so ive been planning this trip to portugal for a while now and obviously the mini 3 is coming with me. done a bit of research but honestly the rules seem to change constantly and i can never tell if what im reading is outdated or not. im registered in the UK with the CAA, no idea if that transfers over or if i need to do something on the EASA side before i go. anyone actually flown there recently? particularly around the algarve coast and maybe lisbon. also wondering about the national parks situation because i really want to get some footage in sintra but heard thats basically a no fly zone the whole area

sintra is tricky yeah, most of it is protected cultural landscape so you're technically supposed to have special permission. i tried to find out who to even contact about it and gave up after like three emails with no reply. flew there anyway early morning before the tourists showed up and nobody said anything but obviously that's at your own risk. the main thing for portugal is you need to register with ANAC, it's pretty quick online, took me maybe 20 mins. your UK cert doesn't just carry over anymore post brexit unfortunately

just got back from faro area two weeks ago actually. the coastal stuff is amazing but watch out near any of the beach areas in summer, they have seasonal restrictions and some beaches have lifeguard zones that are off limits. i just used the drone assist app and double checked with google maps to get a rough idea. didnt have any problems but i was flying mostly at dawn when nobody was around tbh