A Coast of Many Colours

Portugal is a beautiful country.  We chose 2 very different walking routes (Palaces & Pathways of Sintra, and A Coast of many Colours) which complimented each other very well.  Scenery was spectacular ! The walking was at our level and challenged us at times which was great.  Walking poles and good boots/ shoes were a necessity and we needed good rain jackets during the first week.  Can't undervalue good gear. This our third trip with Inntravel , we have come to appreciate their excellent choices of accomodation and good walk notes/ good choices of routes.  This was our first experience using a GPX provided by Inntravel and it worked brilliantly and was invaluable....follow the blue dot ....became one of our catch phrases !

Great to be back walking in Portugal after two years of lockdown and A Coast of Many Colours did not disappoint in any way. 

This is a lovely area of Portugal. The coastal path was delightful and the beaches beautiful. The cliffs on the west coast were spectacular, showing different coloured rocks and wild seas. There was an abundance of wild flowers on every walk. It was a joy!

A varied and enjoyable holiday. Recommend an extra night in Peldrava, good swimming pool and excellent restaurant. Our two night extension in Faro also well worth it. Our 2nd Inn Travel holiday and not our last!

INNTRAVEL NOTE: These customers combined our A Coast of Many Colours walking holiday with the Faro add-on.

Our trip highlights were: The views, the light, the weather, the quirky accommodation, the flowers, the trails, goatmen and cowmen and their herds of travelling grazers with singing bells, the two coasts with contrasting seas, the simplicity of Salema and its small and beautiful beach and the amazing food, the welcome at all of the accommodations and The Fajara hotel for three nights at the end was bliss. Our taxi driver Isabel was magnificent.

Lovely relaxed walking in a beautiful and peaceful area, but well worth using the GPX route files alongside the route notes which need to be updated.

We had a really lovely holiday blessed with good weather, stunning coastal scenery, masses of beautiful wild flowers and some very enjoyable walking.

The scenery and wild flowers in April were beautiful although be aware some of the tourist attractions and restaurants weren't fully open. Everyone we met was very friendly and welcoming. I would definitely advise reading the notes in advance and down loading gpx tracks because there are lots of other signed routes that you cross but don't necessarily follow! The bag transfers worked well and all the hotel staff were well informed. Thank you for a great trip. 

Unfortunately this trip was spoilt by the weather. We experienced Sahara sand storn giving overcast skies and poor light. Then strong winds ending on the last day with heavy rain and thunderstorms. We only had one good sunny day. The walk between Salema and Vila do Bispo was arduous in the strong wind.

The only restaurant open on Monday in Salema was Atlantico. We had an excellent fish meal at O Lourenco and also at Sitio do Forno.

The quality of the Portuguese wine was excellent and the restaurant price in euros was the equivalent of home supermarket prices. Also paying on average 1 euro for a coffee was remarkable.

A lovely walk along a very colourful coastline, with beautiful beaches and an attractive inland countryside to the Atlantic coast. Stunning accommodation in wonderful locations in the second half of the week. If you like friendly locals and to eat lots of seafood and beautifully cooked fresh vegetables and salads, this region is for you.

The Boia restaurant in Salema was excellent, as was the Ribeira do Poco in Vila do Bispo, where I had dorada followed by an beautiful range of homemade deserts, lovingly described by the very helpful staff.

We particularly loved Amado beach - what a place to enjoy a picnic.

Casa Fajara is an absolute gem. It was a privilege to stay there. We could watch an eagle gliding over the fields from our balcony. It was wonderful that the options for walking around Carrapateira are not restricted to those described in the notes. We were able to find an alternative route to Amado beach (repeating part of Day 4's walk) and return via the Sitio do Forno restaurant where we had an excellent lunch, choosing from a varied menu that included specialities we hadn't tried before - 'exotic salad' (shrimps, mango & avocado) and 'house steak' (served with pineapple, almonds and couscous). Mmmm!

Birding highlights included several sightings of Hoopoe, three different types of Eagle, and a Waxwing, as well as Monarch, Spanish Festoon and Green Hairstreak butterflies. 

Casa Fajara was an absolute gem to finish the holiday with. A real find.

Visiting in late February allowed us to enjoy some very welcome sunshine and warmth - in addition the spring flowers and butterflies were a delight as well as numerous bird sightings. At this point in the season the area is relatively quiet but this does mean a lot of the restaurants are closed and activities are limited. The GPX files are really helpful as in places there are multiple paths and working only from the instructions could be a challenge. If taking extra days in a location the use of one of the many hiking apps can suggest useful options.

Pleased to have taken an extra night in Faro which gave us the opportunity to see the city and take a 1 hour bird watching boat tour of the lagoon - multiple wading birds and birds of prey were seen. The Lemon Tree hotel (which we booked independently) was an ideal location with very friendly and helpful staff. 

INNTRAVEL NOTE: We are now able to arrange stay in Faro at the Hotel Faro & Beach Club

An ideal destination for February. Weather was ideal for hiking and much better than we expected. It would be a great holiday for persons who are considering buying a property here and want to get a feel for the area and life style. We thoroughly enjoyed this holiday. Casa Fajara is a real gem.

Absolutely loved the coastal walks and the walks around Casa Faraja. We extended the day walks offered from there and feel that it would be useful to include some longer walks. Great day of walking between Aldeia da Pedralva and Casa Faraja.

We have been searching for an escape from the Swiss November fog, and we got 7 days of beautiful weather, delicious Portuguese fish and seafood and nice easy walking. The Algarve was a perfect choice as it is relatively quiet at this time of the year but not entirely deserted. Inntravel has done a very good job.

One of the best Inntravel holidays I have had. A good mixture of coastal and country walking with excellent accommodation throughout. I would particularly like to mention Casa Fajara which is a superb boutique style hotel with friendly helpful staff and superb breakfasts and dinners. Nothing was too much trouble for the staff there and I would rate it as one of the best hotels I have stayed in during the many Inntravels holidays that I have had.

Highlights were the lovely beaches, sea and pool swims. Dramatic and colourful cliff walks and the whole stay at Casa Fajara. Food was excellent and people/staff very friendly, laidback and accomodating.

This is our second Inntravel holiday and we have thorough enjoyed the walks. Spectacular coastline. Would definitely use Inntravel again.

Highlights included the wide variety of the accommodation and food offered and the beauty of the beaches in the western Algarve.

HIGHLIGHTS: Restaurant at Salema right by sea. Coffee bar in Bergau watching the waves and people watching - we love watching the sea waves as we live so far from the sea. We found the coastal walks suited us best but forest walks gave variety and insight to countryside. The little fish bar restaurant in the square in Villa da Bispo was excellent. Both the cook and bar man were so friendly in the evening. Our fish supper was simple but one of the best.

We had a lovely holiday. Great to be walking through herb scented hills in shorts and Tee shirts whilst it was windy and sleety back home. The coastal sections were spectacular though some of the inland sections became a bit monotonous. Possibly we were between flowering seasons. It may be a good idea to become a keen bird watcher. We enjoyed all the hotels which were clean, comfortable and in good locations, though to echo previous comments, Casa Fajara was a cut above. The staff are superb and the ambiance is stylish and yet cosy. A lovely hotel. A couple of eating recommendations. Lume Brando in Salema, A modern glass cube beyond the Sao Lourenco. It veers towards fine dining whilst using local ingredients and traditions. Expensive, but a lovely treat to start the holiday. Another glass cube in Carrapateira is the micro Bistro in the village square. The homemade lemonade and iced tea will revive you after a long dusty walk and the sandwiches take lunch to another level. Yum.

This is a beautiful part of Europe, and the walks were varied and interesting. We have been on many Inntravel holidays and this is one of our favourites.   We enjoyed the wild flowers which were everywhere in late February and perhpas we were lucky that the weather was sunny and warm almost every day.  We walked in shorts and t shirts.  Evenings were cooler. Hotels were good and fresh fish in local restaurants was excellent.

We really had the most wonderful walking holiday, in fact, one of the best holidays we can remember. Stunning varied scenery, amazingly diverse flora and, luckily for us, beautiful sunny weather and not much wind. Crashing waves, empty beaches, sand dunes full of life - and the scents from the orange and almond blossom and wild narcissi and freshias accompanies your walking. End February/early March is a perfect time to go. We met some lovely fellow Inntravel walkers too and had jolly, sociable evenings whilst keeping our independence during the day. We turned up exhausted, frazzled and recovering from the after-effects of flu, really wondering whether it was a good idea at all. We left feeling restored, healthy, and - given world events - strangely at peace with the world.

A particular 'thank you' to James for his advice for our second week, to go east to the Rua Guardiana. Such a contrast from the West of Algarve but lovely rural scenery so we continued with our walking, really getting into our rhythm in the second week and improving our fitness. Different plants and flowers and amazing birds - storks, eagles and flamingos. Maybe Inntravel could add some two week itineraries to your choice of holidays?

We had a truly wonderful time, especially as we only had an hour of drizzle which barely wet the waterproofs.

The walk notes are excellent, we hardly put a foot wrong and when we did, it was only because we had not been careful reading.

The wild flowers were unexpectedly diverse for February.

The second long day was the most memorable for scenery.

We could have stayed a lot longer at the wonderful Casa Fajara.

Perhaps the nicest restaurant meal was the superb fresh fish at Ribera do Poco in Vila do Bispo. As the village is quite big, it took us a while to find it. Perhaps a short note of where it is would help others? 

We were a group of 5 friends on this holiday, 2 of whom are keen bird watchers. For us the very well described and detailed walks meet our expectation of being neither challenging nor too easy, with enough time for spotting over 50 different bird species. We were probably too early for lots of flowers en route but the walking temperature was very acceptable. The friendliness of all that we met en route was a delight.

We really enjoyed this trip. Your restaurant suggestions are always helpful. Other good restaurants include Restaurante Farol de Santa Luzia in Alfama in Lisbon, Romaria de Baco in Sintra, and O Lourenco in Salema [on A Coast of Many Colours holiday]. A personal highlight in Lisbon was the carriage museum. A friend had told us about it, and it is fabulous. Your notes never even mention it. You should definitely suggest it. We got there on the tram.

INNTRAVEL NOTE: These customers combined our city break Lisbon & the Palaces of Sintra with our walk A Coast of Many Colours

The coastline portions were spectacular. We loved the ocean breezes. The inland portions could be hot if done at wrong time of year. The innkeepers were all delightful.  

Lovely walks in which we hardly encountered anybody. Always good terrain to walk on. Plenty of up and down hills, but nothing too steep, as per description. Great wildlife of birds, butterflies and insects. Fantastic beaches, but not always possible to swim due to the height of the waves. Excellent, punctual, friendly taxi service for us, and for our stuff, which was always there when we arrived. It’s definitely worth exploring towns and villages along the route. Breakfasts were always very good, and where meals were included - Pedralva and Casa Fajara - the food was excellent. A night in Faro was a good addition. We explored the old city the afternoon and evening we arrived, then spent a lovely half day going on the ferry to Ilha Deserta, before our return flight.

INNTRAVEL NOTE: These customers combined our Faro city add-on with our walk A Coast of Many Colours

This was one of the most successful holidays that we have done of this type. Combining the two holidays [A Coast of Many Colours and Along the Costa Vicentina] worked well for us and we were able to join the two holidays with a good walk, which completed the Fishermen’s Trail. The second week got progressively harder, with increasing distances of soft sand and dunes to walk through, but fortunately our fitness also improved. We walked in trainers with no big problems though we did have to empty sand out most days. The coastline is beautiful, with great scenery but not too much in the way of hills. We did see just two storks but it was late September. It was nice to be walking against the flow on Costa Vicentina (Fishermen’s Trail); it was quite busy North to South.

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Pleasant walking holiday with varied landscapes along the coast with sand dunes, valleys and wooded areas. Food at Casa Fajara was exeptional. Food at Sitio do Forno was highly variable and the fish very oversalted, so although the views are stunning, would recommend eating there with caution.

It was a particularly hot week for walks that offered little shade! However we enjoyed the holiday very much, with all arrangements running smoothly. The beaches we visited were spectacular and the hotels were all comfortable and friendly. We were very impressed with the accommodation in the last two villages, where each stay offered a unique setting with lovely facillities and  a relaxing environment.

A lovely walking holiday through rural, remote countryside seeing a wide variety of birds and butterflies. The real highlight was the walk into the abandoned village Pedralvo and also the high quality accomodation throughout but especially the last stop in Casa Fajara. Our best Inntravel hotel yet.

Our criticisms are minor, overall this was a superb experience and the choice of accommodation was wonderful. Case Fajara was sublime. This is our sixth holiday with you and no doubt we will be back!