Cycling in The Real Algarve

from $2,049.00

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.

Reviews 34 Reviews

5/5
Vacation Style Holiday Type
- Cycling
- Self Guided
- Winter
Self-guided
Activity Level Moderate
5/8

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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
RideWithGPS 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

Day 1 Day 1 Arrive at Sagres

Arrive at the wonderful coastal town of Sagres in time for dinner at the hotel. (Staying at Hotel Memmo Baleeira, Half Board)
Day 2 Day 2 Sagres to Lagos 38km/24mi

From Sagres head inland, mostly following the Ecovia, a national cycle trail. Pass shepherds tending their flocks before meeting the coast again in time for lunch. The villages of Salema, Burgau and Luz have great sandy beaches and offer rustic restaurants with al fresco dining; grilled fresh fish with zesty lemon is a favourite dish. You end the day at Lagos and your wonderfully atmospheric 4-star hotel. (Staying at Costa d’Oiro, Half Board)
Day 3 Day 3 At Lagos

Lagos is encircled by C14 walls – the stone work and architecture you’ll find hidden within these is a delight. Ornate churches date from the C13, and tangled cobbled lanes lead to new discoveries around every corner. Visit the new marina and the lively fish market (held daily), and join the locals for coffee in one of the many bars. Popular coastal walks lead to Ponte da Piedade lighthouse and from Porto de Mos to Luz, both offering outstanding sea views. (Staying at Costa d’Oiro, Half Board)
Day 4 Day 4 Lagos to Pedralva 42km/26.5mi or 52km/32.5mi

You have a choice of routes today, with both taking you along the promenade at Lagos, before heading inland to Odiaxere where you can choose a shorter option that has fewer climbs and takes you through lovely villages on winding roads, giving you a real insight into local life. The longer route takes you past the beautiful Bravura reservoir and pretty alpine-like hamlets and meadows, meeting the coast in picturesque Carrapateira. Then it’s on to Pedralva, a village where each house has been restored to create individual hotel rooms. (Staying at Aldeia da Pedralva, Half Board)
Day 5 Day 5 At Pedralva

Aldeia da Pedralva is a wonderful rural retreat and you could easily spend the day relaxing in the village. If you fancy doing more you can follow one of our routes taking you out along the cliff tops with great views of the coast, or return to Carrapateira to visit the Land and Sea Museum and have a leisurely lunch. (Staying at Aldeia da Pedralva, Half Board)
Day 6 Day 6 Pedralva to Sagres 29km/18.5mi or 30km/19mi

There’s two options today but both routes are fairly short allowing you time to visit the lighthouse at Cabo de Sao Vicente and Sagres Fortress, built by Henry the Navigator. The longer route is on off-road tracks passing holm oak forests. Both routes give great views of the Serra de Monchique passing through Vila do Bispo, a nice lunch stop with its beautiful C17 church. From Vila do Bispo head out across the Vicente peninsula to Cabo de Sao Vicente and the southwestern tip of Europe before following the coast road back to Sagres. (Staying at Hotel Memmo Baleeira, Breakfast Only)
Day 7 Day 7 Leave Sagres

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

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.

Is this trip for you?

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: 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

Reviewed On 23/04/2019

5/5

Mrs Quick

Lovely way to visit the real Portugal and experience the incredible friendliness of the local people.

Reviewed On 01/04/2019

5/5

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.

Reviewed On 27/02/2019

5/5

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

Reviewed On 08/01/2019

4/5

Mr Cronin

The holidays and accommodation are very good

Reviewed On 16/11/2018

5/5

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.

Show More Reviews - 5 Reviews

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