The area & local facilities

The surrounding area

Caldas de Monchique (1 Km) – The spa town built originally by the Romans has been totally renovated over the past few years. A delightful place to visit. The thermal treatments are available to visitors. Treatments include indoor swimming, hydro massage baths, jet spray, sauna and mud packs. There is also a gym and programmes for anti stress and anti cellulite. There are also a number of restaurants and bars.

Monchique Town ( 7 Km) – Ancient town; pretty to walk around narrow streets and visit 16th century church "Igreja Matriz". Many cafes and restaurants in the area and on the road from Monchique up to Foia mountain, the highest point in the Algarve (902m). There is a small fish and vegetable market here every day.

Silves (28Km) – Silves is an attractive old-world little town, presenting a charming picture with some venerable and handsome burghers' houses. Surrounded by forests of cork oak, Silves was once the Moorish city of Xelb, capital of the AlGharb (Algarve), and as such, with its 40,000 population at that time, was an intellectual and cultural centre that rivaled Granada in splendor and influence. The historically significant buildings can attract large numbers of day visitors; there are lots of restaurants and cafes.

Portimao (20Km) – Large town with good shopping facilities and large & bustling daily fish and vegetable market. Plenty of traditional handicrafts and gift ideas for sale. Portimao was one of the most important canning and fishing centres in the Algarve until the early 1980s when the factories closed during the recession . It was also the main shopping area for the whole of the Algarve in the 70s and 80s.

Portimao is surrounded by many beautiful places to visit, but some you might like to consider is Armacao de Pera with its small 18th century fortress or the small beach fishing village of Alvor. Across the river is the unspoilt fishing village of Ferragudo, where there is an excellent fish restaurant called Sueste (big fish, straight off the boats – whatever’s just been caught, grilled to absolute perfection). The fort of St John of Arade built during the 17th and 18th centuries was Portimao´s primary defence against pirates.

Facilities/activities in the area

Beyond the garden there is an extensive network of walks and trails for walking and mountain biking. (The world's first Bio park network).

Golfers will enjoy the challenge of the golf resorts at Penina (Sir Henry Cotton) or Vale de Pinta both some 25Km away. Much closer to home is the newest (2003) course in the Algarve at Morgado do Reguengo, which is fantastic.

For children and adults alike, there is the nearby (1km) Omega Parque wildlife park which holds a select number of threatened wildlife species.The main aim of this park is as a breeding centre for these endangered species.

Zoomarine (Guia, 40km). The main attraction here are dolphins who give three shows a day in a large arena. The shows are roughly half an hour each, and there's enough of them to last you a day. The shows are very entertaining and original, which makes it good value. It is possible to join dolphins in the water for a "dolphin experience" but you must pre-book. There are seals & sea lions also giving three shows a day and you can also see the aquarium with numerous sea creatures and small tiger sharks. There are also parrot shows, a play area, theme rides and a swimming pool. Greatly loved by our grandchildren.

Slide & Splash (Lagoa, 30km) is hours of fun for "water babes". Actually, I believe that it's for seven year-olds upwards.

Krazy world (Algoz, 38km) is an ideal venue for a family day out; some like it so much that they buy an unlimited pass! There is a huge mini golf course, a swimming pool and a petting farm where you can make friends with llamas, deer, wallabies, camels, and more. There are quad bikes, pony rides, a crocodile park and other attractions. In summer their are live shows.

Innumerable other attractions which remain unvisited – we find it difficult to drag ourselves away from the tranquility and beauty at the villa!