Travels with archy and beyond

One of the delightful elements of this trip— besides the obvious one of its length—is the series of delightful places to stay we have discovered. With the sole exception of our Diamond Resorts International place in the Quinta do Lago area of Almancil on the Algarve, I don’t think we’ve stayed in a single place that is less than 200 years old. Everything is renovated, of course, and the rooms, although small, include in-suite bathrooms with showers, comfortable bedding and WiFi (not always real fast or secure but that’s Portugal). While the above is true of the Air BnB apartments we’ve stayed at, it’s the inns and guest houses that we’ve found so special. We’ve enjoyed most the personal attention and friendliness of the people operating them and how welcome we’re made to feel. Also, their locations are invariably in the old parts of the city, on tiny streets and many with views. And every place offers a delicious breakfast and as much of the savory, strong coffee we love.

Hotel do Colegio, Ponta Delgado, Açores, Portugal, April 19-20 and 22-23, 2022

Sines, Baixa Alentejo, Portugal, April 24, 2022

Évora, Alto Alentejo, Portugal, May 2-3, 2022

Casa do Relogio, Obidos, “Silver Coast”, Portugal, May 4–9, 2022

We stayed other places that were also very nice, mostly AirBnBs. These I’ve included because we received personal attention from our hosts with extras that made the experience both unique and special. Obligada a todos!