travel news review


16 April '99
All phone numbers in Portugal will change from 1 November this year. The initial zero will be dropped, and all numbers will have nine digits All numbers connected with Portugal Telecom (the only operator until 1 January 2000) will start with a two, whether they are from Lisbon, Porto or any other city. A Lisbon number that is now: 01 7212000 will change to 21 7212000; Porto: 02 6198000 will be 22 6198000; Funchal (Madeira): 091 790200 will be 291 790200.

The numbers in the Algarve will start with 28 - the initial zero will be replaced by a two. All mobile phones start with 093, but they will change, dropping the three and the zero. For example, 0931 1234567 will change to 91 1234567 for Telecel; 0936 1234567 will be 96 1234567 for TMN; and 0933 1234567 will be 93 1234567 for Optimus. No emergency numbers will change. Clear?

9 March '99
While duty free shopping is officially scheduled to end in the member countries of the European Union (EU) on 1 July, 1999, many countries are hopeful duty-free shopping can be extended for another couple of years. Of the 15 member countries in the EU, Germany, France and Britain are the main campaigners for an extension for duty-free shopping. It is estimated that if duty-free shopping goes, more than 140,000 jobs would also go. When the end of duty-free sales in EU countries eventually does come into place, travellers to Europe will still be able to obtain duty free items, as the new restrictions will only apply to intra-EU travel. As an example, if you travel between Switzerland, which is not a member of the EU, and France, duty-free purchases will still be possible. Current member countries of the EU are Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

14 December '98
UNESCO has added another 30 sites located worldwide to its World Heritage List. Inclusion of a site on the World Heritage List means the site must be preserved for all humanity. In Europe, new sites include the rock art sites in the Coa Valley in Portugal, the routes of Santiago de Compostela in Spain and the town centre of Urbino in Italy.

28 July '98
A new tourist train is chugging the streets of the Portugese town of Povoa de Varzim, north of Porto. The train travels around Povoa de Varzim's main streets and waterfront areas with stops at the Casino, the town square and the tourist office. The train will operate year round, hopefully attracting more tourists to the area. A trip on the tourist train will set you back US$2.

22 July '98
The Canadian government has closed the immigration and visa services section of its embassy in Lisbon. Diplomatic services will still operate from the embassy, but immigration services will now be administered by the Canadian Embassy in Paris. The address of the Paris embassy is 34 av. Montaigne, 75008 Paris, telephone (33-1) 44 43 20 00.

6 May '98
The European Parliament recently endorsed Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal and Spain as the initial participants in the launch of a single European currency, the Euro. The Euro will come into the market on 1 January 1999. The United Kingdom, Denmark and Sweden have refused to join the monetary union, and Greece is ineligible as it has such a large budget deficit.

1 April '98
The US$1 billion Vasco de Gama Bridge across the River Targus in Portugal has recently opened. The 17km (10mi) bridge allows north and south-bound traffic to bypass most of Lisbon. Tolls operate on the bridge, one of the longest in Europe.