Two years ago, my wife and I bought a historic villa in Caminha, in the far north of Portugal…
It sits near the mouth of the Minho River that separates Portugal from Spain.
This is an idyllic vision of small-town Portugal. Its winding cobblestone alleys lead to medieval churches and towering stone walls that speak to millennia of history.
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We bought here for the lifestyle.
And it’s become a cornerstone of what I call my “boundless life.”
I’ve spent years crafting this life where I divide my year between my homes in Cabo San Lucas, Guadalajara, Portugal, and Ireland. Always enjoying perfect weather. Never again wishing away a dark, cold, and dreary winter.
Let me show you what that looks like, starting with Caminha.
When I first scouted Caminha in 2023, the town was completely off the radar of the foreign tourists, expats and second-home owners pouring into Portugal.
That was despite everything it offered: a charming historic center, lagoon and Atlantic beaches, excellent food and Spain just across the Minho River.
But now Caminha is being discovered.
Our 5,000-square-foot villa cost us €410,000. Today, another home on the same hillside—one I consider a step below ours—is listed for just under €1 million.
And our villa is creating opportunities I hadn’t counted on. I’m close to arranging a month-long swap for a waterfront home on Vancouver Island in September 2027, with another possible swap on Sweden’s coast next spring.
I also own a condo on Portugal’s Silver Coast, north of Lisbon.
My home here is right on the beach…just a minute's stroll from the sand. From my terrace I can look out across the Atlantic. From my living room I can hear the waves rolling onto the shore and feel the refreshing sea air drifting in.
My days here typically settle into an easy rhythm. Long walks on the beach. Golf on oceanfront courses. Fresh seafood lunches in the charming fishing villages nearby.
I bought this condo in 2020 for €300,000. An apartment identical to mine was recently on the market listed for €525,000. That’s €225,000 more.
My Caminha villa and my Silver Coast condo are two of my summer and spring bases. I also spend time every summer at home in Ireland. Then when winter rolls around, I cross the Atlantic and spend time at my bases in the Americas, including my condo in Cabo San Lucas….
My Cabo condo is in the elite Copala community in Quivira. I secured it in 2015 through an exclusive, off-market Real Estate Trend Alert (RETA) deal when the RETA price was just $336,156. By May 2025, the same type of condos were listing for $729,000 (uplifts of $392,844 from the original RETA price).
And when I’m not there? I can rent it for $3,000 a month.
The lifestyle here energizes me. It recharges my batteries.
I take long morning walks on the beach, where I can watch whales breaching steps from the shore. I hike in rust-colored desert hills dotted with towering cardón cacti. I golf with buddies on world-class ocean-view courses, the sound of Pacific waves crashing in the background.
Then spring rolls around in the Northern Hemisphere, and the cycle starts again…
Each home gives me something different. My wife and I love to spend time in Caminha. On the Silver Coast, I have the Atlantic at my door. And Cabo gives me energizing sunshine throughout the winter.
Owning these homes gives me the freedom to arrange my life just how I like it. And that’s priceless.
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