Private tours in Algarve & surroundings
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Algarve - full day
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Alte
Alte exists since the period of the Roman occupation and is the most typical village of Algarve. With their
whitewashed houses, windows and facades edged with colorful borders, ornate chimneys and pervasive air
of tranquility, the streets of Alte's historic center have retained much of their original charm. The area around
the main church is a delightful snapshot of the real Algarve.
Silves, Monchique, Foia
Silves - slightly inland from Portimão was once on a par with Lisbon as a strategic Portuguese location.
Silves Castle reveals some of the details around its history as an important Moorish capital, particularly from
the 11th the 13th Century. A huge red sandstone castle, a choice of historic museums including the
renowned Museum of Cork, a mix of chic cafes, restaurants and bars and local golf and horse riding are a
few things you can expect in beautiful Silves. Popular with the day trips, Silves bustles in peak season and
should be on everyone's Algarve itinerary.
Monchique is a small village in the heart of Monchique mountain, called by some people as the " Algarve’s
Glorious Eden ".
Fóia is the Algarve’s highest peak, where we get to 900m altitude, watching the coast outlined against the
blue sky and sea…this luxuriant vegetation contrasting with the rest of the province, shows us a bit of the
Algarve’s beauty.
São Vicente, Lagos, Sagres
We go until “the end of the world”: The São Vicente’s cape which is the Europe’s most southwest place. The
cliffs rise nearly vertically from the Atlantic to a height of 75 meters. The cape is a site of exuberant marine
life and a high concentration of birds nesting on the cliffs, such as the rare Bonelli's eagle, peregrine falcons,
kites, rock thrushes, rock pigeons, storks and herons.
Lagos…This town is one of the most beautiful and historical of the Algarve, because here started the great
adventure of the Discoverers.
Sagres: the ancient fortress which was once a school of navigation and has now magnificent views over the
ocean. We visit the old fortress of the Portuguese school of navigators "who brought new worlds to
the World". It can be a powerful sensation to sit quietly anywhere along the cliff tops here and look out to sea
and ponder the extraordinary adventurers who have passed this way.
Castro Marim, Tavira, Alcoutim
Going to the interior we still have some places which are incredibly beautiful: Castro Marim, Tavira (the
Algarve’s most ancient city), Alcoutim (also a very typical village).
Castro Marim - The first settlements in this area date back to approximately 5000 BC, possibly situated on
the hill where the castle now stands. Phoenicians and Romans where present here.
Due to the strategic position of the town on border with the kingdom of Castile , Castro Marim became the
headquarters of the Order of Christ after the Christian reconquest.
Tavira - is one of the gems of the eastern Algarve. Straddling the River Gilao and the River Segua, its
gentle charm and predominantly low-rise architecture set it aside from other resorts in the region.
Sometimes referred to as the Venice of the Algarve, it boasts a seven-arched Roman bridge, some fine
Renaissance architecture, numerous churches, tree-lined squares and a certain romantic air. Also, along
the Travessa de Dona Brites you will find fine examples of medieval houses complete with Gothic windows
and doorways. However, it is also a lively trading town with a vibrant fruit and vegetable market just beyond
the riverside park where many stop to drink a coffee and catch up on the local gossip.
An important place on the map throughout Portuguese history often used by travellers to Africa due to its
proximity to Morocco and, in fact, once the most important port beyond Lisbon, this once thriving tuna-
fishing town now depends largely on tourism. A nod to the town’s significant past are the ruins of a Moorish
castle, the battlements of which can still be visited and from where one gets the best view of the town, its
many church spires, ornate rooftops and balconies and indeed the river delta and beyond to the sea.
At only 3 kilometres from the Atlantic coast, a handful of pleasant beaches are easily attainable from Tavira,
not least the two beaches to be found on the island of Tavira.
Alcoutim - The blue river framed by cool greens of the riverside vegetation, of fertile orchards and gardens.
The dark ochre of the hills, flecked with colour by cistus plants, holm, oak and the occasional olive tree.
Houses with walls of schist or baked mud white with the dazzle of lime, huddled together in hamlets lost
among the hills. Such contrasts are to be found in the Alcoutim municipality.
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...The first people in the Algarve were traders and Estate stewards that established their colonies on the coasts, like the
Phoenicians and the Carthaginians. The Algarve was once part of the Roman province of Lusitânia, later becoming part
of the Visigoths' jurisdiction. One of the most important facts in the Algarve's history: the five centuries of Arab
occupation, visible in the regions architecture (lattice chimneys, tiles, whitewashed houses, labyrinthine streets, etc.).
Since 1249, and until the Republic proclamation, the Portuguese monarchs were entitled "King of Portugal and of the
Algarves". The Algarve became a lot more important during the Discoveries, being used as one of the main departure
ports. Nothing stops the “algarvios” – people of Algarve -, who despite all the adversities made it what it is today: a
wonderful resort by the sea!...
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