Summer has hardly begun or festivals follow up each other at high speed. You will not be bored and have plenty to choose from during summer 2019, to make your Algarve Holiday experience even more unique.
Algarve Housing made a top 10 of festivals in the Algarve for YOU!
When you are planning a holiday to Portugal, the first thing that strikes you is the tiring task of packing. If you have older kids with you they can manage their own packing. With toddlers and infants, there arises a confusion of what is important to carry and what is not.
There are a lot of things to pack apart from clothes which can get really hectic. You also have to keep in mind not to burden yourself or anybody else who is travelling with you to carry extra luggage. While on holiday in Portugal it is obvious you will carry with you souvenirs while coming back home. Hence the best tip is to travel light. For example, there is no need to carry 2 flip flops or 5 pairs of tees. I have listed below 5 important and most necessary items needed to pack for your holiday to the Algarve.
There is plenty of reasons to visit the Algarve all year round, every season has its pros and cons. It might feel a little early to start thinking about your winter holidays, but there are some very obvious, and some less obvious reasons why spending your winter in the Algarve is a very good idea indeed.
Algarve Housing has many nice properties for rent, suitable for the winter, and negotiate adorable prices for long stays!
Why would you spent the winter in the Algarve?
It might be that you wish for a short break to recharge your batteries this spring. Or maybe you’re planning for your family summer holiday in Portugal? Or you might want to surprise your lover on a romantic trip to the Algarve. Whichever the case, here are ten reasons why the Algarve should be your number one choice. Algarve Housing likes to share with you:
Located in the centre of the Algarve, on a beautiful coastline, at only about 40km from the nearest airport of Faro. Albufeira has become the hub of tourism from where you can easily explore the rest of the Algarve. Albufeira offers all you could wish for: from the most amazing beaches, to an endless choice of activities in and around Albufeira. Going through a wide range of restaurants in the charismatic old town Albufeira, and the possibility to shop till you drop.
This is a question we very often get, and I do understand why. Weeks, if not months, you are looking forward to your holiday to the Algarve, and finally you arrive at Faro airport, but the villa you have booked is not ready yet! Or you are with a large group, the whole family from grandparents to baby’s, and you arrive 9am at the airport and the villa is not ready till late in the afternoon! WHAT A BUMMER!!! It is hot, sweaty weather in the Algarve, and the baby is crying, and need changing, granddad really need his afternoon nap!!!
What to do???
Portugal is a catholic country (above 80% of the population is catholic). The Holy week (or, as the Portuguese call it: Semana Santa is celebrated with just devotion and has a predominantly religious character. Although it is less intensive than in Spain, you will still find traditional festivities in the Algarve that are fascinating to attend.
It all starts forty days before Easter, when the period of soberness and fasting is begun and many people abstain from eating meat. Easter Sunday 2019 is 21 April.
This year Carnival in the Algarve is in March. A traditional and colourful event not to be missed. Most towns has the traditional celebrations with colourful parades and samba music in the streets. The best and largest is in Loule, but smaller towns like Messines, Alte, Moncarapacho, they all celebrate carnival. It is hard to miss this nice yearly event in Portugal. This article of Algarve Housing, will tell you all about Carnival in the Algarve, the carnival programme, other things to do in March and a private paradise in the Algarve.
Bike and Hike in the Algarve
With the sun already warming the coast and the countryside of the Algarve, but the fresh breeze still making it enjoyable, it is the perfect weather to take up any of the walking or biking trails the Algarve has to offer.
There is no better way enjoy the wonderful and diverse natural environments at a slow and quiet pace and to sniff in Portuguese culture in the small villages you might pass through.
Do not worry: there are walking routes Algarve for all levels and wishes, from short and easy day-trips, to a full-on hiking experience of several weeks. You pick and choose your hike in the Algarve! Algarve Housing like to inform you with the main hike trails in the Algarve.
February is a bit like January, nature is unfolding with many nice flowers blooming, and spreading nice smells like the Mimosa, the poppies and the daisies. Weather can be nice, very nice, with lots of sunshine, BUT it can be stormy and rainy too. Be aware!
February is the perfect month if you like hiking and biking (watch our next blog!) and playing golf.
What else can you do in February in the Algarve?
Algarve Housing like to share a few events in February with YOU!
Spring break in PortugalIt’s March, and spring has already knocked on the Algarve’s door. Nature is waking up, and there is no better season and place than to also awaken after your own winter sleep. Algarve Housing would like to share with you some nice facts about spring in the Algarve. Why not have a spring break?
Happy New Year!
‘Algarve host 150 events in January’ I just read at the front page of the Algarve Resident…who think January is a dull and boring month in the Algarve, is completely wrong. Today it is 3 January, and up until today I had every day breakfast and lunch in the sun! Lovely temperatures, and plenty to do in January in the Algarve. Music, art, gastronomy, a variety of cultural events in January. Algarve Housing like to share with you a few events in the Algarve for this month!
Although Christmas celebration is somehow universal, you do get the small and bigger differences per country or culture. Christmas in Portugal, is mainly a time to spend with family. Although Christmas trees have been more popular since the 70’s, the main decoration still is the “presépio”, the nativity scenes, that each home will have, and that towns will display in larger sizes and sometimes even with real people and animals playing out the roles. The Portuguese love to go and visit them. You will witness plenty of light decoration during December in the cities too, and although palm trees with Christmas lights might not give you the same feeling, it does get you into a winter atmosphere. Plenty of Christmas trees though during Christmas in Portugal!
The last month of the year! December is a festive month, also in the Algarve. With Christmas coming up, there will be loads of Christmas markets and fairs in the Algarve. We will mention a few! Many other activities will take place in December, plus the weather is mild, beaches empty, the holiday rental prices are low! Ideal time for exploring the Algarve by bicycle or foot, or playing golf. Algarve Housing, can help you to find a nice villa for your holiday to the Algarve in December, or any other month!
Although most people visiting the Algarve for a holiday in Portugal, will land in Faro, not many think it worth a visit. That’s a big mistake, because Faro has it all.
Instead of having been taken over by resorts and tourism, the capital of the Algarve still has a real Portuguese flavor to it. The roughly 8000 students make for a lively nightlife, while the fact it’s a marine town gives it that laid back atmosphere you can only find near the sea. Faro can cater to anyone’s taste: from an attractive marina to a charming historical center; from long stretched sandy beaches close by to many pedestrian shopping streets packed with nice outdoor cafés.
And to top it all off, the Parque Natural da Ria Formosa, a protected wetland where Nature lovers can get their fair share. Algarve Housing likes to share with you more about Faro Portugal, the capital of the Algarve!
“What is the weather in the Algarve in January (or any other month) like?” is one of the many questions people often ask me. As you know, weather is unpredictable, that is a fact, but Algarve Housing likes to give you a guideline what you can expect of the weather in the Algarve in the four seasons of the year.
The summer is over, the first rain has arrived and we can finally feel a little sniff of autumn. And for those who cannot stand the heat of the summer, this is the best period to consider a holiday in Portugal, until sometime in spring.
October in the Algarve! Yeah, the crowds are gone, but not the nice weather! The sea is finally warmed up, and very nice to swim in! Villa rental prices are much lower, as well the flight tickets!
Weather? At this moment it is still around the 30 degrees during the day, and around 18 degrees in the evening, lovely! That can change of course to lower temperatures, but NOW it is very nice and the forecast for the next 10 days too…. Average there are 8 rainy days in October!
Quietly hidden amidst the rolling hills of the Algarve along the banks of the slow-flowing Arade river, with its peaceful atmosphere, Silves Algarve is one of the best locations in the Algarve to still experience authentic Portuguese culture. It has that contagious relaxed pace of life that will instantly throw you in a good holiday mood. You could easily spend your days just wandering through the cobbled streets, drinking a good Portuguese coffee in one of the many typical local cafés or sipping a wine from a terrace watching Portuguese life pass by.
Only in August, during the Medieval Festival, you are reminded of the glorious times when Silves was the capital of the Algarve, a major defensive stronghold and an important trading centre. During the ten days of the Feira Medieval, the rich and turbulant history of the city at the Moorish times is played by actors while the old city centre is transformed in the vibrant town it once used to be.
You can find all you need in Silves, three large supermarkets, a post-office, and enough to keep you busy if you like.
