This morning I’m jetting off to Albufeira in the Algarve with my Mam & the girls. This holiday was only booked a month ago, when my Dad was sick of hearing me moan about the lack of summer sun (as it was we did hit the 30 degree heatwave on our week in Scarborough ha ha) Cos he’s proper canny he is paying for us to go away so we can crack on with our house renovations which we need ALL the money for. When I get back our fitter/tiler & all-round handy man Kev will be ready to start on the bathroom & downstairs toilet. Bring on the dust!
Nerves
It sounds bizarre coming from a fully functional working 37-year-old but it’s actually pretty strange to be going away without Alan. We have been together since I was 18 and I’ve only ever been on one holiday abroad without him which was a weekend break to Prague many years ago pre-kids. I have never travelled with the girls before without him. I’m sure I’ll be fine but he is the one who remembers all of the chargers/adapters/travel docs so I’ll need to double-check we have all of these. I’m not alone as I have my Mam as my travel companion so sure between the two of us all will be grand.
Choosing a Hotel
Our main requests for this trip was all-inclusive. Yeah, there are pros and cons to every type of holiday, but for a week of no hassle & lots of choices, I don’t think you can beat it. Our first all-inclusive was three years ago to Majorca Puerto Pollensa which we loved. I have no plans to hire a car & we maybe will do a few bus excursions but I’m more than happy to just chill, kids in the pool & a book in hand.
Narrowing down hotels is always hard but having a personal recommendation is always good & a lovely lady Joan at work had just come back from Jupiter Albufeira from a trip with her daughter & grandkids & loved it. The hotel has recently been renovated with new owners taking over which is always a bonus.
Sunny Portugal
The Weather in the Algarve is also a major plus, with temperatures around 27 degrees and little rain. Our package deal with Jet 2 for a week in school holidays for the four of us came to £3500 so not cheap but the hotel is rated 5 stars in the brochure & has its own on-site water park, spa and a la carte restaurant. Fingers crossed it’s as good as trip advisor says it is!
Funnily enough, the hotel was previously the Montechoro, which was actually the location of our first trip abroad as a couple back in 2002. (Bring on the old photos).
We got a deal from Teesside airport & the hotel wasn’t all-inclusive then so we spent a lot of money on eating out every night!
For some bizarre reason, we went to the cinema & watched Spiderman with Portuguese subtitles with an intermission for ice cream. It’s strange the things that stick in your head! The area the hotel is in is not too far from the Albufeira strip which has tons of bars, restaurants & tat shops. I guess some people would hate this but we like to have things around our hotel & options for a walkout! Further afield there is the old town of Albufeira, the modern marina of Villamoura & the ZooMarine which I’ve heard is good.
Time to Chill
I’m really looking forward to the week.
Me and my Mam get on so well so it’ll be lovely to spend time with her. I’ll try to remember to take photos so can do a full trip report when I’m back! Have you been to the Algarve before?
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