Algarve. Always Algarve
Europe's most famous secret, as the promotional brochures that sell the benefits of Algarve to the tourist, concentrate the most authentic essence of Portugal.
A land shaped by the winds of the Atlantic that sometimes, when they get angry, blow hard against its beaches and cliffs. A town whose three thousand years of history have been outlined by Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Goths, North Africans and even Mauritanians who did what we do now in the XXI century: pass through here.
We surrender to the pleasures that this region of southern Portugal gives us
We return to the Algarve once again —and it's never enough—because it drives us crazy its delicate contrast between the wild and the urban and its kilometer-long beaches in which to feel that intense pleasure of disconnecting from the world. Also the fact that life, here, takes place at another tempo: the one of the tides that open and close paths only accessible to those who know its secrets.
But also, to the Algarve, you come to eat with all the senses. to wander around the alleys of their towns, those who dedicate their lives to the sea and those who, inland, go unnoticed. it comes to fill each glass with southern-flavored wines, to see unique sunsets and dance with indomitable waves.
You come to the Algarve to enjoy, and that's what we'll do. In all these ways.
A BLUE AND GREEN WELCOME
in the Algarve we landed after crossing the Guadiana over the bridge that in turn separates two worlds: behind is Spain; hello Portugal. We begin to be aware that our universe is transformed as soon as we set foot in Vila Real de Santo Antonio and receives us the first good day. There we start to sip the Algarvian culture, starting with a bit of history that places us the town as a project of the Marquis of Pombal himself and fills our trunk with Portuguese pottery. Things start well.
Vila Real de Santo Antonio welcomes the neighboring country
Soon we will have to stop again, this time to declare eternal love for the south of Portugal. We have not been long, yes, but the crush has been immense. We are in Cacelha Velha with a handful of sailors' houses behind us and a world in blue and green before us: the views of the Ria Formosa, that begins precisely here, are the kind that take away the meaning. The display of beauty spreads throughout 60 kilometers of estuaries, dunes, islands, beaches, salt pans and marshes privileged for bird watching and declared a Natural Park.
Without hesitation we set out to conquer their domains: the target is called Praia do Barril and to reach it we must leave the car parked and get on a little train on which to cross the beautiful landscape of the estuary —you can also walk for 10 minutes, but the novelty overcomes us—. At the end of the journey, three surprises await us: a paradisiacal overtone beach where you can enjoy the sea without shame —we have come to play, right?—; a restaurant, the Museu do Atum, in which to be happy based on octopus grelhado and sardinhas; and a anchor graveyard most photogenic.
Tavira: blond sand, warm sea, blue sky
We don't lack either a walk through Tavira, the beautiful girl of the Algarve. And it is because the charm that exudes is spectacular. She touches getting lost for her cobblestone alleys to investigate her past in a tour that takes us up to her castle and storm its octagonal tower: from up there the views are sublime.
Houses with secret patios show the most authentic Tavira: that of hanging clothes and after-dinner conversations. She sounds fado from inside one of her churches —there are Gothic and Renaissance ones, why skimp—, and on the old Roman bridge a young man plays the accordion. someone recommend us stop at Vela 2 for a gastro tribute. There they only ask us if meat or fish. Ahem… fish, of course.
ROAD TO PARADISE
We move little by little towards the west leaving behind more and more beaches of those that mark. Fuseta, Culatra, Armona or those of the same Ilha de Tavira They tempt us with their fine golden sands. To fall or not to fall: that is the question.
They can also be accessed at little boat from Olhão, the Algarvian fishing port par excellence. The activity in its municipal market bustles every morning and stopping by, even if it is for a while to delight the view, is worth it. It is necessary to wander around its streets for a few hours to breathe those Arab origins embodied in the structure of its whitewashed houses. A past also reflected in the very name of the Algarve, which comes from the Arabic term Al Gharb. It means, precisely, west.
Losing yourself in its old town is a 'must' with which you will eagerly comply
In Lighthouse, capital of the region, also plays tour its historic center of medieval origin, admire the old wall and let your hair stand on end when you visit the Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Carmo and its Capela dos Ossos. Above our heads, constantly, the planes taking off or landing from its international airport: life, after all, goes on.
With a radiant sun in the sky - here it shines for 300 days a year - we reach Vilamoura, full of stylish golf courses, luxury residences, elegant avenues and a tall marina. Here, halfway between the eastern and western Algarvian claims, is the ideal place to drop anchor, although in our case we do it inland: in the Anantara Vilamoura Algarve one worships the benefits of life and oneself.
The Thai luxury firm recovered the old Tivoli Victoria to install its first hotel in Europe and, since then, architecture, design and art have learned to blend perfectly with the concept of well-being.
The careful attention paid deceives us, although they are its Balinese beds and pools —for adults, for families, even for babies— those that lead us to the most absolute calm and relaxation: please, leave us here for a lifetime. The views? To the acclaimed Victoria Golf Course, designed by golf legend Arnold Palmer. There, in the distance, the sea.
An oasis of peace in the Algarve
But inside the party continues: wicker, wood and 200 works of art scattered throughout the hotel —Pedro Calapez or João Louro are present— decorate the space while a most unique chef works hard to design à la carte experiences for his guests: the key is deep immersion in the truest culture of the region. Which is the most successful? Spice Spoon, a cooking class with chef Bruno Viegas that starts with a visit to the traditional Loulé market.
It is precisely he who ties his apron tight to add imagination, flavor and a multitude of local products to the menu of Anantara restaurants. In Ría you can dive with your taste buds into the gifts that the Ria Formosa offers, while in EMO it is the roots of the Algarve that are present.
For a snack at the wrong time, there are always the quiet pool bars and, in the Victoria Restaurant, in addition to candlelight evenings, the buffet breakfast, that in these times of strange normality is assisted: The waiters are in charge of placing on the plate the food that enters through the eyes.
At Purobeach, Anantara's sophisticated beach club, they also serve some Instagram-liked breakfasts. After replenishing energy for the day, we jump headfirst into one of their hammocks ready to tan our bodies without looking at the clock.
The sandbanks alternate with the cliffs at sea level and endow cities like Albufeira with magic
MORE BEACH, PLEASE
Sure, more beach. But let them be like Falesia, please: infinite, with calm waters, without crowds and with an extensive cliff in reddish colors give us the perfect postcard.
It is from this point on that the Algarvian coastline becomes capricious and decides to play with shapes, textures and colours. The sandbanks alternate with the cliffs at sea level and endow cities such as Albufeira, that this year has forgotten the crowds and bachelor parties to recover again, in part, the essence of what it once was.
Soaking is how you have to spend the visit to Praia da Dede, earthly paradise where they exist, but also to the neighbors Praia dos Arrifes or Praia de Ponta Pequena: Reaching its tiny strips of sand is sometimes a complicated but not impossible mission.
Praia da Marinha boasts of being one of the most beautiful in the Algarve —where the mythical Seven Hanging Valleys hiking route begins or ends, depending on how you see it—, and that of Três Irmãos, with its three rock formations impetuous rises in front of the shore, seduces us ipso facto. In Carvoeiro we lay down the towel between colorful fishing boats while its little houses, white with red and blue trim, finish off the painting. They tempt us too Paradise Beach wave of Joao Arens. Damn, how to choose?
On a route through the cliffs of the Algarve!
And the best thing is that the beauty festival has only just started and here one is served à la carte: a good kayak at 15 euros an hour allows us to do some exercise —hey, it's about time— and navigate to locations worthy of occupying the lists of the best beaches in the world. Praia da Ponta Grande or, better yet, the Benagil cave, take the cake. Of course: alone, precisely, we will not be.
Continuing west, more claims: Ponta da Piedade It is, always —always!—, an obligatory stop: it is necessary for the health of the soul to rediscover the views from its viewpoint. The secret, however, is to scrutinize every tiny hidden cove down there, between caves, cliffs and photogenic stone arches. There are wooden ladders or paths through bushes to reach Praia Don Camilo, Dona Ana or Praia Boneca. Oh, this is non-stop.
Surprises that a walk through Lagos gives us
ALGARVE WITHOUT SWIMSUIT
But it will be necessary to alternate, that of everything, even of the good, one gets tired. So to the hours in the sun and the swims in the Atlantic we are going to add, for example, a little bit of good food. The Algarve has up to seven Michelin stars in which to unleash sensory enjoyment, although we decided to plant ourselves in Lagos and stand in line at the door of A Forja, a small family-style restaurant in which the dishes of the day, always defenders of the most traditional Algarvian cuisine, leave no room for error.
Then we will have to get lost in the streets of the city, which is experiencing an unusual tranquility these days due to the lack of international tourism, and run into that type of Portuguese corners that we like so much: a good handful of squares, facades covered with tiles —the one of the Loja Obrigado store, in Praça Luís de Cambões, fascinates us— and dozens of beautiful doors will make the challenge very easy for us.
Gone are inland cities like silves, with its orange-roofed houses scattered along the Arade River and its castle; and others like Portimao. Upon reaching the top, that Cape Saint Vincent where surfers from all corners of the world come together to dance on its waves, we mark the place to return to enjoy one of the most beautiful sunsets in the Algarve.
The counterpoint puts it sagres, rural and cosmopolitan in equal parts, although still far away —now even more so— from mass tourism: in his mythical Camaleón bar we drink the occasional beer —Sagres, of course—, as the canons dictate. Whether to do it before or after launching into the Atlantic —yes, again—, we leave it to each one's taste.
Sagres or the secret that the Portuguese do not want you to know
It is there, after having covered 200 kilometers of coastline and while we once again feel the cold waters of the ocean in contact with our skin, when we repeat ourselves —it will not be the first time on this trip— that please, if the end of the world comes, catch us here.
So we can continue to make up for the true pleasures of life. And it turns out that in this corner, in the Algarve, that is a way of life.
The views from the Cabo de San Vicente lighthouse are impressive