Search:

Home | Recreation And Leisure | Travel | Destinations       Free Articles on Destinations and many other topics


Vilamoura and the Golden Triangle of Portugal

By: Antonio Oliveira

Vilamoura is the name given to an area rather than to any actual town. It is outstanding in that it is one of the largest single tourist complex in Europe and covers some 2.000 hectares of land.

The land is variable in its vegetation, some parts covered in pine forests whilst others open recovered marshland. The company that owns this complex is extremely environmentally conscious and has made every effort is being made to protect nature within its continued planned development.

Due to the size of the resort area it offers the visitor nearly every form of sport and entertainment. On the southern border is a long sandy beach swept by the Atlantic Ocean.

Amongst the many attractions and facilities there are six different Golf Courses, a large Marina, a Lawn Bowling Club with two grass Rinks, a Tennis Centre, a Sports Club, a Shooting Club, 5 Star and 4 Star Hotels, Tourist Apartments, self-catering Villas, Night Clubs, an International Casino with glamorous shows, a Cinema, and an excellent Riding School.

Within the centre of Vilamoura there is a preserved Roman Site and Museum of Cerro da Vila providing an interesting glimpse into the past of the area. In Roman times this location was important in producing a fish paste known as "garum". The ruins also include the baths in which the mariners used to bathe.

As a location specifically designed for tourism it has proved to be a very successful holiday destination for all ages due to the variety of facilities that it provides holidaymakers.

Facilities include:
Restaurants
Cafes / Pubs
Post office
Banks
Petrol station
Supermarkets (with international products)
Railway station
Beautiful Marina
A large variety of Golf Courses

Approximate Driving time to Airports
Lisbon 2,5 hours
Faro 15 minutes
Porto 6,5 hours

Vale do Lobo is another part of the Golden Triangle and a history with success in the South of Portugal.

In 1962, was born the famous Vale do Lobo, the first tourist enterprise of Algarve, in south of Portugal. The project became real after the partnership of two multinationals: Trusthouse Fort plc and Costain plc.

When it was built, the area of Algarve was devoted fundamentally to the fishing and to the agriculture. With the arrival of the Vale do Lobo, the area met its first five stars hotel Le Meridien D. Filipa and its first golf course.

During the seventies, Sander van Gelder, the dutch entrepreneur linked to the industry of the jewellery store and diamonds with some stories in Holland, discovered the Vale do Lobo.

The enormous tourist potential of the resort attracted the entrepreneur, who acquired the company in 1977, moving with his family to Portugal. In that moment, Vale do Lobo won a new future, becoming a luxury tourist resort.

Nowadays, Vale do Lobo possesses about 400 hectares, attracting residents and visitors because of its self-sufficiency, quality of the homes and for the excellent infrastructures and services that please all. Vale do Lobo is known by being one of the most important luxury enterprises of Europe, being the largest one in Portugal.

In the end of 2006, the resort was sold to a group of portuguese and international investors, as well as to the largest portuguese bank, Caixa Geral de Depositos. For now, Vale do Lobo is commanded by Diogo Gaspar Ferreira, the new Executive President.

Because of this new investment, the structure receives enough financial support to be able to carry forward the actual plan of service and the future expansion. There are in development some of the most important projects, like the Oceano Clube (Vale do Lobo II) and Vale Real (Vale do Lobo III).

Vale do Lobo is located in the coastal area of the centre of Algarve, in a rich area in history where the sun appears during the whole year.

One of the attractive thing that justify the choice of the Vale do Lobo to live and to visit is their approximation to the Faro International Airport in about 20 minutes. The Vale do Lobo Golf and Beach Resort is only three hours of flight of most of the European capitals.

The resort is still about two and a half hours of the Portuguese capital, Lisbon, and of Seville, in Spain.

Enjoy the Golden Triangle of Portugal!

Article Source: http://www.articlepantry.com

Antonio is the webmaster of www.portugal-valedelobo.com, a site that offers a wide range of useful and helpful information about properties in Vale do Lobo. Visit his site for more informations.

Please Rate this Article

 

# of Ratings = 8 | Rating = 4.8/5

Additional Articles From - Home | Recreation And Leisure | Travel | Destinations

Sign Up for a free account or learn more.
Submit Articles
Member Login
Top Authors
Most Popular Articles
Submission Guidelines
Ezine Notifications
Article RSS Feeds
About Us
Link to Us
Contact Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service
Sitemap

Powered by Article Dashboard