The Algarve, in southern Portugal is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Europe. With over 3000 hours of sunshine, it hosts thousands of holiday visitors every year. The coastline of the Algarve stretches 160 Km from Cape St. Vincent in the west to Vila Real de Santo Antonio on the Spanish border.

Faro airport (opened in 1965) to cater for the holiday industry now has a new international terminal served by low cost airlines from all over Europe.

Many coastal resorts on the Algarve were formerly tiny fishing villages and most of the picturesque towns and villages still have narrow cobbled streets and squares, but it is the attraction of the unblemished sandy beaches and the beautiful golf courses of the Algarve that have made this part of Portugal so popular.

The major Algarve holiday resorts are Albuferia, Vilamoura, Praia da Rocha and Lagos. Albuferia has fantastic sandy beaches, a wide choice of bars and restaurants with waterspouts available at nearby Praia da Oura. Albuferia has excellent nightlife activities, and is 1 hour 20 minutes from Faro Airport. Vilamoura is one of the most popular holiday resorts on the Algarve with a sophisticated shopping a pretty marina top class golf courses and a wide beach. Vilamoura is surrounded by a beautiful landscape, and the town has a broad range of bars and restaurants. The nightlife is lively and there are plenty of sports and leisure facilities. Faro airport is just 30 minutes by car. Praia da Rocha is one of the oldest holiday towns on the Algarve and offers some of the most interesting rock formations on the Algarve coast. Praia da Rocha has a lovely promenade with bars, restaurants and shops. Faro is approximately 2 Hours away. Lagos has narrow cobbled streets and the great restaurants and bars offer a lively nightlife The beaches are excellent and there is beautiful scenery and historical sites. Faro Airport is just over 2 hours and 30 minutes.

The Algarve - Particularly attractive for family holidays
The Algarve has a warm climate, excellent beaches and good water sports facilities, and is a perfect holiday destination for sun, sea and sand. It has a friendly, laid-back atmosphere making it particularly attractive for family holidays. The Algarve climate is good all year, with temperatures in winter rarely dropping below 15C. July and August can be hot and Christmas and New Year can be a little wet.

Where we sell: Western Algarve
Albuferia, Vilamoura, Praia da Rocha and Lagos
The village centre of Boliqueime is in the hills just behind the new motorway but the region extends to the coastal side. Our properties are within easy driving distance of all the excitement and facilities of the seaside resorts. From the middle of Boliqueime, you are only fifteen minutes drive from the centre of Albufeira and about the same to the golf courses at Vilamoura. Further inland is the town of Loulé, with its superb Saturday market, shops and restaurants. Boliqueime is midway between Albufeira and Loulé and has a small village atmosphere. The centre still has some cobbled streets with local shops, a post office, chemist and a couple of cafés. Pride of place in the square is the local Catholic church, the heart of the village. An annual fair is held during the summer in the church square, with stalls selling locally produced handicrafts and food.The surrounding countryside is hilly, with pine and almond trees, and dotted with gleaming white villas. This is the way to get the best of the Algarve if you do not mind a short drive to the shops, beaches and supermarket.

Pros: A central location with easy access to beaches and a varied selection of restaurants. The villas tend to be in rural locations.
Cons: The A22 motorway is some distance away but, with strong winds, you may hear traffic. Barking dogs can sometimes be a pest.

Boliqueime is a charming country village set in the hills, with views of the Atlantic Ocean and its golden beaches to the south, which are just 10 minutes away by car. The village itself is quite small; the church is at its heart with a beautiful cobbled square, planted with blue jacaranda tress, giving shade during the hot summer months. The two main streets in the village are full of old fashioned typically Portuguese shops where you can buy fresh fruit and vegetables, fish, meat, haberdashery as well as palm to make the Portuguese baskets and small tools for the farms. Almonds are hand cracked by the hardware shop owner, while he talks with his fellow men about life . The local barber will also cut your hair, or give you a shave with his cutthroat razor if you dare. The smell of freshly baked bread fills the air around the church at 6.30 a.m., the local bakery still bakes bread in a traditional wood oven. For those who rise later in the day the dark bottle-lined bars are a haven of refuge for discussing life, football and golf - the important issues. The roads which radiate at all angles, from the village, are lined with the typical Portuguese farm houses, painted white and with beautiful hand made chimneys that are so typical of the Algarve. Here the local people grow almonds, figs, carobs, oranges and lemons, farm peas, beans and potatoes in the springtime. You can also enjoy fresh eggs from local free-range chickens; the cockerels provide the dawn fanfare for the village. The gardens are full of colourful geraniums.

The shepherds and their sheep are a regular sight and sound, the sheep bells quietenly signalling their presence in the surrounding countryside. But modern conveniences are available in Boliqueime, and are tastefully integrated into this typical Algarvian village. Almost all the population were born and bred here making it a village community with a real heart. It is really worth a visit, and some come to visit and stay for life. Boliqueime is midway between Albufeira and Loulé and has a small village atmosphere. The lovely village centre of Boliqueime is in the hills and easily accessed from the new motorways and reaches the coast. Boliqueime is only only fifteen minutes drive from the centre of Albufeira and about the same to the golf courses at Vilamoura.

Loulé is further inland and has a superb market every Saturday with great local shops and restaurants. The centre still has some cobbled streets with local shops, a post office, chemist and a couple of cafés. In the square is the local Catholic church, the heart of the village. An annual fair is held during the summer in the church square, with stalls selling locally produced handicrafts and food.
The surrounding countryside is hilly, with pine and almond trees, and speckled with white villas. The best of the Algarve and only a short drive to the shops, beaches and supermarket.
The charming village of Boliqueime has a small supermarket and, before you reach it, is a good butcher’s shop. The village has small restaurants serving Portuguese fish and chicken specialties which are dotted along the hillside with a larger main road restaurant also a popular destination.
The resort is home to a much-photographed marina, long stretch of sandy beach and four golf courses, two of them are Laguna and Millennium which are fairly informal.