Rebel
Guest
Fined and moved on in Portugal. Down in the Algarve region there are a few campsites along the coast, but very few North of the A22. Going from the Spanish border out towards the West Coast one has three options, the 125 slow road through the towns; the A22 motorway; or the EN270 scenic route. Obvious choice – the scenic route. Plenty of restaurants and gas stations, but guess what? No camp sites.
We parked with several others in Santa Catarina and spent our money in the local bar/restaurant, but had a cop waiting for us when we got back to the van. On the spot fine and moved on. We headed back towards Tavira and stopped to eat at Quinta Fonte Bispo, a rural tourism place, not a camp site and no facilities, but we stayed in their 6 acre landscaped garden for three nights.
We ate in their Bistro each night and joined in with the local ex-pats for Quiz night and karaoke night. But best for me was that the whole family who own the place are Elvis mad and we had an impromptu Elvis night where we took turns singing every Elvis, Cliff, Neil Diamond and Elton John song that you ever heard of.
Cost? Well I don’t think it was planned to be so, but we spent a fair amount of money and when it came time to leave, no-one asked us for any camping fee. We drove back to pay and were told it was “swings and roundabouts”, they enjoyed having us with them, so no fee. They are not interested in promoting motorhomes yet, but they have plenty of off-road spots, and I’m sure a tenner would do if you used their Bistro.
I’d like to add them to a list of sites, but I’m not sure what category to list them as. Any suggestions? Mail me if you want to know about the EN270 scenic route, or join some Elvis evening somewhere in Portugal.
Rebel (with a cause).
We parked with several others in Santa Catarina and spent our money in the local bar/restaurant, but had a cop waiting for us when we got back to the van. On the spot fine and moved on. We headed back towards Tavira and stopped to eat at Quinta Fonte Bispo, a rural tourism place, not a camp site and no facilities, but we stayed in their 6 acre landscaped garden for three nights.
We ate in their Bistro each night and joined in with the local ex-pats for Quiz night and karaoke night. But best for me was that the whole family who own the place are Elvis mad and we had an impromptu Elvis night where we took turns singing every Elvis, Cliff, Neil Diamond and Elton John song that you ever heard of.
Cost? Well I don’t think it was planned to be so, but we spent a fair amount of money and when it came time to leave, no-one asked us for any camping fee. We drove back to pay and were told it was “swings and roundabouts”, they enjoyed having us with them, so no fee. They are not interested in promoting motorhomes yet, but they have plenty of off-road spots, and I’m sure a tenner would do if you used their Bistro.
I’d like to add them to a list of sites, but I’m not sure what category to list them as. Any suggestions? Mail me if you want to know about the EN270 scenic route, or join some Elvis evening somewhere in Portugal.
Rebel (with a cause).
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