Algarve Villa Holidays: Spotlight on Lagos Part Two

Here on this blog we produce monthly articles to help you plan your Algarve Villa Holiday or just enjoy a few moments day-dreaming on a dreary winter day! Last month we reviewed holidays in Lagos Algarve - looking at Lagos town, the accommodation, the beaches, the marina, the coastline and the dolphins. This month we continue our exploration - and look at what there is to do here in terms of sports, shopping, restaurants and nightlife.

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The Sports

There are all sorts of sporting opportunities in Lagos from golf at the excellent courses of Parque de Floresta, Belavista and Palmares, to surfing including mountain biking, off-roading in buggies, boat and jet ski hire, water skiing, scuba diving, sailing, fishing and snorkelling, There is tennis and bowling, squash, swimming and of course, there’s always the gym. Horse riding is also available nearby at the Quinta do Paraiso, so whatever sport you’re into, you’re bound to find something to get the adrenalin pumping.

The Shops

Lagos’ fish market, in the centre of the town is second to none. A wonderful selection of fresh sea food is available and you simply wont buy fresher. Upstairs there’s a fruit and veg market and up another level is a terrace restaurant, so you can effectively make your food choices as you climb the stairs, to be seated and served when you reach the top. The top floor also gives you a great photo opportunity, as the view is lovely.

There are two supermarkets in town. The Mondelo and the Intermarche, both with a good selection of all your favourite foods but if you want English imported foods, these will be more expensive. There’s a photographic store so you can have your snaps developed or buy another memory stick (because you are going to need it). There’s a post office or “Correios” where you can buy stamps to send postcards home and there’s an Aladdin’s Cave called “O Coixote” which stocks local arts crafts, antiques, gifts, jewellery and lots more besides.

Other stores include accessory and jewellery stores, women's clothing boutiques,
unisex fashion boutiques, shoe shops, leather goods stores, gift shops, wineshops, a bakers, a Pastelaria e Gelataria' featuring yummy cakes, tarts, ice creams and regional specialities, a ceramics, pottery and household furnishings store, arts and crafts stores, furniture shops, antiques shops, fabrics and soft furnishings, in fact, everything you’d imagine from a fully functioning, self sufficient, sizable, holiday town

The Restaurants

As you might expect, there are good quality restaurants a plenty in Lagos, so if you decide to go out for a meal a few times, rather than cook for yourselves, you’ll have plenty of choice. Arguably the best Italian in town is Borsalino, reasonably priced a child friendly, the food is excellent. If your preference is for something a little more Portuguese and romantic then try Restaurante dos Artistas, priced in the mid range, this is ideal for those lovely romantic holiday meals. It has been said that they serve the best food in Lagos, by far.

If you’re feeling a little homesick and fancy a good old English breakfast or brunch, pop along to Oasis where they serve up a cracking full English. The staff are very friendly and the food is excellent. Lagos is very family oriented with many excellent restaurants happy to welcome younger children and cater for all tastes and budgets.
Many of the restaurants have tables spilling out into the streets for that typically Continental/Mediterranean dining experience.

The Nightlife

The nightlife in Lagos is a mixed bag, but in a good way. Whatever your musical tastes, there is something to suit. The Duna Beach is a popular nightspot and arguably the best nightclub in the Algarve. Up to the minute tunes combine with a stunning beach location to make a great night out. The Wolfs Lair is another top spot with interesting decor that takes you to medieval times. It's open till 4am so you could stay there all night if you wished. Close by is the Bon Vivant rooftop terrace which is a great spot for a "sundowner" (a last drink as the sun goes down or, the first drink of the evening). A lot of the bars in Lagos are British owned so you wont have a problem with the language, even the German bar keep at Bar Terapia speaks perfect English. There are sports bars and karaoke bars, Irish bar, reggae bars and techno music bars, so there’s something to suit everyone.

You don’t even have to go in. For some, just wandering about and soaking up the atmosphere is an experience in itself. Check out the main square in Lagos, this regularly stages events, which are fun and exciting and lots of them are free.

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Algarve Villa Holidays - Take the Family to The Algarve Next Summer for Sunshine, Beaches and Loads of Activities!

Looking at options for your 2012 family holiday? Have you considered Algarve Villa Holidays? Truly Algarve provides a wide range of well equipped Algarve Villa Holidays perfectly suited to families. The Algarve’s year round climate, beautiful beaches and local hospitality continue to make it a popular destination with visitors returning year after year. With many excellent resorts to choose from offering a wealth of activities for the whole family, you’ll be spoilt for choice.

Algarve Villa Holidays - click here to browse our Algarve villa accommodation

Algarve Villa holidays offer a home away from home; each villa is individually decorated providing good quality and comfortable accommodation. For those families with babies and infants, highchairs and cots are provided on request. Many Algarve Villa Holidays offer private pools and barbeques, with well maintained surrounding grounds offering a safe haven for children. If you haven’t stayed in a villa before, you may not have considered the many benefits - there’s no fixed timetable as with a hotel, so get up when you want, eat when you want and relax in the privacy of your own surroundings without interruption from other guests. Welcome packs containing grocery essentials can also be provided, as can airport transfers.

Year Round Climate
The Algarve benefits from the best climate in Europe, with year round blue skies, 3000 hours of annual sunshine and only a short period of rainfall between the months of November and March. Due to its location in the Atlantic, temperatures in the high season are slightly lower than other European destinations, offering perfect weather for tourism and making it particularly attractive to families with younger children. Sun worshippers need not be disappointed as the Algarve enjoys particularly long sunny days and glorious warm evenings.

Temperatures in the Algarve range from 15 degrees to around 31, but never dip below freezing in the winter. Such a pleasant year round climate sees increasing numbers of families visiting the Algarve, to maximise the long hours of sunshine. With almost guaranteed sunshine and a destination offering countless activities for all the family there will be no shortage of things to do and definitely no wet afternoons to fill with things to keep the children amused.

Even families on a tight budget will be assured of a fantastic holiday, the cost of living in the Algarve is renowned for being relatively inexpensive compared to neighbouring European holiday destinations and it’s many fine sandy beaches provide the perfect location for a family picnic, lazing in the sun, building sand castles and splashing in the beautifully clear water.

Beautiful Sandy Beaches
The Algarve’s extensive coastline is blessed with a wealth of long sandy beaches and small sheltered coves; a calm clear sea coupled with water temperatures of around 22 degrees in the summer months make it a bather’s paradise.

Whist there is no end of beaches for you to visit during your family holiday to the Algarve, our recommendations for the most family friendly beaches include:

Praia da Gale, an excellent all-round choice for families providing safe swimming and watersports. Offering a quiet, tranquil beach, Praia da Gale offers the perfect place to escape the bustling resort of Albufeira. The beach offers trouble-free parking, a friendly family atmosphere with ample places to eat. Better still the length of the beach means that it rarely feels overcrowded.

Praia do Vau - Alvor is a pretty sandy beach situated in a sheltered bay. Again this beach offers a fantastic choice for families, providing a good selection of places to eat, safe swimming and plenty of peace and quiet so you and your family can relax and enjoy the Algarvian sunshine.

The Eastern Algarve’s Praia Verde, which takes its name from the pine tree forest which borders the beach, offers sandy dunes, a couple of beach bars and a restaurant offering a relaxed day out for families with children.

Those families looking for a little more action in the way of water sports and other beach activities including diving should head to either Praia da Luz, a half mile sheltered sandy beach near Luz and Lagos or Meia Praia located in the West of the Algarve also near Lagos which offers miles of golden sand. Both beaches are well suited to those holidaying with children of any age providing plenty of activities to keep them occupied whilst you watch them have fun from the comfort of one of the many sun beds on offer.

Fun for all the Family
What better way to spend your summer holiday than visiting a destination with a reputation for its hospitality and family friendly atmosphere. Many of the locals speak either English or German as a second language, so language should not pose a barrier.

Children are welcome in restaurants and bars, allowing you to eat your evening meal as a family whilst sampling a glass or two of the good local wine. The Algarve’s extensive coastline also means that most restaurants have an excellent array of fish on their menus, most of which will have been caught only hours before.

The Algarve offers resorts to suit families with children of all ages. Those with younger children should look at the smaller resorts of Praia da Luz, Caroeiro, Vilamoura and Vale do Lobo, whilst those with teenagers perhaps better suited to the larger resorts of Albufeira and Lagos due to the choice of nightlife, shops and cinemas.

For the sports enthusiasts the year round sunshine means that the Algarve is able to offer a multitude of family friendly outdoor activities to suit all ages including fishing, horse riding and tennis. Many of the Algarve’s beaches offer an array of water sports including scuba diving and water skiing, and budding golfers can take advantage of one of the many fine courses on the island.

Whatever resort you choose we are sure you and your family won’t be disappointed. The Algarve is truly a wonderful holiday destination offering fun for all the family.

Algarve Villa Holidays - click here to browse our Algarve villa accommodation