Tina why on earth do we stay in Albufeira in The Algarve in Portugal
it has a bit of a bad rap doesn't it - It does in fact Norm I think it is actually known as party
central of The Algarve - I think you're right Tina so are we party animals - Oh we can be we can be
- The thing about Albufeira it really embodies the Jekyll and Hyde concept so in summertime yeah
it's party central as Tina said it's lots of stag parties hen and does whatever they call them these
days soccer hooligans and plane loads of people from Northern Europe intent on having a really
good time infused with alcohol but in wintertime Tina - Oh it's just a whole different place
it is absolutely beautiful in the winter time all the things Norms just described aren't there
we don't see that we see a whole different side of the place and it's it's not busy is it - No I
instead of it being a young person's town it becomes an old person's town
and there's lots of Northern European and North Americans who are let's say 55 to 60
plus and they're coming there to get away from the dreary winter weather so Albufeira we chose that
purposely because we wanted to travel within The Algarve and geographically it is in the middle
of The Algarve so there's no 2 hour trips to anywhere you can get to wherever you want
to go in about an hour and a half hour or hour and three quarters east or west - We found
it a really very central place to be didn't we - And we can travel on the N125 road which is not a
toll road whereas the motorway that runs parallel with it is a toll road which is quite expensive
there is one thing to be careful about Albufeira if you're planning to use the train as your mode
of transport during your winter vacation Albufeira has a station but it's not in Albufeira and
it's probably a 10 minute car ride away to the north it's the only town that isn't on the rail
line - Which is kind of strange isn't it - It is - But there's another huge plus Norm and that is they
do at the train station the most delicious coffee don't they - Yeah you'll find whenever there's a
cafe they're individually owned and they really make good coffee and good service so Albufeira
train station is at a place called Ferreiras and as Tina said it has a really nice little
cafe in there it gets very busy with the locals - It does it's a good sign we find isn't it
- Really is - And also if you didn't want to drive that day you could actually take the train to Faro and
literally you get off the train station in Faro is right there and you could have a wonderful day
in Faro and just go on the train to it couldn't you - It's a 5 minute walk from the station along
to the town centre - And the seafront isn't it - And you can do that all along the coast
and the trains run pretty frequently so yeah Albufeira we like it because there's lots
of accommodation (yes) good support with the supermarkets - Yeah absolutely they've got great
grocery stores they've got Continent they've got Pingo Doce and 2 that we really love is
Aldi and Lidl - I was going to say not Aldi - Which we really like those 2 because they have a
very European sort of flair about them and they get lots of different things don't they quite
unique so when you're staying there - Yeah they have lots of bargains - Yeah they do
- And when they sell off food it's really really cheap but they have a lot of non-food items as
well (yeah) we've been able to pick up a bottle of scotch at a fraction of the price that they
were selling off - And they even have clothing too don't they - They do - Things like that - And there's
also a shopping mall in Albufeira right in the new town area of it just down from the town hall
and there's also a regional shopping centre that is probably a 15 to 20 minute car drive
where Cliff Richards winery is behind it - Oh yeah that's a really nice place to go to isn't it
- So that has all the more upscale type of shopping there and
that's The Algarve shopping centre - And another thing too that we love there is not only the
blue water but the cliffs and you can walk along the beaches the beaches are wonderful the scenery
isn't it it's really nice to walk on - It is and you have to realize that half the restaurants are
closed because - It is winter time isn't it - It's their time for a rest after the hectic summer
(yeah) but there's enough restaurants that are still open that makes life interesting but we
like Albufeira just from the location point of view and the services that it offers
and I wouldn't be at all afraid of staying there if you've heard that it's full of
hooligans and what have you it really isn't in winter - No and plus one of the other big pluses
is that it's literally 30 minutes from Faro airport where a lot of the planes fly in it's
really quick and easy to get to isn't it - It is and once again you can take that N125 from the airport
and not have to pay a toll fee for using the roads and being in wintertime that N125 isn't busy at
all whereas in summertime it's bumper to bumper traffic - Yeah we've heard that people hardly move
anywhere do they in the summer - So we have traveled from Albufeira in our little rental car and we've
been all the way to Sagres (yes) and Lands End at Cape St Vincent which is the tip of The Algarve
next stop would be North America and then we've driven all the way to Spain from Albufeira
but to get to the end of The Algarve near Tavira - That was beautiful wasn't it - Yeah and really
an hour and a half to an hour and three quarters length of trip from either end whereas if you're staying
in Tavira or you're staying in Lagos you're likely to have a 2 to 2 and a quarter hour drive
to get to the furthest points - Which makes it a lot longer to be in the car doesn't it - It does
and also don't forget if you're going to stay in Albufeira and The Algarve go inland there's some
wonderful places to go see (yeah) there's the medieval castle, Moorish Fort - At Silves
isn't that's right yeah - And on the way there if you're lucky and it's February March time
you see all the almond blossom trees which is just absolutely stunning especially coming from Canada
where at this time of year everything's still dormant so we get to see blossoms - Yes and things
like that - And all those orange trees as well - They are stunning aren't they - But we have a story about
the oranges because you can buy them by the sack by the side of the road for 2 to 5 euros
they're fresh they're beautiful so we decided the first time we went there we would juice them
we went to Faro one time and we're in Ikea and bought one of the juicer things that you put half
an orange in so we were juicing them every morning after about a week
we wondered why we were living in the toilet - So we found out that it can do the reverse although
having nice fresh oranges is great if you have the expression too much of a good thing
you'll end up in the bathroom an awful lot - So if you need a laxative
- Yeah so after that we just didn't eat them quite as often did we which was really kind of funny - It
was but another good roadside deal so I hope that explains why we picked one of the most
unpopular towns in The Algarve to go because it it morphs into being a very gentle very laid back
interesting isn't it, interesting town to explore - Yes and we hope you've enjoyed listening to us and
we hope everybody is staying safe - And keeping well - Until the next time bye-bye, bye-bye