Moving to the Algarve with my husband and 2 kids. We are moving from the UK. I am concerned about us settling in and getting on well with the locals.
While I speak a bit of Spanish,I don't know much Portuguese. Will our lack of language skills ruin our experience?
Please let me know your thoughts.
Sally
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While learning Portuguese will certainly help you settle in, it is not always essential in places like the Algarve, which have a booming tourist industry and large expat population. You should consider taking a basic language course before or soon after moving to the Algarve, it will certainly help you.
You can read more about adjusting to the Portuguese way of life on the Culture Shock in Portugal page.
One other thing, lots of people think they can get away with speaking Spanish because its similar to Portuguese, but in fact it isn't and it will most likely be quite offensive to locals.
Good luck
Shantalie