Paul Blaney gets out and about in this Portuguese hotspot
The Algarve region of Portugal, stretching from Cape St Vincent to the Spanish border, offers the country’s sunniest year-round weather and 125 miles of its most sheltered beaches.
In recent years, the region has boosted its appeal with world-class golf courses, tennis, water sports and spa facilities, as well as a programme of art exhibitions, concerts and sporting events.
The Algarve is a welcoming destination for Brits. Flights to Faro operate from no fewer than 22 UK airports, English is widely spoken, there are no vaccination or visa worries, and Portugal operates on GMT so there’s no need to adjust your watch.
An ambitious five-year development plan includes nine new four-star hotels, 18 five-stars, and the six-star Conrad Hilton at Quinta do Lago (due to open in 2009).
Also in the pipeline are 20 spas and 18 golf courses. Last but not least, the Algarve is bidding to host Formula 1 motor racing at a new circuit to be completed this year near Portimão.
It’s no surprise, then, that the Algarve remains popular with holidaymakers. UK arrivals from January to November 2007 totalled 1.6 million, a 9% rise on the same period in 2006, with the average length of stay a healthy seven-and-a-half days.
For more details, check out visitalgarve.pt or visitportugal.com.
Where to stay
Families will love the new five-star Grande Real Santa Eulália Resort and Hotel Spa, set on a superb sandy beach in Albufeira.
Accommodation consists of 189 rooms and 155 resort suites. The resort has five bars, two restaurants, four heated outdoor pools, three indoor pools, a state-of-the-art spa and a nightclub on the beach. There is also an excellent kids’ club.
Couples hoping to escape the world need look no further than the Pousada de Tavira, Hotel Convento da Graca. This former 16th-century hilltop convent has its own cloister and a fine baroque façade.
Exquisitely restored, the Pousada has 27 standard rooms, three superior rooms, and six suites, including one with its own terrace and private garden. Facilities include two swimming pools, a gymnasium and a fine restaurant.
What to see and do
By day
The Algarve’s 32 world-class golf courses and mild, sunny climate make it a four-seasons favourite with British visitors. It’s perfect for both morning or afternoon rounds and international, amateur and professional competitions take place throughout the year.
The Algarve also abounds in natural parks rich in native flora and fauna. Visitors can tour the Ria Formosa Natural Park in the eastern Algarve by boat or on foot, and are sure to spot flamingoes and Portuguese water dogs with their distinctive webbed feet.
Elsewhere, the Serra de Monchique and Serra do Caldeirão mountains are perfect for horse riders, hikers and jeep safaris. They also help to preserve the Algarve’s mild climate.
Clear blue waters make the Algarve ideal for water sports, from windsurfing to diving and jet-skiing. Surfing is best in the southwest Algarve with its pristine beaches, surf schools and even a couple of big wave spots. The latest craze to hit the region is kitesurfing.
Kids will love the Karting Almancil track, just five minutes from Quinta do Lago and Vale do Lobo beaches, and top water parks such as the Aqua Show Park in Quarteira, home to Europe’s biggest ‘watercoaster’, and Aqualand, near the town of Alcantariha.
By night
After a hard day on the beach, where better to recharge the batteries than at one of the Algarve’s world-class spas?
Most resorts have a spa, and for the adventurous there are special centres for thalassotherapy and meditation. True health-seekers won’t want to miss a trip to the recently-renovated Caldas de Monchique in the hills of the Serra de Monchique, set amid lush vegetation and bubbling with thermal springs.
It’s hard to go wrong when eating out in the Algarve, whether visitors prefer to stay in their resort or visit charming villages such as Alvor and Alte to sample fresh-caught sardines or barbecued tuna. Seafood is excellent in the region, from cataplana and caldeirada (fish stews) to octopus, cockles, razor clams, oysters, squid and cuttlefish.
Tour operator tips
Mary Anne Popoff, managing director, EHS Travel
“Personally, I prefer the western end of the Algarve, around Lagos or Praia da Luz.
As well as plenty of sun-soaking, a typical day will be organised around a serious lunch at one of several beach bars. It’s worth a bit of a drive to find the more remote, less crowded bars. Among my favourites is the upmarket establishment run by the Parque de Floresta people at Cabanas Velhas, a short drive west of Burgau.
Eat in the shade while overlooking the spectacular sandy beach, choose your fish from the incredible, fresh selection, and enjoy it cooked to perfection with a good vinho branco or tinto. After coffee and a couple of Macieiras (Portuguese brandies), you’ll be in fine shape for a quick paddle in the bracing sea followed by a serious kip on the beach!
For something more rugged, try Zavial, a wonderful long beach (down a very, very long road) not far from Sagres. Here you eat under parasols and enjoy slightly less sophisticated, but nonetheless excellent, fresh fish and local seafood. The same post-luncheon routine comes highly recommended! “
Algarve photos from flickr
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Sample product
EHS Travel offers seven nights self-catering at Quinta do Lago from £399 per person (based on four sharing an apartment) in November 2008, including flights and car hire and a round of golf at the championship Quinta do Lago course.
Cosmos has seven nights’ half-board at the three-star Hotel Vasco da Gama in the resort of Monte Gordo priced at £319 per person twin-share, departing Gatwick on November 9.
Destination Portugal offers seven nights’ bed and breakfast in a standard twin/double room at the Hotel Monte de Casal, for £651 per person including British Airways flights from Gatwick and car hire, departing November 14.
Algarve fact file
Who flies there? The following airlines fly to Faro:
- EasyJet
- Ryanair
- Flyglobespan
- Jet2.com
- Monarch Airlines
- Bmibaby
- Aer Lingus
- Flybe
Flight time: London to Faro is two hours, 30 minutes
Currency: Euro
Weather: Summer temperatures can reach above 30C and winter temperatures hover between 10C and 15C.
