WHAT TO BRING

You'll not want to have brought very much along with you to Portugal if you came by plane. The major determinant of your packing should be to leave plenty of room for the things you'll bring back with you. You can always buy additional suitcases when you fill out the ones you brought, but the cost for being overweight on a plane, though not always charged, is very, very high, especially if you must fly back all the way across the Atlantic.

Try, if you can, to pack all you need in one suitcase, and bring along another empty or near‑empty just for bought articles.

TOILET ARTICLES

Only the essential items ‑ shaving equipment, hairbrush and comb, toothbrush, etc. Even these can be bought in Portugal, but you might want them on the plane. Therefore, pack them in your carry‑on. You can purchase things like cosmetics, soap, etc. in duty‑free shops or in Portugal upon arrival. Hotels with lower ratings do not always supply soap, so you might want to either bring your own or purchase a bar quickly upon arrival if you are traveling on a low budget.

If you can use it, non‑electrical shaving gear is best, or else a self‑generating model, since electricity is problematic in Portugal in a number of uninteresting and annoying ways.

You may have been advised to bring along toilet paper. This is absurd. You can purchase soft quality tissue in any city or town, and the hotels in the middle and high categories have the good quality.

CLOTHING

What you'll want to bring depends also on the area in which you'll be spending your time. American informality is American informality and brands you right away, not just as American, but as a certain type. Better to follow the Portuguese pattern, and more fun, to wear a jacket at all times in the cities, and a tie for dinner. In some hotels it's required that men dress properly for dinner, and in the casinos you must wear a jacket and tie, so bring along the appropriate garments.

It goes without saying that unless you're prepared to spend quite a lot on laundry, you should stick to wash and wear items. You can get along with very little if you just wash it each night and hang it in the hotel bathroom.

Keep in mind that walking is very, very tricky in Portuguese cities because of the use of small, mosaic stones in the building of the sidewalks ‑ beautiful to look at but very slippery. When walking in a hilly city like Lisbon or Porto,. wear shoes that are accordingly practical. High heels will be difficult for men or women.

Skirts and blouses and even slacks are, of course, quite acceptable for women anywhere in Portugal. There's a cosmopolitanism and tolerance about the people that keeps them from giving those disapproving looks you may encounter in some other countries. Bikinis are acceptable along the Algarve, but they don't wear them much north of Peniche. Not that you'll be attacked or anything. You'll just be the barest one around.