Alvor - Jewel of the Algarve

Advantages: Good amenities, good size rooms, good staff, split site
Disadvantages: Site split by road, distance from beach

...the Algarve - the chicken in peri-peri (or piri-piri) sauce is FANTASTIC! And the peri-peri chicken and fish (especially sardines) that is served in Alvor is even better. The range of trips available in the region is good and I would recommend the water park/animal park combination of Zoo Marine - very good value. Make sure you time you visit around the dolphin/sealion/parrot shows. There are a number of trips around the coast which are all reasonable value - they tend to all be fairly similar - 1-2hr cruise, short stop to view caves and have a swim, lunch and then head back. Take a look in Alvor for the full range of trips, the reps tend to have a very limited range available. There are also some great trips up to the mountains and even ones going as far up as Madrid! Overall I love the region, the people, the food and the drink. I'm not...

philwalsham 01.02.2006 (16.02.2006) · Read review
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Review of Alvorferias Apartments, Alvor

Alvor Area.

Advantages: Clean with miles of good unspoilt beaches.
Disadvantages: Some areas are remote and building work can be a problem.

...We took our first family holiday to the Alvor area of Portugal this year, September 2002. We booked what is know as a price buster hoilday in which the holiday company listed three possible aparthotels for our stay, the choice being in their option when we arrived. We obviously checked all three in the broucher and decided which, would, be our preferences in order. I don't know if this was by design or just bad luck, but we ended up in our last prefered choice, which was the hotel in the middle of nowhere. The beaches and the nearest town was 25+ minuets walk away. However the aparthotel, Vitors, Praia de Vau, was very good, with clean spacious rooms and good pool area. Praia de Vau, is very small with a few beach bars/restaruants (try the sardines) and a few off beach cafe's with some larger hotels a few minutes away near a large well...

kunifer 16.09.2002 · Read review
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Review of Algarve (Portugal)

Value for money

Advantages: clean, supermarket
Disadvantages: location

...We spent 7 nights at the Alvorferias and overall the accommodation was good value for money and our stay was very pleasant. The rooms were clean, a good size and had a good kitchen area for those wanting to cook. When checking in i would ask for your air conditioning remote (deposit returned on check out). The pool was a good size, had plenty of sun beds and had a seperate pool for those with younger children. The staff were generally friendly. There was a supermarket on site which was well stocked. The hotel was about a 10 to 15 minute walk along the main road down hill to Alvor centre or a 4 Euro taxi ride which is reasonable which was good for the up hill journey back to the hotel. The only downside was the nearest beach was a 20 to 30 minute walk...

SpursBoo 21.06.2007 · Read review
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Review of Alvorferias Apartments, Alvor

OH GOD, and this is ME!

Advantages: n/a
Disadvantages: erm...

...?t care. Whichever hubby puts on the supermarket trolley, he is the fussy one regarding toothpaste. [21] Favourite Restaurant I like the Chinese restaurant in Alvor and Portimao. Excellent service and reasonable prices. [22] Favourite Flowers I?m terrible with flowers names and I love many but for now it?d have to be gladiolus (spelling?). [23] Favourite beverage I started to like beer when I went to England. I don?t drink much but really like it. I also like Portuguese white wine. [24] Favourite sport to watch I only watch football every four years or so?now you reminded me of Euro2004. My mood is going down the hill. Doh! [25] Preferred type of ice cream Ice cream gives me migraine but I still have it. I prefer Walls ice creams ? any will do, thanks. [26] Favourite Sesame Street Character My nickname was...

lazuli77 27.09.2004 · Read review
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Review of All About Me

Makes your eyes water

Advantages: Cheap duty free
Disadvantages: not very clean

...I recently travelled to Alvor in the Algarve and had the doubtful pleasure of going through Faro Airport. Judging by my impression of Faro airport, I'm glad I was staying in another town! My breath was really taken away just five minutes after we landed. The toilets had a distinct aroma of p*** They looked clean but the strong smell was enough to make your eyes water. Anyway, enough of that! Faro really comes into it's own when you go back for your return flight. The toilets had a distinct aroma of Zoflora, or some equally strong floral disinfectant, which had clearly been used to cover up the other aromas. I found them by using my sense of smell as the signs in the airport were very confusing. The coach pulled up at one end of the departure lounges and we had to walk a hundred yards to get a luggage trolley. The first...

janharper 17.11.2003 · Read review
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Review of Faro (Portugal)

Mega Service From Megatur

Advantages: Efficient, Polite, Clean, Cheap,
Disadvantages: Only In Portugal

...journeys. They were also fully equipped with seatbelts for all passengers, something which is sometimes missing on foreign buses/coaches. For both transfers (each way) the driver's were early and waiting for us as we arrived on time. They also left the vehicle each time new passengers boarded to check their details and take their luggage and help them on board should they need assistance. What Megatur Have To Say The Megatur website states the following: "MEGATUR is a fully licensed Travel Agency and Transport Company, located in the ALGARVE providing a rapid and reliable airport transfer service, from Faro airport to all resorts such as Montegordo, Cabanas, Tavira, Faro, Quarteira, Vilamoura, Açoteias, Balaia, Albufeira, Praia da Galé, Armação de Pêra, Carvoeiro, Ferragudo, Praia da Rocha, Portimão, Alvor, Lagos, Praia da Luz...

carysb 12.05.2008 · Read review
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Review of Megatur Airport Transfers

Lefkas Rub shoulders with the rich and famous

Advantages: Hot warms seas friendly local people
Disadvantages: mopeds traffic pollution from vehicles

.... The cost of the trip puts it within the range of many people, even during high season. We paid £500 for two poeple for one week in a studio. Personally, I prefer somewhere a little bit more sedate and peaceful.Give me the beaches of Alvor in the Algarve, out of season, so I don't have to share them!...

janharper 13.08.2006 · Read review
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Review of Halkidiki (Greece)

Get out of the Resort and see the real Portugal

Advantages: A lovely part of Portugal
Disadvantages: None

...visiting the new marina in Albufeira itself, this was a disappointment after the Posh one on our first day, it had apartment complexes built all around it in blue,orange.red,yellow and green they looked so ugly to be quite honest it reminded me of Lego bricks and it completely spoilt the natural area all around it. Who ever designed that wants shooting. After visiting resorts such as Armacao de Pera which had a stunning beach by the way and Rocha which was full of German tourists we ended up at Alvor. Now this was a really beautiful resort with a beach that just went on for ever, we parked up by the sand dunes and walked for a while along the beach and I have to say I have never seen a beach so clean, it was so quiet and an experience I shall never forget. In the actual town there were the normal touristy shops but making our way into...

rosiesmum 01.06.2008 · Read review
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Review of Algarve (Portugal)

The Western Algarve - the Jewel in the Crown

Advantages: Cheap flights, lovely climate, beautiful beaches, superb golf, good food, lovely people
Disadvantages: I really can't think of any!

...promenade, or avienida, is a must for visitors, with a huge selection of freshly caught fish of all shapes and sizes. The upper floor of this market houses an abundance of fresh fruit and vegetables and on the top there is a restaurant and wonderful views across the marinas and out across the miles of beaches which are Meia Praia and on towards Alvor and Portimao and beyond. The town is bustling through its traffic-free streets and picturesque squares where happy holiday makers stroll or sip coffee at the many open air eating places. In the evenings the streets are alive with happy diners enjoying the local fare. As well as being an important naval centre in the 15C through the pioneering discoveries of Henry the Navigator, Lagos also boasts the first slave market in Europe which today houses art exhibitions and craft shows. What more...

minervad 15.08.2005 · Read review
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Review of Algarve (Portugal)

  MOOSES GUIDE TO THE ALGARVE

Advantages: Loads to do/see, reasonably priced, great for seafood lovers
Disadvantages: Many places will rip you off, bull fighting

...is just so damn cold with the Algarve lying on the Atlantic! It takes nerves of steel to venture into the water but after total submersion it really isn’t that bad and the water is actually quite refreshing, if a tad cold! I visited 3 beaches whilst in the Algarve; Olhos d’agua, Praia da Rocha and Alvor. Whilst Olhos and Praia were very nice and sandy, they were a little overcrowded (unless you walked along the shore for a few minutes) and you also needed to walk down some (steep) cliffs to get to them (not really suitable for the elderly, disable or for people with young children). But Alvor beach was superb, right next to a car park, golden sand and also not too commercial with only a few beach side cafes. The water was also calmer and the beach not too crowded either, definitely the best of the three that I visited...

moose 31.07.2002 (01.08.2002) · Read review
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Review of Algarve (Portugal)