January 18, 2020
Cycling in The Real Algarve
from $2,099.00
Discover a land that time forgot as you explore the unspoiled wild coastlines, pretty white villages and deserted cycling routes of the Algarve. The area is a birdwatchers paradise, with endemic and migratory species passing through from Africa and Northern Europe.
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Reviews 34 Reviews5/5
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Vacation Style Holiday Type
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Cycling
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Self Guided
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Winter
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Activity Level Moderate
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All about the Cycling in The Real Algarve.
The western Algarve, a land away from the touristy towns of the central coast, is an area of stunning cliff tops, quiet fishermen’s villages and lush green interior. It’s also a birdwatcher’s paradise and whilst autumn and spring bring in the huge migrations, winter sees numerous endemic bird species. Winter is more akin to springtime in the USA, meaning you can enjoy the warm temperatures and beautiful beaches of the Algarve from September right through to May.
Our six night holiday takes you along quiet roads and sun-kissed cycle tracks. You’ll cycle along beautiful coastlines enjoying a mix of golden sandy beaches and rugged cliff tops, and pass through pretty villages, some of which seem unaffected by the outside world. Country lanes take you into the lush green interior passing large reservoirs, alpine-like meadows and rich holm oak forests. Visit the historic maritime towns of Sagres and Lagos; Henry the Navigator lived here, and built his own fortress at Sagres, near to where you’ll find Cabo de Sao Vicente, Europe’s south-western cape, with its iconic lighthouse and fascinating museum.
We have hand-picked three wonderful hotels all with their own charm. These include a modern 4-star design hotel perched on a cliff in Sagres, a 4-star hotel in Lagos full of Portuguese colonial charm and a hotel in Pedralva, where the village houses have been rustically renovated to create individual rooms. All hotels have pools with Sagres and Lagos boasting covered ones. Most evening meals are included so you can dine on the freshest salads, seafood or excellent meat accompanied by tasty cheeses and chouricos, washed down with a selection of Portuguese wines.
The tour package inclusions and exclusions at a glance
What is included in this tour?Items that are included in the cost of tour price.
- 6 nights accommodation, hotel-to-hotel
- All continental breakfasts and 5 evening meals
- Services of your local Headwater Representative
- GPS route directions and maps
- RideWithGPSÂ navigation app
- High quality hybrid bikes
- Luggage transfers between hotels
What is not included in this tour?
- Flights
- Arrival & departure transfers (available on request, inquire for supplement)
- Room upgrades and extra nights at selected hotels (inquire for prices and details)
- Single Accommodation (available on request, inquire for supplement)
Highlights
- Visit Cabo de Sao Vicente, Europe’s most south-westerly point known as the ‘Sacred Promontory’
- Bird-spotter’s paradise; endemic and migratory species from Europe and North Africa
- Superb variety of hotels, all with pools and great regional cuisine
- Peaceful cycle routes; contrasting coast and the lush green interior
- Sagres and Lagos – beautiful coastal towns with a rich maritime history
Where you stay
Hotel Memmo Baleeira
This designer hotel is perfectly situated overlooking the stunning bay on the edge of Sagres. The rooms are minimalistic in design and feature all amenities. The restaurant here prides itself on serving the best of the local seafood, whilst the hotel offers free use of the Turkish bath, sauna and indoor pool, the perfect tonic after a day exploring this stunning area.
Costa D’Oiro
Tucked away just a kilometre from Lagos old town this lovely hotel offers a relaxing tranquil stay. The rooms are different depending on which villa you stay in mixing a multitude of Portuguese and colonial designs. Food here is a real Portuguese affair including a complete breakfast section of Portuguese specialities. It is easy to walk to Lagos old town, the Dona Ana beach, one of Portugal’s best and the famous light house at Ponta da Piedade.
Aldeia da Pedralva
This is a magical place, a real find. Just 10 years ago the village of Pedralva was a ruin with houses just left to rot by owners who no longer wanted to live in the countryside. However, Antonio Ferreira, your host at the Aldeia da Pedralva, initially decided to buy a couple of houses, but eventually renovated 24 which have been beautifully restored to create 24 rooms. The village itself is surrounded by verdant nature parks and offers great walking and cycling possibilities. Food here is rustic Portuguese, simple in terms of ingredients but mouth watering in terms of quality, flavour and freshness.
Hotel Memmo Baleeira
This designer hotel is perfectly situated overlooking the stunning bay on the edge of Sagres. The rooms are minimalistic in design and feature all amenities. The restaurant here prides itself on serving the best of the local seafood, whilst the hotel offers free use of the Turkish bath, sauna and indoor pool, the perfect tonic after a day exploring this stunning area.
Eating and Drinking
All continental breakfasts and 5 evening meals.
The local specialty from the sea is the Barnacle Perceve, this is not taken from the bottom of boats but the bottom of submerged local cliffs, it is harvested by hand using a dangerous and traditional method, which involves one of the two collectors dangling by a rope from the top of the cliffs! They are a bit of a delicacy not too dissimilar to mussels. Away from the sea the dried hams, salamis and chouriço are as good as anything that Spain or Italy can produce. The strange sounding bread sausage Alheira is very good, invented by the Portuguese Jews during the Inquisition to avoid persecution, bread and non-pork products are used. Good quality meat is also on the menu, beef and pork are of a high quality and lamb in season is superb. Vegetables are plentiful and with big harvests of almonds and oranges, fruits are in good supply alongside another local vegetable, the sweet potato.
The Algarve’s other surprise is the quality of cheese; from mild to strong using cow, goat or sheep milk there is a great range of cheeses for all tastes, Queijo de Cabra do Algarve, is a particular favorite.
EXCELLENT CHOICE FOR
Food lovers, wine lovers, flora & fauna, bird spotting opportunities, art & history, swimming opportunities, couples, coastal routes
Classification: Self-Guided
Activity Level: 2 (Leisurely/moderate)
Average daily distance on move on days: 40km (25miles).
No. of days Cycling: 3
Terrain:Â Mostly gently undulating with a couple of short but steepish descents/climbs. Routes mainly follow a mix of coastal paths, tracks,woodland trails and country roads.
Vehicle Support: This is a self-guided trip for those who prefer to cycle independently, but with our assistance to take out the stress of the logistics and planning. We arrange your accommodations, provide you with a map and route notes so that you can cycle at your own pace.
It is important that you are happy reading maps and following route notes, we make these as accurate as possible and they are regularly checked.
As this is a self-guided holiday there is no group and no leader. There may be others on the same departure date as you, but you will not be organised together. The route notes contain a 24-hour emergency assistance telephone number should you need it and in emergencies, the local representative is normally able to dispatch a taxi or pick you up themselves. They may wish to charge for this service.
Overall Rating
5/5
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Aldeia-da-Pedralva
| Package Confirmed Dates | Trip Status Trip Status | Price (PP) Excluding Flights | Price (PP) Including Flights | |
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January 20, 2020
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January 22, 2020
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January 24, 2020
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January 26, 2020
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January 28, 2020
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January 30, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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February 1, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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February 3, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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February 5, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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February 7, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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February 9, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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February 11, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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February 13, 2020
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February 15, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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February 17, 2020
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February 19, 2020
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February 21, 2020
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February 23, 2020
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February 25, 2020
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February 27, 2020
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February 29, 2020
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March 1, 2020
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March 3, 2020
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March 5, 2020
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March 7, 2020
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March 9, 2020
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March 11, 2020
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March 13, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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March 15, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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March 17, 2020
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$2,099.00 |
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March 19, 2020
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March 21, 2020
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March 23, 2020
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March 25, 2020
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March 27, 2020
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March 29, 2020
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March 31, 2020
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April 2, 2020
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$2,149.00 |
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April 4, 2020
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April 6, 2020
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April 8, 2020
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April 10, 2020
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April 12, 2020
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April 14, 2020
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April 16, 2020
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April 18, 2020
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April 20, 2020
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April 22, 2020
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April 24, 2020
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April 26, 2020
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April 28, 2020
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April 30, 2020
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May 2, 2020
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$2,179.00 |
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May 4, 2020
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May 6, 2020
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May 8, 2020
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May 10, 2020
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May 12, 2020
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May 14, 2020
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May 16, 2020
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May 18, 2020
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May 20, 2020
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May 22, 2020
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Mrs Quick
Lovely way to visit the real Portugal and experience the incredible friendliness of the local people.
Mr Rose
Excellent service from Headwater throughout, representatives Tony and Ludmilla most helpful and ensure that everything is organised and correct for a great experience and a holiday with no worries. Ideal hotels, lovely countryside and coast with options for routes to suit the individual, and with the GPS app you can't go wrong. Highly recommend.
Ms Campbell
Wonderful area to cycle in - varied terrain and scenery. Made harder by winds but did anticipate this. Very relaxing few days. Was great to know we had support from Tony and Ludmilla if needed. A lovely way to discover this area of Portugal
Mr Cronin
The holidays and accommodation are very good
Mr Rugman
This was our first Headwater cycling holiday and it was excellent in every way: choice of routes, route guidance (especially Ride with GPS), type and quality of bikes, location and quality of hotels, and transfers to/from the airport and luggage between hotels. Special mention of the local reps, Tony and Ludmilla, who were always friendly, helpful and efficient, with the right amount of advice at the right time. We are both over 70 but had no difficulty with this grade 2 holiday in the 'real' Algarve. We were lucky with the weather in mid October: 20C and sunny during the day but heavy rain at night. Waterproofs essential at that time of year. All in all, a memorable holiday.