Portugal Trip Planning with Nuno
🌍 Lives in: Lisbon
Regions of expertise: Countrywide in Portugal (including Madeira and the Azores); Andalusia in Spain
Experience: 20 years as a guide and travel agent
Languages: English, Português
Nuno's specialties:
Portugal Travel Consultations
Plan a better trip with some help from Nuno
Sit down with Nuno for a one-hour planning session to get his expert advice and the best local tips and recommendations.
Our travel consultations are the perfect solution for do-it-yourself travelers who want to plan on their own, but could use some expert local advice. Each consultation is personalized, and Nuno is available to help in whatever way you need.
From working on your itinerary and advising on routes and transportation, to ideas for off the beaten path destinations and truly authentic experiences, he's got you covered.
For the best local advice, go ask a local!
Get to know Nuno!
A note from Nuno
“Olá from Portugal!
I'm Nuno Gonçalo, born and raised in Lisbon! After almost a decade guiding trips and another one planning them, I think I can finally say with confidence that I'm truly an expert on all things Portugal travel!
I started off back in 2005 as a national guide, road tripping all around Portugal with guests and visiting everything from the big cities to tiny little forgotten villages in the distant countyrisde. After 8 years of this, and with the arrival of my two boys, life changed a bit and I switched up from guiding trips to planning them. From 2013 until today, 12 years now, I've been working as a travel agent creating custom trips for clients from all over the world.
I think those first 8 years as a guide were really important because, while I still go on "familiarization” trips all the time now to make sure my info is up-to-date, there's nothing like days on the road to remind you of what travelers will be doing and the things that will really help them have a better trip.
I love helping people create their plans and then really perfect them, getting into the little details and logistical questions - what a hotel is really like, where to stop for a meal during a road trip, a great hidden viewpoint, a little town worth a quick visit, what neighborhood to stay in, and even boring (but important!) things like "where to park the car”. After so long, I like to think that I really understand this for Portugal, both as a guide/traveler and as a trip planner!
Read more
These days I spend most of my time in Lisbon, together with my family, but we use weekends to get out of the city and visit favorite places and find new ones! Some of my favorite weekend trips are to the rolling hills of the Alentejo, long drives through unvisited parts of the Douro Valley, and, of course, our favorite Algarve beaches.
I'm Portuguese so of course I think this, but Portugal really is a special place. Since 2023 we've also become really popular as a tourism destination, which I think is in part because of how we approach time. People appreciate that we do long lunches, save time for a leisurely break for a glass of wine, and stop to just chat in a beautiful square. Here, the experience is as important as the checklist! And I think visitors also appreciate the way that you can connect with people here; take a stroll through a vineyard with a local winemaker, stop to try cheese at a real working farm run by the owners themselves, or chat with an artist working in their atelier. Or just have a chat about life with your bartender!
These are the types of things I especially love helping travelers plan - moments to savor the Portuguese lifestyle and connect with the country and people around you in an authentic and natural way.
So if you're coming to my country, it'd be my pleasure to help you plan a great trip! Até logo - see you soon!”
Why plan with Nuno
Spend 60 minutes tapping into Nuno's hyperlocal expertise to plan a better trip.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
Consultations cost $150 USD.
-
Consultations are held over Google Meet. Once you’ve scheduled your call, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing the link for your video call. On the scheduled day and time, just click that link to join.
-
Each consultation is different, but here are some common things that our experts typically help with:
Itinerary planning
Transportation, driving routes, and tips for how to get around
Practical travel information; culture, safety, weather, language, money/tipping, etc.
Suggested hotels/accommodations and advice on where to base yourself
Local recommendations for restaurants, activities, and unique experiences
Advice on reputable tour guides, tour operators, and excursions
Pro tips on how to best visit popular sights and attractions
Ways to avoid overcrowded destinations and tourist traps
Insider ideas on off the beaten path places, authentic experiences, and ways to connect with locals
-
What you can get done in an hour depends on your goals for the consultation and how organized you are coming into it.
In most cases, an hour is ample time to create a solid itinerary, answer your major travel questions, get practical advice on how to travel in your destination, and discuss lots of great local tips and recommendations.
To ensure that the hour is used efficiently, when you schedule your call, our pre-consultation questionnaire will ask you what your primary goals for the consultation are. Prior to the call, your Local Expert will review your questionnaire and prepare detailed information addressing those goals.
They’ll come into the call ready to share specific advice, recommendations, itinerary ideas/revisions, and useful links and resources for you to review together.
-
Yes! Each consultation is guided by a comprehensive pre-consultation questionnaire that you fill out immediately upon booking.
We’ll ask you a series of 30+ detailed questions that really dig into you, your trip, your interests and travel style, and what you want to discuss with your Local Expert.
The questionnaire will cover things like: the dynamics of your group, the things you enjoy while traveling, your budget, how early you want to start your day and how late you want to end it, whether you want to hit the highlights or roam the back streets, and even what types of restaurants you want to eat at.
Your Local Expert will focus only on your interests and travel style.
-
Our Local Experts are seasoned travel professionals who have spent decades working in their countries/regions. While their personal interests may be different from yours, they’ve worked with thousands of travelers and have recommendations and advice for every type of individual.
They know their destinations in-depth and can help plan a trip for every traveler and taste.
-
No. Our service is geared toward independent, do-it-yourself travelers who intend to make bookings on their own.
Our goal is not to plan your trip for you, but rather to help you plan a better trip independently. To that end, our Local Experts will give you all of the information that you need to confidently put your trip together yourself.
When Local Experts recommend things like restaurants, hotels, excursions/activities, tours, drivers, etc., they’ll provide you with contact details and links so that you can make the final arrangements on your own.
-
Almost every Go Ask A Local expert has at least 10 years of professional travel experience as a guide or trip planner in their country/region.
We work with a vetted team of seasoned professionals who know their destinations inside and out.
Unlike other companies, when you book a call, you’ll always be connected directly with your chosen Local Expert. We never pass anyone on to a junior sales associate or some anonymous back office team. With us, what you see is what you get.
Ready to plan with Nuno?
Here’s how to schedule your consultation:
