Holidays at our Algarve bed & breakfast are based on encouraging guests to relax and enjoy the beauty of nature that surrounds them. Guests are very welcome to spend the day here - there is no need to always rush off after breakfast - just spend the day here, and just realise how much there is to do by just being part of this wonderful area.
We are keen walkers ourselves and are able to support experienced and novice walkers by advising them on routes, according to their interests and ability. We also organise walking holidays and are particularly geared towards people taking their first walking holiday. In this way we feel we can make a significant change to the type of holiday that our guests will choose in the future.
Each room has its own information booklet, with information about the area and suggestions of things to do based in rural Algarve. We encourage our guests to consider alternative holiday activities including car-free days out for adults and children, cycling and canoeing.
The only meal we serve is breakfast, which uses local produce as much as possible and our own fruit in season. We know our local restaurants and cafes and advise guests on which to choose according to their individual preferences. To encourage use of the local restaurants, we explain local dishes and help with Portuguese names and words. Our water for guest and family use is heated by solar panels. It does, however need to be supplemented on some days in the winter. We have our own well. Guests are encouraged to adopt a sensible approach to water use in the booklet that welcomes them.
We are an integral part of the local community. We shop locally, our children attend the local schools, we belong to a local church and we all speak Portuguese. We participate in local activities and attend all local festas. We share information about local events with guests and encourage them to experience traditional festas and celebrations.
We employed local builders and architects on the renovation of our Algarve bed & breakfast guesthouse and all materials were bought locally. We use all Portuguese services such as accountancy, plumbing, mechanics etc and are occasionally able to give work to our neighbours. By choosing to live and establish our business here in rural Algarve we have been able, in some small way, to bring life back into an area that was rapidly declining.
We can offer a real alternative to mass tourism, providing high quality accommodation and facilities but in a way that is sensitive to the environment and respectful of tradition and culture. We hope that a holiday here will encourage many people to take a new approach to their holidays in the future.
We invite every traveller who books a holiday via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the holidays they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same holiday can have different views!
