"A place where the sun shines and time stays still." Portugal by Markyreid

Portugal Travel Guide: 19,532 reviews and 55,010 photos

Time has passed Portugal by.

We stayed in Albuferia for a week of relaxing and sun bathing. Albuferia is located in the Algarve (southern part of Portugal) and is dominated by built up resorts and tourist, particularly British ones, most of which get extremely burnt! The beauty about this part of Portugal was that we could enjoy the comforts that resorts offer, but at the same time we were only a short drive from the traditional lifestyle of local people. On our first day we ventured into the surrounding hillsides and were stunned by the remoteness that we felt just an hour out of the resort area. The locals only spoke their national tongue and appeared to live a very different style of life that we are used to seeing. The photo opposite was taken in a small town of the N2 highway, i think it may have been Almodovar. It was common to see many of the locals being transported on vehicles that they had modified to carry either fresh goods or extra passengers. Obviously, they did not go very fast, but based on the pace of life we observed, this would matter very little.

Beautiful Beaches

Portimao beach

The algarve region is so popular with tourist because of its stunning beaches and sunny weather. There were endless opportunities to take photos of beautiful beach scenes. This beach was located, if my memory is correct, in the town of Portimao.

Local people

Local Legend

Initially, i felt the local people of the small towns were rude and disinterested in tourist. However, as time went by i think it was the fact that we went to some of the more remote towns that they were not used to seeing tourist at all and were probably taken back by it. When we visited places that were more likely to have had tourist there previously we found the locals to be very polite, friendly and helpful. They did not pressure us into spending money, but simply showed what they had on offer. If you do plan on visiting the more remote areas of Portugal then i suggest that you learn the Portugese language so that you can have a conversation with the locals in their native, and usually only, tongue.

Pros and Cons

Pros:sunny weather, great resorts, unspoilt local towns
Cons:not a lot of exciting things to do.
In a nutshell:great place to unwind and catch some sun.

Last visit to Portugal: Mar 2005
Intro Updated Apr 10, 2005
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Reviews (13)

Cataplana Restaurants (5)

I am pretty certain that this was the name of a restaurant we went to on the wharf in Faro. it is located on the very... more travel advice

Faro Church Things to Do (4)

This church is located near the coast, right next to the large public carpark. It cost a couple euro each to access the... more travel advice

Tourist Strip Cuisine in the Albuferia Restaurants (5)

We ate out in the local strip for a number of meals and had a mixed experience. The food was generally good and at a... more travel advice

Fresh Oranges Off The Beaten Path (1)

If you rent your own car while in Portugal then venturing into the remote parts becomes very easy. Along the smaller... more travel advice

Transportation (2)
See All Park outside the old towns

Hotels (1)
Fantastic Family Resort

Travelogues (2)

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Comments (2)

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easyoar May 1, 2006 at 4:14 AM

I've been to Portugal a few times, but still yet to see the Algarve - it looks very beautiful. Are you still living in Reading, or are you back in Aus now?
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Bwana_Brown May 21, 2005 at 1:03 PM

Mark, a beaut page on Portugal !! I'm glad to see that the two of you really got into it. It was especially nice to see the 'donkey man' once again! I had to laugh at your Piri-Piri restaurant tip - my favourite too! Excellent stuff here!