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Published: August 3rd 2015
The Algarve, Portugal’s southernmost province, occupies about one-fifth of the country’s area and has about half a million permanent inhabitants. Roughly 120 miles (200 km) of coastline boast an almost continuous string of golden sandy beaches, many sheltered by sandstone formations of varying shapes and colours. Its northern boundary is marked by hills, the tallest of which reaches 3000 ft (900m). Located on the tip of Europe with the Gulf Stream on the west, it is surprisingly warm in the winter. It’s where most vacationers head for warmth, relaxation and golf.
It has been inhabited for thousands of years, with many invaders and rulers, notably the Romans, Moors and Spaniards. All have left their mark, such as forts, protective walls and the vestiges of villas and numerous battles. In 1755 many towns were badly damaged by an earthquake, which was so powerful that it was felt as far away as Sweden. For several years it was the object of raids by pirates, but for the past 360 years the Algarve has been the peaceful and tranquil home of farmers and fishermen.
The administrative headquarters, largest city, and site of the international airport is Faro (approx. 65,000), about a quarter
of the way west of the Spanish border. In the centre of the coast is Albufeira, a chic resort especially popular with British visitors. Farther west is the second largest city, Portimao, a fishing port with a booming tourist centre at suburban Praia da Rocha. Farther west again is my favorite town, Lagos, north of which is the former Moorish capital of Silves, notable for its fort. At the western extremity is Sagres, which was known to sailors for centuries as “the end of the world, beyond which lie sea serpents and …. ”. Each of these places has a fascinating character, which will be highlighted in subsequent articles. You’ll find lots more info at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algarve .
During our five visits we found that the weather can vary considerably. Apparently the winter norm is six days of sunshine and one overcast or rainy day per week. That’s just what we experienced in 1986, but the winter of 1991-92 was the driest in memory, warm and sunny with only five days of rain in ten weeks. No complaints on our part there! At the opposite extreme, in 1996 and 2010 we had far too much rain, but at least we
didn’t have to shovel it!
The Algarve is one of the great winter bargain destinations of our time, particularly if you stay in a three or four star apartment hotel or condo (still relatively inexpensive) and make most of your own meals, as we did. Table wine costs about $1 a litre, and a bottle of really good wine is half the price we’re used to paying. You can buy juicy oranges fresh-picked off the trees for about $1 a dozen. If you’ve been spoiled by Tim Horton’s or Starbucks, you'll be happy to hear that Portugal is one place in Europe where they
do know how to make a good North American style coffee. Top quality local produce and fresh-caught fish are inexpensive, and always available. There are well-stocked supermarkets, and you’re bound to enjoy the wide variety of copper, pottery and ceramics with colours and designs specific to each town or village.
Further articles about individual destinations will follow.
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Rainyb
Lorraine Brecht
oooooo I loved those, in Spain too. I'm a pretty good bargainer so had fun with the venders LOL