luis,
Went to Armacao the first time we visited the Algarve and, at that time,there was nothing there.How any planner or architect can possibly think that what they are doing is in keeping with the area,I do not know.In fact I am now of the opinion that these buildings are designed and planned by people who have never visited the area and that none(or at least very few)of them can have souls.
Hi Sagres
Yes i know what you mean it is getting to the point that Armacoa will be another Quarteira,really don't understand as nearby Carvoeiro think it is a lovely arae and not too badly planned altough the traffic in the village centre can get very hectic.
Yes i know what you mean it is getting to the point that Armacoa will be another Quarteira,really don't understand as nearby Carvoeiro think it is a lovely arae and not too badly planned altough the traffic in the village centre can get very hectic.
the traffic in the village centre can get very hectic.
.... which proves a point;if the camaras protect the area,people will keep coming in their thousands year after year.
But the Camaras are in the thrall of developers and it's their thousands who will be coming year on year and they won't care whether it's the Algarve or Albania as long as it's (a) cheap, (b) sunny and (c) none of that foreign muck please I'll have a curry...
I generalise but you know what I mean.
Someone worked out once that it would be cheaper to send all the homeless people in the UK down to the Algarve in the off season than keep them in B&B's in good old England.
That would fill the rooms, otherwise much of this new development will be empty 8 months of the year.
Ho-hum.
I generalise but you know what I mean.
Someone worked out once that it would be cheaper to send all the homeless people in the UK down to the Algarve in the off season than keep them in B&B's in good old England.
That would fill the rooms, otherwise much of this new development will be empty 8 months of the year.
Ho-hum.
Someone worked out once that it would be cheaper to send all the homeless people in the UK down to the Algarve in the off season than keep them in B&B's in good old England.
.... now don't go giving them ideas;our government are desperate enough to give it a try !!
cubsur,
Your post earlier in this thread has proved to be prophetic unfortunately.The Resident is reporting that there are plans for a new airport near the Cimpor Cement plant near Boliqueime;it is intended to be for use by private aircraft "and smaller commercial aircraft up to 20 tons."
The article also states that there has been pressure from commercial airlines to open a new airport,so what's the betting that the land set aside for this project is much larger than is actually needed at present and that the weight limit will creep up very soon after the project gets the green light -or am I just being ever so slightly cynical ?
Your post earlier in this thread has proved to be prophetic unfortunately.The Resident is reporting that there are plans for a new airport near the Cimpor Cement plant near Boliqueime;it is intended to be for use by private aircraft "and smaller commercial aircraft up to 20 tons."
The article also states that there has been pressure from commercial airlines to open a new airport,so what's the betting that the land set aside for this project is much larger than is actually needed at present and that the weight limit will creep up very soon after the project gets the green light -or am I just being ever so slightly cynical ?
New project been approved for a 6 star Hilton hotel at Quinta do Lago should be ready in 2 years time. Your views please
I haven't seen any report of this but,provided that it is just a hotel with usual hotel amenities,I can't complain;I use hotels on the Algarve,albeit not 6* jobs, so,provided it doesn't come with its own ski slope,racing circuit or landing strip,good luck to them.I only hope that it gives its very affluent guests the opportunity to experience the genuine hospitality of the local population and doesn't wrap them up in 6* luxury without them being able to see the real Algarve and its natural beauty which,in my opinion,well exceeds 6 stars.
Hi Sagres.Yes the hotel will be loacted in the Valverde area of Quinta do Lago .Im sure that will be good as there are all the building taking place there they are very strict about the nature side of things at Quinta do Lago so this time around might be a good thing for the area making everyone happy and creating a few jobs alond the line:-)BTW the report was in the Correio da Manha of yesterday.
Call me cynical but people who can afford 6* hotels don't tend to venture beyond its environs.
Exactly the reason for :
.....and call me cynical if you wish.I only hope that it gives its very affluent guests the opportunity to experience the genuine hospitality of the local population and doesn't wrap them up in 6* luxury without them being able to see the real Algarve and its natural beauty which,in my opinion,well exceeds 6 stars.
They might do in Quinta do Lago which is a very safe area with world class golf courses and the beauty of the Ria Formosa:-)
Haven't been to Quinta do Lago but when I visited the nearby and similarly upmarket resort of Vale de Lobo I was struck by the total lack of people apart from security guards. Those little electric carts they use reminded me of the old TV series 'The Prisoner'.
Is the Algarve destined for more of these all-inclusive gated, guarded resorts?
Is the Algarve destined for more of these all-inclusive gated, guarded resorts?
Reading the local English language press' reports quoting the figures from the Ministry of Information.. sorry The Algarve Tourism Association, they seem obsessed with the up-market tourists. They mainly bang on about five star resorts, and golf course resorts being built and extended.
Their continuous insistance on quoting hotel occupancy rates as a sign of their success is a cause of both amusement and frustration for those of us whose establishments cater for the more mainstream tourist.
Hotel rooms are block booked by the travel companies, and the fact that many of them remain unoccupied, despite being paid for by Thompson, et al, is ignored in the figures. The fact is that last year was a very poor year here in Albufeira - the worst for many years by all accounts - despite their claims to the contrary.
The tourists that do come are being encouraged to spend more and more in the hotels to the detriment of local businesses, such as mine. Many hotels now offer an all-inclusive option, which is understandably tempting, but going by most reports from those who have tried it is not a patch on the Carribbean etc resorts. Many people find themselves regretting taking the AI option when the find the huge diversity of reaonably priced bars and restaurants on the doorstep. Surely the point of coming to a mainstream resort is to try what's on offer, the logical conclusion is that all the town will have to offer is AI hotels, with swathes of empty former bars and restaurants creating an eyesore and taking away what makes places like this attractive in the first place?
The British and Irish tourists are the ones that spend the most money when they are here, and keep local business afloat (run by all nationalities, not just Brits like me), but once again the promotion of Portugal in Britain is almost non-existant, while the Ministry this week is talking about it's promotions in Finland, France, Holland, Norway and Spain. In fairness thay are also in Dublin later this week, but nothing at all planned for Britain!
Their continuous insistance on quoting hotel occupancy rates as a sign of their success is a cause of both amusement and frustration for those of us whose establishments cater for the more mainstream tourist.
Hotel rooms are block booked by the travel companies, and the fact that many of them remain unoccupied, despite being paid for by Thompson, et al, is ignored in the figures. The fact is that last year was a very poor year here in Albufeira - the worst for many years by all accounts - despite their claims to the contrary.
The tourists that do come are being encouraged to spend more and more in the hotels to the detriment of local businesses, such as mine. Many hotels now offer an all-inclusive option, which is understandably tempting, but going by most reports from those who have tried it is not a patch on the Carribbean etc resorts. Many people find themselves regretting taking the AI option when the find the huge diversity of reaonably priced bars and restaurants on the doorstep. Surely the point of coming to a mainstream resort is to try what's on offer, the logical conclusion is that all the town will have to offer is AI hotels, with swathes of empty former bars and restaurants creating an eyesore and taking away what makes places like this attractive in the first place?
The British and Irish tourists are the ones that spend the most money when they are here, and keep local business afloat (run by all nationalities, not just Brits like me), but once again the promotion of Portugal in Britain is almost non-existant, while the Ministry this week is talking about it's promotions in Finland, France, Holland, Norway and Spain. In fairness thay are also in Dublin later this week, but nothing at all planned for Britain!
I have tyo agree with Algarve addict that there is no promotion of the Algarve in Britain all you see are very small adverts in the newspapers.As for the guarded resorts,well i guess people like security and Cubsur Quinta do Lago got a good security netwoork this is provided by Quinta do Lago own security and not from an outside company such as securitas etc,you can go SC in Quinta do Lago in fact thats the majority is SC.Maybe you should pay a visit there it is really nice:-) The only downside is the road leading there is not in a very good condition.In the other end i hope that this kind of places dont take away business form the other people like Algarve Addict.All in all i just hope everyone will manage to be happy in my homeland:-)
Maybe they don't want to promote the Algarve in Britain? And in a way I'd be glad if they didn't. I went to Turkey for the first time in 1988 and it was lovely - but I don't particularly want to go back there now. 
I've only been to the Algarve twice (am going for my 3rd time in June) and it was so refreshing not to be swamped by British tourists -even though I'm one myself
I've only been to the Algarve twice (am going for my 3rd time in June) and it was so refreshing not to be swamped by British tourists -even though I'm one myself
Glynis( 
)wrote:-
............... told you you'd fall in love with it,didn't we ??
I am told by our Portuguese friends that(allegedly)the powers that be in Lagos are interested only in "top of the market" tourists and developments and that this seems to be the trend along the whole of the Algarve.
Well,sod 'em-they're gonna have to put up with little old down-market me for a few years yet,if I have any say in it !! - I sometimes think that I care more about their country than they do !!!!
)wrote:-I've only been to the Algarve twice (am going for my 3rd time in June)
............... told you you'd fall in love with it,didn't we ??
I am told by our Portuguese friends that(allegedly)the powers that be in Lagos are interested only in "top of the market" tourists and developments and that this seems to be the trend along the whole of the Algarve.
Well,sod 'em-they're gonna have to put up with little old down-market me for a few years yet,if I have any say in it !! - I sometimes think that I care more about their country than they do !!!!
Maybe not Glynis,don't know:-) Hey Sagres im glad you liked the Algarve and dont worry will be plenty of places for people like you and me in the Algarve,i guess they talk about all the luxury resorts because this kind of places have loads of money to advertise them and also i think the RTA have an hand on all this so called trend:-)
I'm sure you're correct luis,but can't they see that they are diverting income away from the very people who have made the Algarve the sort of place that tourists want to visit and towards cash-rich multi-national developers.I first visited the Algarve because the beaches looked beautiful in the photographs;I return(three,four,sometines five times a year) because I love the friendliness of the Portuguese people; o.k - the beaches are still gorgeous but,if the beaches weren't there any more,I'd still choose the Algarve for my holidays.These people deserve a fairer deal from their tourist authority.
Couldn't agree more Sagres,and i think the RTA the councils and governement got it wrong they way they are promoting the region,the other day i had a colleague asking me about the Algarve and he said "I heard it is a expensive place to go" i told him that is like anywhere else in europe really some places cheaper others expensive,but maybe he got that idea because of what he found in the press connected to the Algarve new luxury resorts etc etc.
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