You notice it as you walk along the seafront promenade: fishermen mending nets in the harbour, sleek yachts nudging against the marina’s pontoons, the rhythmic crash of waves on the breakwater. It’s a scene that manages to be both postcard-perfect and entirely unselfconscious.

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Half an hour west of Lisbon, Cascais occupies a rare place in Portugal’s geography and imagination. It has long been the discreet summer haunt of aristocrats, diplomats and well-heeled Lisboetas, but in recent years the world has caught on. French retirees, London financiers, Brazilian creatives, Californian tech nomads – all are here, drawn by the climate, the Atlantic views, and a quality of life that can be summed up in a single word: ease.

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Real estate reflects the diversity of its audience. In the historic centre, cobbled lanes lead to pastel townhouses with wrought-iron balconies that peer over terracotta rooftops. Monte Estoril offers an older kind of elegance – Belle Époque villas with manicured gardens, shaded by jacarandas. For those seeking a more cinematic backdrop, the coastline around Guincho and the green slopes of Malveira da Serra deliver wind-swept drama and modernist villas perched above the surf. And then there is Quinta da Marinha – gated, groomed, and exclusive – with golf courses, riding trails, and villas that sell to a whisper network of buyers.

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Prices in the prime market now often run from €5,000 to €10,000 per square metre, with the upper reaches reserved for homes that appear more in architectural magazines than estate agents’ listings. Demand, even with a cooling in some European capitals, remains resilient; international buyers see Cascais not just as a holiday address, but as a hedge against volatility elsewhere.

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But what makes Cascais more than just a line in a portfolio is the daily life it affords. Morning coffee on a shaded terrace, the scent of the ocean carried up narrow streets. An unhurried lunch of grilled dourada and vinho verde in a beachside taverna. Afternoon golf in shirtsleeves in February, or a late-summer cycle along the coastal road to Guincho. Culture, too, plays its part – a string of small but engaging museums, music festivals under the stars, and Lisbon’s opera and galleries just a short drive away.

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The mechanics of buying here are refreshingly straightforward for foreigners, with a transparent legal framework and no shortage of English-speaking professionals to smooth the process. While Portugal’s Golden Visa rules are shifting, Cascais still holds its allure for those seeking a bolt-hole that comes with Schengen access. The challenge is often not deciding whether to buy, but choosing where within its boundaries to land.

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Cascais does not shout for attention; it simply waits for those attuned to its charms. It is, at heart, a place where the elegance of an earlier age meets the ease of modern living – a quietly glamorous enclave on the edge of the Atlantic, where you can live not just by the sea, but by your own tempo.

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