Portugal has many different sides to it, and the sunny, beach side is one of the best places to spend a few days or a long weekend. The food is fantastic, the beer is cheap, and the majority of the year you can get a tan.
Albufeira is one of those beaches that makes you question how ‘real’ the photos are, but that lives up to them when you arrive! Picture orange sand that curves up into cliffs, piercing blue water that sparkles in the sun and fields and fields of orange trees that spread into the distance. If that doesn’t scream ‘a relaxing few days’ then I don’t know what does!
Check out Laura; The Touring Teacher’s reasons why Portugal is an awesome spot for a quick getaway from London.
It’s a super short flight.
Going from London to anywhere in Europe is a short flight. When we went I didn’t even get to finish a movie. Even though it is not a long distance, the difference between London and Portugal is incredible. We left a drizzly, damp UK and found ourselves looking out to the shore, with the sun beaming down upon us.
The Faro Airport was quick and easy to get through, just make sure you have a way of leaving the airport that doesn’t include Taxis as they were overcharging tourists by a mile!
Beer is cheap!
I know, you are probably wondering why this isn’t point one. Sagres is the Beer of Portugal, and it is cheaper than water. It tastes like oranges at half-time. It is refreshing, tasty and did I say that it was cheap? In Portugal, beers come in all sizes, from Pappa Beer, all the way down to Baby Beer ?
The seafood is fresh.
Coming from NZ, seafood is a big part of life. While this has changed slightly since moving to London, I was stoked to get some fresh Portugese seafood on my plate. However, finding a Portuguese seafood restaurant can be tricky here. They have plenty of cafés for people who can’t go a whole weekend without their full English, but if you can find your way to a Portuguese restaurant, make sure to order the fish (any type) because it’s all good! It’s even better if it comes to the table on a sword!
The restaurants like to try and trick you by bringing breads to the table before you eat. They will charge you for this, but it is delicious, and my theory is that you’re on holiday so just do it!
One thing that we loved from the local restaurants was that the waiter shakes your hand when they come over to the table. We must have looked a bit awkward when we didn’t respond to an extended hand, but now I’ve passed this information on to you, don’t look like a weirdo; shake their hand!
There are great water sports.
The water is wonderful to swim in, especially if you haven’t been swimming for a long time like I hadn’t. But, if you are the type of person who doesn’t just want to float on a flamingo floatie, there are plenty of activities for you.
You can jet ski, surf, white water raft, and parasail. We took the last option and were so pleased. It was a very reasonable price, and we had such a fantastic time flying high up in the sky. The view was amazing and it was not scary in the slightest. Highly recommend!
The people are kind.
Lastly on my list, is the people – they are so kind! They smile at you, they greet you, and they recommend hidden secrets of the area. Make sure you listen to those recommendations – we found ourselves walking far along the beach to an old town. The walk was interesting, and the old town was a bonus find. We wouldn’t have known about it otherwise.
Overall, Albufeira in Portugal is a fantastic place. You can swim, adventure, explore, or just lie on a deck chair all day. So go and book those tickets now – you only need a few spare days!
You can take your students on a trip to Portugal, with this Mini Lesson about writing Poetry here.
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