Beach Time
The plan for today was to stay close to my resort in the little parish of Luz where I am staying. The day started with a sleep in…yippee…and then off to the restaurant for breakfast. I hadn’t seen much of the property since I arrived and I finally took it all in…so lush and clean. The resort is made up of five separate complexes connected by winding cobblestone walkways, beautiful gardens, various pools and restaurants, as well as a spa/gym…a tiny oasis in the middle of town.
After breakfast I decided to take a walk through town and head towards the beach. Luz is a small, sleepy fishing village with a population of 3,500 people and about 15 minutes outside Lagos. There are several resorts and tourist accommodations, as well as restaurants in the area, but the beaches are why people come to the Algarve.
Praia da Luz is a good size beach and this time of year not overly busy. I walked the entire length to the cliffs and found a secluded area to sit for a while and enjoy the sounds of the Ocean…love…while enjoying the sun which unexpectedly decided to appear. The sand was fairly soft and white with moss covered rocks along the way…some similarities to PEI .
After catching some rays I decided to meander my way back to the resort for lunch and see what else Luz had to offer. Every street I took had vegetation and flowers that were so beautiful and manicured.
Along the beach there’s a cobblestone walkway with little beach shops and restaurants, including some benches overlooking the ocean, which I took advantage of.
After lunch I found my way to the pool to chill for a bit and enjoy the nice weather...it was supposed to be overcast all day, so I am not complaining about the clear skies. The resort is not overly big and the people are really quiet here, but the pool felt cold, so no swimming for me.
When I finally felt like I had enough sun for the day, I decided to take advantage of having a car, so headed out to see a few of the beaches that rated high in the area. People come to the Algarve because of the beaches and stunning cliffs that create a beautiful backdrop. About 10 minutes away I found Praia do Camilo…a stunner!!
At the entrance to the beach there is a lookout and a walkway down to the beach area. It was quite beautiful with the terracotta colour cliffs that are clearly eroding and somewhat fragile looking…it also gives them their elegant charm.
The sand was not overly impressive however...rough and in some areas big shells that had not been crushed down to sand yet. But the views made up for all that.
Once I had a good look around and took some photos, I decided to try out one more beach that was near by....Praia de Dona Ana.
What I didn’t realize until later was that these two beaches were fully connected by a massive boardwalk with lookouts.
Lots of development in the area as well and it is clearly a popular location for tourists and beach goers based on all the cars. I walked both sides of the boardwalk taking in the incredible views…I was not disappointed.
Until tomorrow....share in the experience.
Lisa