The Algarve - What's it like?
Discussion
I was in a James Villa only last week 
They do some really cheap rates last minute and the villa we had was very nice. It was clean, had everything we wanted, and we weren't bothered by reps (just one courtesy visit).
As for the Algarve, you may find yourself in a bit of a Brit resort, but there are plenty of nice areas close to hand.
They do some really cheap rates last minute and the villa we had was very nice. It was clean, had everything we wanted, and we weren't bothered by reps (just one courtesy visit).
As for the Algarve, you may find yourself in a bit of a Brit resort, but there are plenty of nice areas close to hand.
I'm off in two weeks 
I seem to recall someone from PH is there at the mo, so keep bumping it for a weather check.
I used to go all the time as a kid and it's
Someone on here used to live there for a while. Post what you're looking for, lively/quiet etc and I'm sure you'll get the answers.
I seem to recall someone from PH is there at the mo, so keep bumping it for a weather check. I used to go all the time as a kid and it's
Someone on here used to live there for a while. Post what you're looking for, lively/quiet etc and I'm sure you'll get the answers.Dunno what sort of place/price you are looking for but take a look at:
www.ownersdirect.co.uk
I can organise a discount on villas p1626 orp1608, but they may be a bit overkill for just two people.
www.ownersdirect.co.uk
I can organise a discount on villas p1626 orp1608, but they may be a bit overkill for just two people.
Portugal / Algarve is great, ..yes I play golf, so my opinion maybe just a tad bias!
I've stayed in Vilamoura and Alvor (further West along the coast). I normally book into the Pestana 4* hotels, mind you, their 4* is equivalent to UK 3*!! Reason I stay there is their golf deals. Vilamoura is very modern/commercialised, catering mainly for the golfing & retired fratenity!! Lots of restaurants & few bars along the marina. Menu choice bit disappointing, i.e. with chips, but there are a few decent local restaurants to be found. However, Vilamoura is a brillaint location if you play golf.
Not exactly kicking nightlife, there are plenty bars at one end of town (you have Albuferia if you really want a large one), and a casino if you fancy a flutter.
Stayed in Alvor (further west along coast) which I preferred. Smallish town, formerly a fishing port. Large selections of top quality restaurants and small friendly bars. The beach is stunning, and normally near empty! We had various day trips to other nearby towns eg. Lagos, Portimao etc which made the holiday much more interesting instead of lying on the beach/pool all day. Worth booking a safari type trip to the mountain (Matinique??), get to learn a bit about the local ecosystem, local industry (cork trees!) etc.., and an extremly bumpy ride in a 4x4!
I still have (somewhere) the local tour map/guide with a list of good restaurants/place to visit for Alvor & Vilamoura. Email me if your interested, and i'll post to you
rgds
Tom
>> Edited by TomT on Friday 27th May 16:03
>> Edited by TomT on Friday 27th May 16:04
I've stayed in Vilamoura and Alvor (further West along the coast). I normally book into the Pestana 4* hotels, mind you, their 4* is equivalent to UK 3*!! Reason I stay there is their golf deals. Vilamoura is very modern/commercialised, catering mainly for the golfing & retired fratenity!! Lots of restaurants & few bars along the marina. Menu choice bit disappointing, i.e. with chips, but there are a few decent local restaurants to be found. However, Vilamoura is a brillaint location if you play golf.
Not exactly kicking nightlife, there are plenty bars at one end of town (you have Albuferia if you really want a large one), and a casino if you fancy a flutter.
Stayed in Alvor (further west along coast) which I preferred. Smallish town, formerly a fishing port. Large selections of top quality restaurants and small friendly bars. The beach is stunning, and normally near empty! We had various day trips to other nearby towns eg. Lagos, Portimao etc which made the holiday much more interesting instead of lying on the beach/pool all day. Worth booking a safari type trip to the mountain (Matinique??), get to learn a bit about the local ecosystem, local industry (cork trees!) etc.., and an extremly bumpy ride in a 4x4!
I still have (somewhere) the local tour map/guide with a list of good restaurants/place to visit for Alvor & Vilamoura. Email me if your interested, and i'll post to you
rgds
Tom
>> Edited by TomT on Friday 27th May 16:03
>> Edited by TomT on Friday 27th May 16:04
I love Portugal and especially the Algarve.... its fantastic and just up my street as they say.
As with all southern med places, its a different pace of life and very much more relaxed than here. Sunny and hot in summer, but dont forget that Portugal has the Atlantic on one side, so it can be windy and the sea in places can be cold - not that its bad though.
Fantastic history and loverly little villages / towns which are fairly un-spoilt. However, if you dont want to see what us Northern Europeans do these places, stay away from Albufeira etc.... its not as bad as some places in Spain, but still can be bad.
Golf is BIG there, but thats not to say that you need to play it to enjoy the place. Get a hire car and head up to the mountains, especially on a hot day. Its cooler and there is plenty to see (and not that far!). Sounds so stereotypical, but do stop at the side of the road for the freshly pressed orange juice... and see how different it is to the crap we get in the supermarket!
Local specialities for food are fish and chicken. Fish is fantastic but get a good place to eat as it can be variable. Piri Piri Chicken is good though - varies on region so try it in different places. Oh, and if you get the chance go down the coast to the tip.... its quite a sight...!
Recommend it without a doubt.
As with all southern med places, its a different pace of life and very much more relaxed than here. Sunny and hot in summer, but dont forget that Portugal has the Atlantic on one side, so it can be windy and the sea in places can be cold - not that its bad though.
Fantastic history and loverly little villages / towns which are fairly un-spoilt. However, if you dont want to see what us Northern Europeans do these places, stay away from Albufeira etc.... its not as bad as some places in Spain, but still can be bad.
Golf is BIG there, but thats not to say that you need to play it to enjoy the place. Get a hire car and head up to the mountains, especially on a hot day. Its cooler and there is plenty to see (and not that far!). Sounds so stereotypical, but do stop at the side of the road for the freshly pressed orange juice... and see how different it is to the crap we get in the supermarket!
Local specialities for food are fish and chicken. Fish is fantastic but get a good place to eat as it can be variable. Piri Piri Chicken is good though - varies on region so try it in different places. Oh, and if you get the chance go down the coast to the tip.... its quite a sight...!
Recommend it without a doubt.
It seems it's going to be cheaper to put it all together individually rather than booking a package deal with james villas (makes sense really).
Having never booked a holiday this way before ie. piecemeal, is it much more of a hassle?
For example am I better booking the hire car before I set off, or just getting one at the airport?
S
Having never booked a holiday this way before ie. piecemeal, is it much more of a hassle?
For example am I better booking the hire car before I set off, or just getting one at the airport?
S
Thestag family normally stay up near the Faro end of the coast which is very nice. Quataria / Albuferia are a bit “full English breakfast” and wall to wall bars for my family holiday taste (sorry if that sounded snobby it wasn’t meant to be).
We have rented accommodation in Vale do Lobo which is dead boring if you don’t play golf but has a nice beach front pool and lovely beach with loads of attractive golf widows if you get my drift
Tavira / Cabanas (east of Faro) is a bit more Portuguese and we had a great time but nobody understood a word of our English. Nice relaxing holiday good food etc. All the beaches along here are nature (not naturist) reserve so are very unspoilt.
Loule (in-land) is nice and again very Portuguese has great markets and some nice shops but the markets are what it is all about, sea is nearby and so are the mountains if you like that sort of thang.
We also stayed inland from Vilamoura at a place called Bolouquieme (pronounced Bollockem)
that was nice and quiet and just at the foot of the mountains. Very relaxing.
Vilamoura has a nice marina (not morris) with bars / restaurants all around it. Some nice shops + a casino, only ever been their during the daytime.
Never stayed in Faro itself but shops are supposed to be fab and bars around harbour would definitely keep me occupied while mrs thestag shopped herself to death.
Mrs thestag hunts for accommodation through thames valley trader type mags plus The Lady which is pretty good and then books flights separately. We end up with villa accom at package rates for the 5 of us
We have rented accommodation in Vale do Lobo which is dead boring if you don’t play golf but has a nice beach front pool and lovely beach with loads of attractive golf widows if you get my drift
Tavira / Cabanas (east of Faro) is a bit more Portuguese and we had a great time but nobody understood a word of our English. Nice relaxing holiday good food etc. All the beaches along here are nature (not naturist) reserve so are very unspoilt.
Loule (in-land) is nice and again very Portuguese has great markets and some nice shops but the markets are what it is all about, sea is nearby and so are the mountains if you like that sort of thang.
We also stayed inland from Vilamoura at a place called Bolouquieme (pronounced Bollockem)
that was nice and quiet and just at the foot of the mountains. Very relaxing. Vilamoura has a nice marina (not morris) with bars / restaurants all around it. Some nice shops + a casino, only ever been their during the daytime.
Never stayed in Faro itself but shops are supposed to be fab and bars around harbour would definitely keep me occupied while mrs thestag shopped herself to death.
Mrs thestag hunts for accommodation through thames valley trader type mags plus The Lady which is pretty good and then books flights separately. We end up with villa accom at package rates
for the 5 of us anniesdad said:
It seems it's going to be cheaper to put it all together individually rather than booking a package deal with james villas (makes sense really).
Having never booked a holiday this way before ie. piecemeal, is it much more of a hassle?
For example am I better booking the hire car before I set off, or just getting one at the airport?
S
I've done the lot through squeezy jet and squeezy hotels.... I'll let you know when I get back. Seemed easy enough at the time and saved a packet over exactly the same hotel in the brochure.
Only thing I have to do is organize a taxi at the airport, which I doubt will be much of a hardship and TBH, probably easier than a hotel shuttle bus.
Oh and used James villas twice before and they are actually very good. Neat, tidy and to their description. Would use them again, which is a pretty good recommendation in my book!
Oh, and beware of Monarch - if you are anything above 5' 8" then be prepared for a temporary amputation of the legs.... at 6' 5" for nearly 3 hours I was in agony.... not nice - but VERY cheap.
Oh, and beware of Monarch - if you are anything above 5' 8" then be prepared for a temporary amputation of the legs.... at 6' 5" for nearly 3 hours I was in agony.... not nice - but VERY cheap.
anniesdad said:
It seems it's going to be cheaper to put it all together individually rather than booking a package deal with james villas (makes sense really).
Having never booked a holiday this way before ie. piecemeal, is it much more of a hassle?
For example am I better booking the hire car before I set off, or just getting one at the airport?
S
I normally book the car at the same time as booking the flight on the website for either Jet2.com or Monarch. They have some arrangement with rental car companies at Faro, so its cheaper than getting over there and then trying.
Squeezyjet fly into Faro.
Nice place, in some respects a bit like Spain was 10-15 years ago. Locals friendly, not expensive, nice beaches, good roads. Some bits a bit touristy, but can be avoided. Cash machines/shops take Switch/Maestro, etc.
Watch out for the speed-sensitive traffic lights in villages that go red if you are approaching too fast
Nice place, in some respects a bit like Spain was 10-15 years ago. Locals friendly, not expensive, nice beaches, good roads. Some bits a bit touristy, but can be avoided. Cash machines/shops take Switch/Maestro, etc.
Watch out for the speed-sensitive traffic lights in villages that go red if you are approaching too fast
BliarOut said:
Do I need to take many Euros or can I survive on credit card/ATM like I do in the US?
I know I'll need some for the taxi when I land, but will I be able to get cash easily from the ATM's over there?
Something I never resolved. The ATMs should work but wanted a six byte PIN, where mine is only four. Probably I was doing something wrong but I take a fair amount of Euros just in case. Its easy enough to convert more at a bank during the week, and all the big places take Visa. All the little bars and Cafes tend not to though.
s2art said:
Do I need to take many Euros or can I survive on credit card/ATM like I do in the US?
I know I'll need some for the taxi when I land, but will I be able to get cash easily from the ATM's over there?
Something I never resolved. The ATMs should work but wanted a six byte PIN, where mine is only four. Probably I was doing something wrong but I take a fair amount of Euros just in case. Its easy enough to convert more at a bank during the week, and all the big places take Visa. All the little bars and Cafes tend not to though.
CHeers, I'll have to pop to the bank before I go then 
I usually book my own tailored made holiday (flights, hotels & hire car). Main reason is flexibility with departure time to suit my needs, and invariably cheaper than the package deals (with better choice of accommodation). But since your booking so late, this won't be a cheap option for you.
Try kelkoo.co.uk for car hire quotes. The usual suspects eg.Hertz, Avis etc, will charge more as you have to pay for maintenance of the fancy office in /outside Faro airport. There are local companies who will provide the equivalent car (via kelkoo site) but CHEAPER, only difference is their "office" is represented by a plague plonked on the airport floor. You do your paperwork, and pick the car up in the carpark across the road. Sorted.
Try kelkoo.co.uk for car hire quotes. The usual suspects eg.Hertz, Avis etc, will charge more as you have to pay for maintenance of the fancy office in /outside Faro airport. There are local companies who will provide the equivalent car (via kelkoo site) but CHEAPER, only difference is their "office" is represented by a plague plonked on the airport floor. You do your paperwork, and pick the car up in the carpark across the road. Sorted.
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