Algarve Nature Week 2015: 11 -19 April 2015

The first edition of Algarve Nature Week will start on 11th April 2015, running until 19th April.

Experience the Algarve this spring with a whole host of activities.
Europe’s most beautiful scenery and its most wonderful climate come together in the Algarve – and this spring is the perfect time to enjoy everything the region has to offer.

For those looking for an active outdoor break, Algarve Nature Week brings together the best of nature tourism in the region with a whole host of activities and special events taking place throughout the period.

Special accommodation offers in rural settings, hiking, bird-watching, donkey riding, biking, boat trips, balloon rides and even under water diving can all be experienced during this special week in one of Europe’s most recognized destinations.

Although the region is justly famous for its sun and sea, the Algarve has much more to offer in the way of natural beauty, and several Nature Week activities, both coastal and inland, have been designed to take advantage of this. Check out these unique experiences by visiting www.algarvenatureweek.pt and enjoy a very special week.

Follow this link for a detailed Nature Guide provided by the Tourism Board of the Algarve.

Find more information at:

http://www.algarvenatureweek.pt/pt/
www.facebook.com/algarvenatureweek

New VisiPortugal Travel Guide APP

Organize your itinerary in Portugal, online or offline, with the new VisitPortugal travel guide APP.

The Visit Portugal official travel guide allows you to organise your itinerary, obtain real time touristic information, access your personal account and your favourite content and search national databases. You may download information to access offline as well.

Available for smartphone and tablet, on iOs and Android operating systems, from App Store http://apple.co/1zXE202 and Google Pay http://bit.ly/18NUsBJ

Main reasons to use the Visit Portugal Travel Guide:

- It is free

- It is available in 10 languages: Portuguese, English, Spanish, German, French, Italian, Dutch, Russian, Japanese and Mandarin.

- It is available both online or offline, with no roaming expenses
Download information you need for your trip with access where and when you´d like.

- It has Augmented Reality
Use your device to have immediate access to real time touristic information.

- It has geo referenced information
While you are in Portugal, you can see what is closest to you from your geographic location.

- It provides touristic information
Touristic information and holiday suggestions at your disposal, according to your interests: Sun and Ocean, Mini holidays, Art and Culture, Religious Tourism, Nature, Outdoor Activities, Surfing, Golf, Nautical Tourism, Gastronomy and Wines, Health and Well Being, Romance, Family, Golf, Youth.
Free access to a database with 12000 equipments, distributed throughout 7 Portuguese regions: Oporto and North Region, Centre of Portugal, Lisbon Region, Alentejo, Algarve, Azores and Madeira.
Information about accommodation, touristic service companies, golf courts, museums, monuments and places, beaches, protected areas, useful telephone numbers, among many others.

- Provides access to Visitportugal´s personal account
Wherever you´d like, access your Visit Portugal account online and consult your favourite content

More Information at: http://bit.ly/1GqaSxY

Porto’s Airport is the third best in Europe

The Airport Francisco Sá Carneiro is once again among the three best European airports, after Keflavik, in Iceland, and Moscow.

This positioning is the result of the inquiries applied by the ACI-Airports Council International, which represents 450 airports from 45 countries, responsible for 90% of the commercial air traffic in Europe and for the handling of around 1.7 thousand million passengers per year.
On its press release, ANA – Airports of Portugal considers this distinction to be another positive factor for Porto’s international attractiveness, remembering that the city had also conquered in 2014 the European Best Destination Award.

Porto airport was in the top three between 2006 and 2011 and was voted by passengers as the best European Airport in 2007.

Source: ACI, Ana Aeroportos and Porto Tourism 

Step by step with Art and Science - Between Amoreiras and the Chiado

Visit eight Lisbon museums stopping at eight metro stations

The metro is not just the quickest form of transport in Lisbon. It has stops at key points on the route between Rato and the Baixa-Chiado, along which are eight iconic Lisbon museums:



- Museu Arqueológico do Carmo (Carmo Archaeological Museum)
- Museu do Chiado (Chiado Museum)
- Museu da Farmácia (The Pharmacy Museum)
- Museu Nacional da História Natural e da Ciência (National Museum of Natural History and Science)
- Museu Geológico (Geological Museum)
- Museu da Água da EPAL - Reservatório da Mãe d'Água e Reservatório da Patriarcal
(EPAL Water Museum - Mãe d'Água Reservoir and Patriarcal Reservoir)
- Museu Arpad Szenes-Vieira da Silva (Arpad Szenes-Vieira da Silva Museum)
- Museu de São Roque (Museum of São Roque). 

Visit eight Lisbon museums, stopping at eight metro stations. On the route between Amoreiras and the Chiado, one of the most culturally dynamic in the city of Lisbon, there are eight museums with collections as diverse as archaeology, history, art history, the fine arts and the sciences. What's more, the metro is itself a museum of modern and contemporary art, with amazing spaces which surprise for the boldness and artistic quality of their tiled walls. 

To complement the art and science tours, between January and August 2015 on the last Saturday of each month, there will be a free guided tour, by prior reservation, to each of the eight museums located between Rato and the Chiado to discover the close relationship that exists between the metro stations and the museums.

More information at http://arteeciencia.wix.com/

New routes from Edinburgh and Manchester to Madeira by easyjet

Easyjet increases its operation to Madeira, with new routes from Edinburgh and Manchester.

Since last 3rd of February 2015, easyjet started to fly from Edinburgh to Madeira, with two weekly flights.

Madeira Airport regains a direct connection to the capital of Scotland, that had been lost since 2009 when FlyGlobespanended operations due to bankruptcy.

Since 14th of February, easyjet is flying from Manchester to Madeira, also with two weekly frequencies.


Easyjet flies to Madeira since 2007, keeping two daily frequencies from Lisbon, six weekly frequencies from London Gatwick and three weekly frequencies from Bristol.

This extension of operation represents an increase of over 32 thousand potential arriving passengers to Madeira Airport.


In 2014, easyjet transported over 348 thousand passengers to Madeira Airport, occupying the 2nd position at the ranking of TOP airlines with a market share of 14%.

Source: Aeroportos da Madeira

World's Best International Marinas are in the Algarve: Vilamoura and Albufeira

The ceremony which took place on last 15th of January 2015, during the London Boat Show, Vilamoura and Albufeira Marinas, both located in the Algarve region, Portugal, have been awarded "Best International Marina" (1st and 2nd places).

Through an online vote, on the site of The Yacht Harbour Association, which took place between the months of November and December 2014, the National and International customers voted for the "Marina Of the Year 2015" Award in the category of Best International Marina 2015.

These awards considered the Oscars of Nautical Tourism are sponsored by The Yacht Harbour Association in conjunction with the British Marine Federation UK.

The vote of customers was based on the environmental criteria, safety, comfort, quality of infrastructure and services, as well as good management practices.

Vilamoura and Albufeira are both "5 Gold Anchor" marinas along with Lagos and Portimão representing the highest level of quality of marinas worldwide.

Find more information about these Marinas and the Algarve here:

- Marina de Vilamoura

- Vilamoura and its Marina

- Vilamoura Marina

- Marina de Albufeira

- Albufeira and the beaches

- Enjoy life in the marinas

- Nautical Tourism in Portugal

- Marinas and Yacht Harbours in Portugal

- Marinas and Yacht Harbours in the Algarve

- Cruising the Algarve coast

Source: The Yacht Harbour Association

Best Of Wine Tourism Awards 2015

The award ceremonies of "TOP 10 Vinhos Portugueses" (Portuguese Wines) and Best of Wine Tourism 2015, within the scope of the event "Essência do Vinho Porto" is set for 27 February.
The Best of Wine Tourism awards, given since 2003, are promoted by the Porto City Council as representative of the wine regions of Port, Douro and “Vinhos Verdes”, and as a member of the Great Wine Capitals Global Network. The best wine tourism services providers from the eight wine capitals in countries with a strong wine tradition apply for this competition.

In 2015, the Douro Museum won the international award in the category Art and Culture. As far as national awards are concerned, special mention goes to "Boeira Portugal in a bottle", in the category  Innovative Wine Tourism Experiences; "Conceitus Winery Restaurant", in the category Wine Tourism Restaurants; "Graham's 1890 Lodge", in the category Wine Tourism Services; "Quinta da Faísca", in the category Architecture and Landscapes; "Quinta das Escomoeiras", in the category Sustainable Wine Tourism Practices and "The Wine House Hotel - Quinta da Pacheca", in the category Accommodation.

At the same time will be launched the 2016 edition of the Best of Wine Tourism awards, a competition dedicated to all wine sector businesses covering the Port, Douro and “Vinhos Verdes” wine regions seeking for recognition for their visitors hosting ability as a means to promote their products and services, as well as to tour operators contributing to the development of wine tourism.

See here the Best of wine Tourism Guide 2015 

Source: Porto Turismo