening up the region’s long sandy beaches and spectacular landscapes to outsiders, the Silver Coast has seen a steady flow of foreign buyers.

Future infrastructure improvements include the new high speed train link between Madrid and Lisbon, due to be completed in 2012, which will cut the journey time between the two Iberian capitals from eight to three hours, and pass through the town of Rio Maior, only 20 minutes drive from Caldas da Rainha.

Obidos
Dominated by the spectacular Obidos lagoon and sprinkled with fields, small farms, vineyards, windmills and fruit trees, this region is traditionally home to prosperous small farmers cultivating soft fruits, grapes, melons, pumpkins and maize who use Caldas da Rainha as their main centre for business and shopping.

On the Silver Coast the Atlantic currents cool the summer heat (temperatures are on average five to seven degrees lower than the Algarve) and provide spectacular waves for surfing and water sports on the long sandy beaches.

Unsurprisingly the area is being discovered by outsiders. “Just 20 years ago I could see open fields from my father’s office in Caldas town centre”, says Ricardo Querido, 34, a partner in one of Caldas da Rainha’s largest construction companies. “Now, you hear British, Dutch and German voices in amongst the Portuguese in the fruit market every day, and we have over 30 estate agents operating here in town”.

“From 1485 until the late 19th century, Caldas was one of Portugal’s most famous spa towns, and a favourite destination of the Portuguese Royal Family,” says Dr. Fernando da Costa, head of the Town Hall and responsible for driving the town’s rapidly rising profile.

“Now we want to start recreating those glory days. Famous Portuguese painters and authors like Jose Malhoa, Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro and Gil Vicente all lived and worked here in Caldas and we have just opened a new cultural centre to host our regular programme of operas, jazz concerts and recitals”.

This is also a region rich in religious traditions and rural history. Every summer, for instance, local villages club together to host ‘bailericos’ or street parties, offering all-night bands and freshly cooked food to celebrate the Feasts of the Peoples’ Saints in June and July, or other local religious festivals. In Caldas da Rainha the most famous of these is the August festival of Festa Branca on the beach in Foz do Arelho, when everyone dresses in white.

Half and half
One British couple who love the area are Richard and Juliet Bothams, both 54, who split their year between Windy Wold, an 18th century cottage in the idyllic Hampshire village of Binsted, and Casal das Laranjeiras, a converted grain store surrounded by olive groves and bougainvillea in Torre, a small village near Caldas da Rainha in the heart of the Silver Coast.
Richard, a former human resources director in the pharmaceutical industry, and Juliet, who worked until recently in the insurance sector, have lived in Hampshire for 17 years, but first fell in love with the Silver Coast back in 1989.

“It was a long weekend in Lisbon that started it all – twenty one years ago now”, says Juliet. “We took one of those day trips out by coach and in a whistle-stop tour round Lisbon’s Estremadura region we got glimpses of Fátima, Alcobaça, Batalha, Óbidos and the fabulous Óbidos Lagoon. Reel forward a few weeks and we were back in Portugal again, meeting a UK developer who was putting up apartments with stunning views across the Obidos lagoon and down the full length of the coast to Peniche. But they weren’t our bag: very much holiday homes, whereas we wanted a home from home for holidays.”

There followed a few months of frustration, because in those days there was no established property market for foreigners outside the Algarve: either Richard or Juliet would jet off to Lisbon on a Friday, grab the weekend papers, make appointments directly with sellers and then spend Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning looking at inappropriate properties in totally impractical locations near Lisbon. Their knowledge of Portuguese geography was patchy and the only motorway was the A1.

Richard takes up the story. “One Sunday morning we found a small ad in the back of the Sunday Times property pages: ‘a small local agent called Casinhas de Portugal (now sadly closed) would find us properties in line with our spec and take us out on escorted inspection visits – all we had to do was pay our flights. They soon found us what we wanted: a traditional cottage in a friendly agricultural village, near the elegant spa town of Caldas da Rainha and some lovely beaches. Thrown in for free with the deal came our neighbour Cândida, who soon became our close friend and housekeeper, and who still looks after the house whenever we are not there.

“We also made it a point to learn Portuguese using a private teacher, with the result that the mental gymnasium that is the Portuguese language gives us hours of merriment and has opened the doors to many treasured friendships for us in Portugal”.

Now the couple have retired early, they are full of plans to split their time between England and Portugal, but also to travel more widely, through South America, New Zealand, Mozambique and Angola. Having spent their lives to date in a highly planned, controlled professional environment, they are relishing their new found freedom, and are keen to pursue their hobbies of cycling, music and drama, riding and walking.

But do they plan to move permanently to Portugal? Richard and Juliet think not. “We are firmly rooted in Britain and are resident for tax purposes here, but we spend about 12-15 weeks a year in the Silver Coast. We don’t think that will change.”

Elderly parents may mean frequent trips back and forth – bear that in mind when choosing location and travel times.

Pets – do you want them to travel back and forth with you? If so, think pet passports, but journeys can be stressful for them. If not, pet-sitters and kennels can be very expensive.

Garden upkeep in Portugal – you can spend a fortune just on water. We learned the hard way to put large areas down to gravel rather than a lawn, and to plant drought-tolerant plants.

Garden services are quite expensive for the level of expertise you get in return – they are not good at weed control in beds and shrubberies and haven’t got the hang of pruning – so be warned. If you want an English-style garden, put in an automatic irrigation system right at the start.

You need to have someone you trust to keep an eye on things while you are away – get recommendations for villa management companies from friends. If you are really lucky you will have a neighbour like Candida – we call her ‘a nossa mae Portuguesa’ (our Portuguese mum) and she takes care of us and our property as if it were her own.

If you are building or renovating you will need an architect, even if you are already in the business. Never underestimate Portuguese bureaucracy and, even if you don’t need their design and management skills, you will still need them to nurse you through the planning system, keep the build on target and get your property properly registered.

At Casal das Laranjeiras we have done three renovation projects using the same architect and she has become one of our best friends. The fee will be trivial compared with knowing that your build will go smoothly in your absence.

Hire cars – buy an annual insurance policy to replace the ‘excess insurance’ the car hire companies charge each time – this saves
quite a bit of money.

Loyalty points – sign up for loyalty points with the airlines if you fly between your homes, it soon adds up.

For sale in the Silver Coast
Melissa Properties
Chao da Parada, Salir do Porto, near Caldas da Rainha Detached family house in the centre of the village with four bedrooms, three bathrooms, big basement, and garden. E285,000
Call 00 351 92 7788366 or email melissapropertiesportugal@gmail.com

How to get there
British Airways, TAP and Easyjet fly into Lisbon from London and Bristol all year round, and then it’s an easy 50 minute drive up the A8 motorway to the Obidos lagoon and Caldas da Rainha.

Or you could fly with Ryanair into Porto airport and drive south, which will take you around 90 minutes.

Contact
Property sites
www.atlaspropertyportugal.com
www.queridofialho.pt
www.era.pt/caldasdarainha
www.century21.pt/portasim
www.casaok.com.pt

Cultural sites
International Ladies of Caldas da Rainha
www.ladies-of-caldas.com

Caldas da Rainha official website
www.cm-caldas-rainha.pt