This is a bit of an odd one, and may need some creativity - not for those that want to just have it direct and easy, but this is reflected in the price at the peak holiday time, the August Bank Holiday week. You depart on 23rd August and return on 1st September. The flight times are decent too.
The flight to the Algarve departs from East Midlands and returns to Birmingham so bear this in mind. This is the best way of getting the flights for £139.96pp, otherwise you will pay alot more trying to return to and from the same airport. It is ideal for those that can easily access both airports. The flight outgoing is with Ryanair so it is only hand luggage at this price, however the flight returning to Birmingham is with Brussels airlines and has a short stop in Brussels. This flight does however include 23kg of luggage amd food on board!
For the hotel I was torn between a really cheap place called Terrace Club in Porches at £262.83 @ Alpharooms, which has OK reviews or a more expensive option in Lagos. In the end I thought the extra money was worthy of the better place to stay which is the Vilabranca Apartments in Lagos, with fantastic ratings and a Tripadvisor Certificate of Excellence, it has significantly better reviews and location in my opinion, and the apartments look so much nicer and they seem to have better amenities for families, however if you want to save you could go for the Terrace Club instead.
BREAKDOWN
Ryanair Flights East Midlands - Faro for 2 adults and 2 children £281.96
Brussels Airlines flights Faro - Birmingham (with a stop in Brussels) for 2 adults and 2 children Euro 392.16/£277.85 @ www.brusselsairlines.com
It really depends on what kind of holiday you're after - if you want a quieter time but still have access to the main hub bub and stuff going on, including the beach, I'd suggest staying somewhere like Salgados which is just along the coast from Albufeira itself....its really sad for me to say, but the whole Montechoro area has become very 'club 18-30' now, complete with the odd kebab shop here and there and VERY geared toward the British tourist trade (who can blame them though, you've gotta make money when/how you can haven't you?!), whereas Albufeira itself is still clinging onto its quant charm and retains some of its authenticity...
Like I said before, the country desperately needs the tourism trade as its a very poor (economically) country, so please please go! It's a stunningly beautiful country it really is, and entirely different to Spain......but it wouldn't be fair to send people there not knowing about the current issues following the floods...
Mark3209
11 Nov 15#10
Hmmm, tricky one this for a few reasons - the multi flights with kids can't be much fun, once there, there's not really that much going on in Lagos so a hire car in top is essential (I lived in the Algarve for 13 years), however, be conscious that large parts of the Algarve have recently been wrecked by severe flooding including downtown Albufeira, and given their economy and infrastructure, it's gonna take a long long time (years I'd suspect) to put back to 'presentable'....
I'd never stop anyone going there as frankly, the whole of Portugal relies massively on tourism, but it's certainly a consideration that needs to be made...
rachelandgromit to Mark3209
11 Nov 15#11
Would you recommend the other hotel in Porches? I've never been to Portugal but it may be really helpful if you could perhaps suggest other areas that may be more family friendly.
Yes for some people the flights may be tricky but the savings with a family of 4 could be substantial.
Gamer_U to Mark3209
11 Nov 15#12
Good point. A lot and by that I mean A LOT of people lost their goods and if it were to do with running their business then it was utterly ruined for the most part. This reminds me of another place but hopefully it never gets flooded again, if it does then its residents needs to be ready for it. Mother nature can be a bitch.
whatyadoinsucka
11 Nov 151#8
Ah the classic fly into one airport and back into another. One of my favourites, just need to arrange a lift or taxi as parking isn't really an option, easy enough though.
Flown out of liverpool and back into manchester a few times, airlines have always made flights out or back in cheaper, so it's an easy find, I tend to do it for croatia into one airport and out of another, be it dubrovnik, split or zadar, £8-10 coach fair between and you can save £50-60 a person, and it's somewhere else to see..
Fly into porto and out of lisbon is always a simple one too, ryanair do well cheap flights to porto , and first class train between the two, walk up rate was £12 a few years back
alex_3000
11 Nov 15#7
Just out of interest how long is the stop in Brussels?
rachelandgromit to alex_3000
11 Nov 15#9
Just 1hr 25 here you go:
I do the 'fly into one airport and back to another' alot such 'open jaw' options are always cheaper. I was half expecting to see the normal comments about it being a 'faff' so nice to see I'm not the only one who actually likes them!
miaas
10 Nov 15#5
A 9 day holiday with only hand luggage?
rachelandgromit to miaas
10 Nov 15#6
As I said you can add it on. I travelled 6 weeks on hand luggage so it depends how much you need to pack. You are in the Algarve in August you can't need that much luggage surely! 10k would do me more than enough. You get luggage on the return flight so you only need to add it on with Ryanair.....
Gamer_U
10 Nov 15#4
Guys, don't forget to try out roasted chicken, presunto and all the other delicious meats. Chips with flavour of presunto (jamón in Spain) are simply the best flavour in the world for me and yet none of the supermarkets in UK sell 'em. Not even Aldi! :disappointed:
rachelandgromit
10 Nov 152#3
Thanks. Sorry, someone was at the door and I got sidetracked....
andywedge
10 Nov 15#2
Thanks for posting. I've added the overall price (as per the OP) and an image.
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Opening post
The flight to the Algarve departs from East Midlands and returns to Birmingham so bear this in mind. This is the best way of getting the flights for £139.96pp, otherwise you will pay alot more trying to return to and from the same airport. It is ideal for those that can easily access both airports. The flight outgoing is with Ryanair so it is only hand luggage at this price, however the flight returning to Birmingham is with Brussels airlines and has a short stop in Brussels. This flight does however include 23kg of luggage amd food on board!
For the hotel I was torn between a really cheap place called Terrace Club in Porches at £262.83 @ Alpharooms, which has OK reviews or a more expensive option in Lagos. In the end I thought the extra money was worthy of the better place to stay which is the Vilabranca Apartments in Lagos, with fantastic ratings and a Tripadvisor Certificate of Excellence, it has significantly better reviews and location in my opinion, and the apartments look so much nicer and they seem to have better amenities for families, however if you want to save you could go for the Terrace Club instead.
BREAKDOWN
Ryanair Flights East Midlands - Faro for 2 adults and 2 children £281.96
Brussels Airlines flights Faro - Birmingham (with a stop in Brussels) for 2 adults and 2 children Euro 392.16/£277.85 @ www.brusselsairlines.com
Vilabranca Apartments £373 @ www.travelrepublic.co.uk
Transfers £56.02 @ www.hoppa.com using code VC22
Total £988.83/£247.20pp
13 comments
Like I said before, the country desperately needs the tourism trade as its a very poor (economically) country, so please please go! It's a stunningly beautiful country it really is, and entirely different to Spain......but it wouldn't be fair to send people there not knowing about the current issues following the floods...
I'd never stop anyone going there as frankly, the whole of Portugal relies massively on tourism, but it's certainly a consideration that needs to be made...
Yes for some people the flights may be tricky but the savings with a family of 4 could be substantial.
Flown out of liverpool and back into manchester a few times, airlines have always made flights out or back in cheaper, so it's an easy find, I tend to do it for croatia into one airport and out of another, be it dubrovnik, split or zadar, £8-10 coach fair between and you can save £50-60 a person, and it's somewhere else to see..
Fly into porto and out of lisbon is always a simple one too, ryanair do well cheap flights to porto , and first class train between the two, walk up rate was £12 a few years back
I do the 'fly into one airport and back to another' alot such 'open jaw' options are always cheaper. I was half expecting to see the normal comments about it being a 'faff' so nice to see I'm not the only one who actually likes them!
Here’s a ‘Help’ link which gives tips and advice on thread posting.