When my husband Çağdaş and I decided to move to Portugal, we already knew that we didn’t want to live in a big city. I’m originally from Istanbul, so I know very well what big-city life is like. You have more restaurants, more shops, more events and basically more options for everything. But you also have the crowds, the traffic and the noise.
We had already moved away from that kind of life once before. Before Portugal, we lived in Bodrum and I think that’s where we really understood that a smaller and calmer place suited us better. So when it was time to decide where we wanted to live in Portugal, we started looking at Setúbal.
We wanted to be close to the ocean. We wanted a smaller city. We didn’t want somewhere too crowded and we wanted a place where everyday life could be simple. Setúbal seemed to give us all of that. So we decided to live here.
So, what is everyday life like in Setúbal?
One of the things I like most about Setúbal is that it’s compact. For most of our daily life, we can walk. We have supermarkets, cafés, places to exercise, restaurants and a large shopping centre. For the things we need regularly, we don’t really feel like we’re missing much.
A normal day for us is actually quite simple. We usually start the day with coffee. Sometimes I take my computer and work from a café. I take Şila, our dog, for a walk. Some days I go to yoga. We meet friends, have coffee together and sometimes go out for dinner in the evening. We also have places we go to all the time.
There is a café we visit regularly, for example. After a while, you start recognising people and people start recognising you. I like that feeling. Especially when you’ve moved to a new country, I think having these small routines helps you feel more settled. And because everything is close, socialising is quite easy for us too. Meeting a friend doesn’t mean spending an hour in traffic or making a big plan. We can simply walk somewhere, have a coffee or dinner and walk home. For us, this is a big advantage.
But there are things we miss about bigger cities
Of course, Setúbal has its disadvantages too. The biggest one for me is probably the number of options. There aren’t as many restaurants as you would find in Lisbon or in another big city. Sometimes we want to try somewhere different and realise that our choices are quite limited.
The same is true for shopping. We have a large shopping centre and we can find most of the things we need, but there aren’t as many stores or brands here. There are also fewer events and, in general, fewer things happening. Setúbal has an older population, although there are younger people living here as well. So I don’t think I would recommend Setúbal to someone who wants to have new events, restaurants, nightlife and lots of different things to do around them all the time. But that’s also part of choosing a smaller city.
If you want everything a big city offers, you also have to accept the traffic, crowds and faster pace that come with it. If you want somewhere calmer, naturally you’re going to have fewer options. For us, the second option works better.
We still spend a lot of time in Lisbon
Living in Setúbal doesn’t mean we’ve completely left big-city life behind. We normally go to Lisbon around twice a week, mostly for work, making Lisbon still a regular part of our life. If we want more shopping options, a particular restaurant, an event or simply want to spend some time in the city, we can go. Then we come back to Setúbal. I actually like having that choice. We can enjoy Lisbon without needing to live there every day.
Transportation is also quite easy for us. There are bus and train connections and we can drive when we want to. Of course, if someone needs to commute to Lisbon every day or needs to go to the airport very often, they should think about transportation and travel time before deciding where to live. Our situation is different because we don’t need to make that journey every day. For our lifestyle, it works.
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Being close to the ocean was important to us
Another big reason we chose Setúbal was the location. We wanted to live close to the sea. Setúbal gives us that, but it also gives us access to beautiful beaches and coves nearby. We like being able to walk, spend time outside and be close to nature without having to organise an entire trip to do it. This was something we enjoyed in our life in Turkey too, so when we moved to Portugal, we didn’t want to give it up. We weren’t looking for the biggest city. We were looking for a place that felt more like the life we wanted to continue living.
Would I choose Setúbal again?
Yes.
But I would still say that choosing where to live in Portugal is very personal. I don’t think someone should choose Lisbon just because it’s the capital, or Setúbal just because someone else says it’s quieter. You first need to think about how you actually live. If having many restaurants, shops, events and nightlife around you is important, a bigger city will probably make more sense. If you don’t need those things every day and prefer somewhere smaller, calmer and easier to get around, then a place like Setúbal may suit you better.
For us, the three things I like most are very simple:
I can walk almost everywhere.
It’s calm.
And it’s compact.
Yes, sometimes I wish we had more restaurants. Sometimes I wish there were more shops and more choices. But when I compare those things with what we get in return, I’m still happy with our decision. We had already experienced big-city life. We knew what it offered, but we also knew what we didn’t want anymore. Setúbal isn’t a smaller version of Lisbon, and we don’t expect it to be. It’s simply a different kind of life. And right now, it’s the kind of life that works for us.
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Read more about Portugal here in Dispatches‘ archives.
This is Ipek’s debut post.
Ipek Ulukan is a Turkish content creator and writer living in Setúbal, Portugal, with her husband, Çağdaş. Together, they created Kampastik, documenting their life and travels in Portugal. İpek also works as a visa and relocation consultant, helping people navigate their move to Portugal. She is also a singer and loves travelling and discovering new places.
