We spent 7 weeks in Portugal last winter (2024), with 4 weeks in Porto (loved it, maybe my favorite city, but sadly no pickleball to be found.

Lisbon has it. A fellow pickler moved there a few years ago and was quite excited to have found it. She was an advanced player at the time of her departure, and may not have taken the job without it!

Regarding Furnishedfinder, as you are working with and paying the property owner directly, do you have any concerns regarding scams, last minute cancellations etc?

As one should, but I take measures like verifying ownership of the property via public records and google the name and address extensively. The properties are often also listed on VRBO, etc, and they will give you the listing number so that you can check their reviews. Am more concerned about going overseas and relying on something other than VRBO, which should bail you out if something isn't kosher, though that's not to say that scams don't happen there. It's just that you are covered if you go through them.

If you have any rentals you liked in Portugal, or elsewhere frankly, please shoot me an email with the listing numbers. It would be comforting to have a "personal" review, as much as a random person on the internet can be "personal." ;-)

Since we are moving into our vacation home and selling our primary, we should be able to travel about 8 months out of the year. Hope we are not stoned for being Americans. Timing not great.

IP