I Run Like A Girl

The second half of our week in Carvoeiro was just as beautiful as the first. If you missed my 1st post on Carvoeiro, check it out here!

Day 11: Day trip to Lagos

We had a fun day trip planned today to Lagos, a larger beach resort town and a 40-minute drive from Carvoeiro. Lagos was our second choice when researching this trip, but we didn’t choose it as I already visited Lagos 9 years ago when I volunteered on a bamboo farm in Portugal my summer after college. I came to Lagos on a weekend trip with the other volunteers, and while I had a blast back then, I wanted to stay somewhere new this time. Nevertheless, I was excited to see Lagos again almost a decade later, this time with Joe. 

We started off at Ponta da Piedade, a cliffside nature preserve area with hiking trails and access to the beautiful coast we’ve been enjoying throughout the trip. I remember this place blew me away 9 years ago, and I was curious if it would still evoke the same feelings now….it did. 

While all the scenery up to this point was incredible, Ponta da Piedade took the win. Somehow, the rocks were even bigger, the coast was even longer, and the sea seemed even vaster. Put together, this was one of my favorite scenic views of the trip. We spent a good amount of time here hiking all the way down to sea level and enjoying snacks with the views. 

Afterward, we headed to Old Town Lagos for lunch. Old Town was very cute. It was a large collection of tiled streets full of souvenir shops, international eateries, and historic charm. While it was touristy, this was one of my favorite downtown areas of the cities we visited as there was an easy, charming vibe. 

We passed by Lagos Castle, a medieval castle with walls surrounding the city.  

After a full day, we headed back to Carvoeiro for the evening. 

Day 12: Benagil Cave boat tour 

The next day’s activity was a boat tour! Boat rides are popular here as it’s the best way to access various caves underneath the cliffs we enjoyed up to this point. There were also kayak tours into the caves, but we opted for the boat. As we boarded the boat on Carvoeiro Beach, I laughed at how tiny the boat was. I don’t know why I was expecting a larger boat, but it only fit 10 of us. I would come to find that this was an advantage as we were able to explore harder-to-reach caves. 

The tour was 1.5 hours long; we rode along the coast and stopped at many spots. Our tour guide did a nice job distinguishing the different viewpoints and cracking jokes to keep the pace going. A lot of the ride was along the Seven Hanging Valleys Trail that we hiked, but it felt totally different as we got a new vantage point from the sea.

Our boat driver was a champ. He was able to fit into the tiniest openings. I held my breath as there were some close calls! You can see in this photo how tiny one of the openings was. These hard-to-reach caves were so unique. My only complaint was that there was major air pollution inside the caves as boat after boat let out exhaust without any place to vent. 

Finally, we made it to the highlight of the tour…Benagil Cave! This is on every must-do list for Portugal, as it’s considered one of the most beautiful caves in the world. You may also recognize it as a background on Microsoft laptops. 🙂 I thought this was very cool, however, it was quite crowded as many boats/kayaks lined up to view the cave. Apparently, it gets even more crowded in the summer months!  

We completed the boat tour and got lunch in town. After a couples massage and downtime at the Airbnb, we headed to the town of Ferragudo for dinner. Ferragudo is a small fishing village and a 10-minute drive from Carvoeiro. We ate dinner at Club Nau, a swanky beach club right on the beach. This was a treat as we enjoyed our meal while watching the sunset. 

I thought this beach was nicer than Carvoeiro Beach — much larger and comfortable for a beach day. We got ice cream and walked along the boardwalk while enjoying golden hour. 

Day 13: Scenic plane ride + pool day 

The next day, we had another special activity planned…a scenic plane ride over the Algarve Coast! Joe found a company that provided private plane rides (Air Emotions) at a fraction of the cost in the U.S., and so we jumped on the opportunity. Anyone who knows Joe knows that he loves airplanes, and while I was skeptical, I was excited to have this experience with Joe and see his passion come to life. 

We rode in a 4-seat Cessna airplane. Our pilot was incredibly friendly and made us feel at ease. Once the pilot found out about Joe’s passion for planes, he seemed even more eager to give us a great experience. Joe sat up front chatting away with the pilot while I had the back to myself. 🙂 

The entire ride was 45 minutes as we rode along the Algarve Coast. We cruised at a low elevation (1500 feet) which allowed us to enjoy the views down below. We made it to Cabo de São Vincente, the southwestern most point of Europe! I didn’t have any expectations, but this ride far exceeded them!

The highlight of the ride was when Joe took over the controls for an entire section. Let’s just say pilots are a little more relaxed in Portugal. 😉 He did a wonderful job keeping the plane steady. It was a vast improvement from when I rode with him during a flight lesson a few years ago. All those hours on the flight simulator have paid off. 😉 I was thrilled watching him fly. 

The plane ride was incredibly memorable and definitely a highlight for us!!

After coming down from the adrenaline, we decided to take it easy for the rest of the day. We picked up pastries at Fábrica Velha and had a pool day. Perfection. 

Day 14: Travel day + Portugal reflection 

On our last day, we said goodbye to our adopted cats (*tear*) and drove back to Lisbon (3 hours). We stayed in Lisbon for one night before flying out the next day.

Now in my usual blogging fashion, I have some post-trip reflection…

This was my first time in Europe in 8 years (my last time was Iceland in 2016). If you’ve been following my blog, you’ll know I’m an Asia girl. Over the last few years, I focused on traveling to Southeast Asia as I wanted to see it when I was in my 20s and was willing to rough it. I always thought Europe would be better experienced when I was older. Returning to Portugal after a long hiatus reopened my eyes to the joys of traveling in Europe! A big reason for that is now I’m enjoying traveling with Joe where we can split costs and enjoy nicer amenities. I’m excited to add more of Europe to our bucket list. 

When I told this to Joe, he said that I finally opened my eyes to the joys of amenities. It only took me to turn 30 to realize this. 😉 

After my post-college Europe trip, Portugal was my favorite country — mostly because I spent the most time there working on the bamboo farm. After this second visit, that holds even more true! While Portugal is still quite touristy, there’s an underrated aura compared to other countries in Western Europe. To anyone choosing a country to visit, I can’t recommend Portugal enough! There’s something for everyone between the big cities, wine countryside, and beachy coast…

The people here are incredibly pleasant. Every native we interacted with was so friendly and willing to help. I never sensed any xenophobia or frustration as tourists — something I remain aware of in other countries. The general pleasantries made our day-to-day so easy. Also, NO SCAMS! I expect to encounter at least one overpriced / sketchy salesperson on each trip, but (to my knowledge) that didn’t happen in Portugal…

After this second visit, Portugal has even more of a special place in my heart. Our visit brought up many positive feelings. By revisiting the same place after almost a decade, I can’t help but celebrate how far I’ve come.