We made this video before the recent Hurricane Ian devastation in Florida, we normally post videos within a week of making them, this one we held onto a little longer. Thanks for watching.

Incredible that Europe could be more economical than Florida, but is there a certain sense of enjoyment, freedom from airports and familiarity that some people might put an added non-financial value onto simply driving and staying in Florida ?

Why not Mexico?

What hotel/studio did you stay in Portugal?

When I saw the beginning of your video, I thought they should go to Portugal(one of the reasons was hurricane Ian).You are so right, the rental properties in Portugal are much cheaper than in Florida. We are planning to go to Algarve in Feb/March 2023 and have rented two bed-two baths apartment for 1500 Euros per month with sea view, close to Lagos- For three months, it would have been 1300 Euros. Who knows, maybe, we will run into you in Algarve and have a coffee together😊

Forgot to ask which places you have stayed or think if staying so I can do some research

and the euro is lower than the american dollar ….bargain…plus you get more for your buck in portugal than the U,S …

There is a possibility that we might head to algarve for 1-3 months to avoid Ontario 🇨🇦 winters. Doing lots of reading but having a hard time to decided where. Splitting up at least every 2-4 weeks so it would give us a good idea incase we move to make a move!

Will you still rent a car?
Who have you rented from before?

I am retired and live in the UK. Prior to the pandemic my wife and I stay in Malaysia from mid October to mid January (90 days no visa required). Airfare from London to Kuala Lumpur around £700 – £800 return. We return to the UK for 2 weeks then fly to Faro, Portugal for 90 days and return to the UK at the end of April. We are lucky enough to own an apartment in Melaka, Malaysia which we bought in 2004. However, accommodation, food, petrol and bus/train travel are very affordable. Our son owns a farmhouse in southern Algarve Portugal, so we are lucky enough to be able to stay there for free. The airfare from Manchester to Faro is very affordable.

Cruising…we have two cruises booked for January (17 days total). Looking for another to book in February.

Wifey and I braved Hurricane Ian in all its splendor while being on Anastasia Island (east of St. Augustine ) – a barrier island about a mile wide and 14 miles long (Of course, we were not right on the beach and we had plenty of liquid courage). Honestly, it was an adrenaline rush…but the wind gusts never went above 65 mph and surprisingly they were warm and humid.
We are planning to leave for Panama City, Panama by end-December and maybe stay until March. (Dry Season) There we normally rent a one bedroom ocean view suite (fully furnished w/king bed, WIFI, full kitchen and balcony) for about $2400 USD/month. The building has security, parking space, pool, gym and close to all restaurants. They do not require visas from US and Canadian citizens and you are allowed to stay up to 180 days. (It is always a good idea to let them know where you are staying though because Panama cares for its tourists). We realize that we are not your typical tourists BUT that is not something that we wanted to be. Note that I became a permanent resident of Panama under the 'pensionado' (retiree) visa and wifey is in the process of getting her own as we practice our Spanish language skills.

Hello Norm And Tina. we have been Here in Portugal for just over a week. will be here til spring. even with inflation the prices for food and drink is still considerably less than what we pay in Canada. We were here last winter as well. This year there is a lot more people visiting. We are in Armacao de pera. We own our own place here so ee fo not have the expense of accommodation, we own a car here as well. Air fare is our biggest expense . We flew from Vancouvrt- Toronto to Lisbon with no issues with flights and lineups through security , customs or lost luggage. In fact we arrived ahead of schedule in both Toronto and Lisbon Good luck with your Travel plans.

Boa Tarde Amigos, it’s been a while… (I’ve been busy). I think most of us knew what your destination of choice would be! Maybe this year we will be able to connect. I am looking at Feb through the end of April. I’ll reach out and let you know! I’ll happily pop down to the Algarve to share a day with you! I love Lagos & Sagres…. So maybe when you are there! Great comparison video… but I think, at the end of the day… there is no comparison! Cheers 🥂 😊

I live in Southern California, where it will be sunny, and beautiful all winter, so I will be staying here. Now if I lived in Toronto, unless I could afford a really nice Florida city like Boca Raton, I would go to Portugal. There is no way I’m staying in Toronto during the winter, as I’ve had enough of that nonsense. I think you made an excellent choice with Portugal.

Have you considered S.E. Asia? I too love the Algarve but I also spend a good deal of time in Malaysia. You get a 90-day visa and you can easily and legally extend it by leaving the country for a visit to Singapore/Thailand/Indonesia for a few days then coming back for another 90 days. But even if you didn’t want to do that one could easily spend 90 days in Malaysia then another few months in Indonesia or Thailand. Flights within the region are dirt cheap, often under $50 US. My last apartment in Malaysia had 3 bedrooms, a pool, gym, and was close to public transport and it was less than $400 US and that included utilities. Tip; avoid (Kuala Lumpur) KL as it’s the most expensive for everyday living (still much cheaper than N. America). Instead choose Penang or Kuching. Penang has a great vibe and is fairly small geographically, Kuching has a laid back feel and is super friendly. If you wanted to be near to KL choose Cyberjaya where apartments are plentiful, of incredible quality, and it has decent transport links to KL. Many Malaysians speak English and most signs are also in English. It is also very safe, according to the World Peace Index Malaysia ranks 18th in 2022, for comparison Norway is 17th and the Netherlands is 21st. As a huge bonus Malaysia is a top destination for building a channel. Vloggers usually pick up 10,000+ subscribers when then do Malaysia videos.

We have decided to go to Thailand for a couple of months this winter. For The cost of driving down to Portugal and even accommodation there, we can fly to Thailand and live cheaply and trek all around while we still have health and energy!

It's not really a plan for the winter per se, but my wife and I are headed to Lisbon and Porto for an 11 day trip in a bit more than two weeks. Because I booked those flights on TAP, I received quite a few promotional emails from them about their "winter sale". I honestly found it hard to believe, but it was true–as of last week, it was possible to book O'Hare to Lisbon to Funchal, Madeira for $375US *round trip* for quite a few date combinations from mid-January through mid-February 2023. I think that falls in the "insane value" category!

On top of that, I found a number of 4.0+ star rated apartment hotels available in Funchal for $50-60 per night during that time. However, as our youngest is graduating from Boston University in the spring, and our hotel there for just 5 nights is going to cost $1970, plus airfare and Boston-level restaurant bills, I knew my better half wouldn't go for that. I was not surprised that with the stronger USD vs CAD that US hotel rates are not looking very attractive to you, because we decided on heading to Portugal rather than flying to Denver for a big loop of the major parks. The quality of hotels we booked in Portugal for €110 per night with breakfast would cost $175-225 in Colorado this year!

In any case, I plan to raise a Licor Beirão in your honor when we get to Porto…but I probably won't buy the hat. 🤣

Check out Super Savvy Travelers on YouTube. Chris and Pete are Americans that renovate homes in Santa Domenica Taolo and Scalea, southern Italy. They have a nice community there in the old city. They have an air b&b (or two) that they have renovated. A very nice couple.

You may take a look at Silver Lakes Resort in Naples, FL. My aunt & uncle from Pennsylvania went there every January & February for years. There are dances and all kinds of events. People ride their golf carts around and visit. They have small rental houses if you don’t have an RV. Must book early.

Hi guys! We were in the Algarve in March and stayed in both Lagos and Tavira – great choices. This winter we are doing Feb and March in Puerto Vallarta and November in Barbados. I’m curious why you don’t seem to have considered going to the southern Spain since you have been to the Algarve three times now. Any reason(s) for not going to Spain? Thanks!

You are so right about lack,of property for rent in FL. Add a dog into the mix and it’s almost impossible. We found a condo for three weeks in January. Looking at South Carolina for three or four more weeks in February.

We’ve booked 2 months in the Villages in central Florida. I’m looking for plenty of opportunities to socialize with others so I think a large 55+ community is probably the best bet. I’d like to ask you whether there is much opportunity to socialize with others in southern Portugal or do travellers tend to keep to themselves? Enjoy your videos.

This year we spent six weeks in Portugal (four weeks in Albufeira) during our winter in Australia and really enjoyed it. We then had a month in Bali and a month in Koh Samui, Thailand. in November we’re going to Penang, Malaysia for a month to see what that’s like. We were supposed to be going to Florida for a couple of weeks in early November but will need to think of another place to go now. Maybe Mexico? It will be good seeing your travel videos again 😊

Guys, what is the name of the Algarve Hotel syndicate you use? Considering a first winter sojourn & want to play it safe in establishing a Algarve base for a month or two. Cheers!

This winter … hmmm… hopefully there will be trips to the northeast US to see the leaves turn, trips to the beaches along the Florida panhandle, and at least one ski trip to Colorado or Montana or maybe Whistler/Blackcomb! Being retired the biggest challenge is being home long enough to keep the house clean!

After a couple of years in Hilton head, we found the prices have doubled as you have. We have briefly looked at the Algrave but wonder if it’s too quiet? Also we love tennis and wonder if there places that offer tennis facilities. What area would you suggest in the Algarve. Lagos looks beautiful. It is any cooler there as compared to eastern areas.

Love the video and a great topic. Just a suggestion to expand on the subject of finding a place to vacation for the winter. I was wondering if you two would be interested in doing a video on websites and resources to search for long-term accommodation in Florida or Portugal? I think this would be of interest to a wide variety of people. Thanks for doing these videos they are awesome!