heading to Lisbon and the Algarve coast in like 6 weeks and im trying to figure out the drone situation. ive been reading different things on different sites and honestly its just confusing me more. some say you need to register with ANAC, some say if your drone is under 250g you're fine, some say you still need an operator ID regardless of weight.

im flying a mavic mini 2 so its just under the 250g threshold but i dont want to just assume i can rock up and fly. anyone actually done this recently and knows whats current?

flew there last October. so Portugal follows EU drone regs which means even under 250g you technically need an operator ID registered with them, it's not expensive and doesn't take long. the ANAC website is a bit clunky but it works. Lisbon itself is pretty restricted because of the airport and TMA but the Algarve cliffs are incredible if you find the right open spots. just download the ANAC app or use drone assist, that helped me a lot on the ground

the 250g thing trips everyone up because people assume it means total freedom and it really doesnt in the EU anymore. honestly just get the operator ID sorted, its like 10 minutes of admin and then at least you're covered. i skipped it once in another EU country and a park ranger actually asked to see my registration and it was a whole awkward thing i didnt need