Lagos is also a lovely resort we have stayed here. Plenty of shops to mooch around & some lovely restaurants

http://www.simplylagos.com/

Vilamoura is nice, we haven't stayed there but have visited a few times.

Thanks Glynis - have no idea where to go - was a bit put off by some reports of people being mugged/robbed - I know it was a year ago but this has rather worried me http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1392324/British-tourist-dies-brutal-attack-popular--Portuguese-holiday-resort.html

I've read/heard about these incidents Kristell. Lagos is a good way from Albufeira and nothing like it at all. It's mainly families out and about of an evening.

Another vote for Lagos from here, although we haven't been for a few years. Another alternative would be Albuferia but if you like Menorca etc you might find Albuferia a bit busy. I think the muggings & things were in the Albuferia area, but that said they were few & far between & probably near the strip very late at night.

Vilamoura is also nice, like Glynis we also haven't stayed there but visit every time we have been to the Algarve. It's purpose built, fairly upmarket with a Marina, I think there are a few hotels around the Marina that do Half Board.

The downside of Lagos is you probably wont be able to get AI. its more about getting a self-catering apartment and then either eating out or well - self catering a bit. I went when my kids were about 12 & 14, ate breakfast in the apartment, make picnics for the beach for lunch and ate out of a night.

Lagos is a long way from the airport, not a problem if you are on a package though as you should get an included transfer. Once you get there, there is probably enough shops, bars etc for a fortnight, also there are places that organise things like trips to slide & splash, which include transport.

You probably need to do a few searches on the various holiday sites & see what is available for your dates in your price bracket and come back on and see if any of us know of them.

Alvor might be worth a look as well, its another family resort that some people take a liking to and then go back to for the next 10 years.

Praia de Rocha is very 'high rise' and although it has a beautiful beach, probably isn't what you are looking for.

xxxx

Another vote for Lagos; it's a fair-sized town which has retained it's Portuguese fishing town authenticity whilst at the same time adapting very well to tourism. Lots of quality restaurants and friendly bars, both international and local and - at the last count at least -NO fish and chip shops; plenty of excellent fresh fish restaurants, though... oh,.. and one McDonalds on the outskirts of town - we're hoping that, if we ignore it for long enough, it'll go away!
... Beautiful beaches varying from vast, 5km expanses of gorgeous light sand to small, almost private, picturesque coves and, just a little further west, little hamlets barely touched by mass tourism at all but easily reachable on the local buses.
Don't worry too much about the press reports of crime; as is the case almost everywhere, crime happens and the Algarve is no exception but on closer inspection of newspaper coverage a recurring phrase seems to be ' at around 04:00 am' and there are thousands of places in my own country where I wouldn't dream of going at 4 in the morning!: in over twenty five years of visiting Lagos a couple or three times a year the only problem we've witnessed was a very short bout of fisticuffs between two Scotsmen who were a little the worse for wear (and the only thing they managed to hit was the pavement! ). Exercise basic common sense and you'll be as safe as houses.
The main streets come alive at night during the main season with entertainers - singers, dancers, jugglers and fire-eaters and there's usually a carousel in one of the town squares for the benefit of the tots.
The website Glynis recommends gives an accurate picture of the town and the dining recommendations are, in my view, absolutely spot on; I've tried all of them over the years and can vouch for their accuracy.The website is the property of a Canadian couple who visited Lagos many years ago and, like many of us, fell in love with the town and have purchased holiday properties there.
If you need any further information don't be afraid to ask.

Thank you for your suggestions it is sounding quite interest g.

I would say Lagos too

Not sure if you have started looking at properties in Lagos, but these are a few that are available. Lagos is spread out so if you are interested in any of these you will need to read up on what area they are, to ascertain their proximety to shops, restaurants, beaches, transport etc

Porta da vila apartments
http://portadavila.net/

Marina Club
http://www.marinaclub.pt/

Tivoli Lagos - this is a hotel and in a more central location
http://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/tvlagoslagos.en.html

Vilabranca apartments - these are on the outskirts of Lagos, main stream operaters like first choice used to go there.
http://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/vilafrancaapartamentos.html?aid=311076;label=hotel-38613-pt-avf9eEvpRxB4w3ohIjYKhwS4548100650;ws=&gclid=COuI5_uDh7ACFQ8htAodyGTzkg

Vitasol - this is on the outskirts of Lagos, and used to be called the Marina Park I beleive so you may find reviews under that name.
http://www.vitasolpark.net/

I stayed at the Marina Club approx 4 years ago, which was very nice & well located, but I believe a lot of extra buildings have gone up since then & one of the things you need to check is what you lookout would be We had a 1 bed pool view, but many have less attractive views, car parks etc

As well as the Marina Club there are privately owned apartments that you can rent around the Marina, but they won't have their own pool, however some owners have an arrangement whereby you can use the Marina Club pools, via a pool pass they will have organised.

Doe

Thanks Doe - those links are really useful.

We are big A/I fans Kristell and I've often fancied going back to the Algarve , a place we spent many lovely holidays before children . It's been a few years since I've looked and there wern't many A/I options when I last did . We are not keen on busy overun places but at the time The paraiso in Albufeira kept getting another look from me . It's not on the coast and I havnt checked reviews lately but it looks to be in a good position with an easy walk into the old town in one direction or the new town in the other . I've always quite liked the sound of the old town and the Paraiso seemed to have plenty going on for the teens . It's certainly worth a look .

Also following on from Lyn's thoughts, if you want AI there is one of those First Choice Holiday Villages as well which I beleive is very popular with families. not in Lagos though (not sure if there are any AI's in Lagos) but it's on the outskirts of Albuferia. So maybe another one for your list.

The Paraiso in Albufeira has (or at least had when we spent Christmas there a few years back ), a huge Thomas Cook kid's club and disco, so, if you want to avoid screaming kids, it's probably not the best place to consider. Albufeira also has it's fair share of Fish & Chip shops too and is probably the closest thing to Benidorm that the Algarve has to offer.
If you do decide on A/I, you'll miss out on some fantastic Portuguese cuisine; if your budget allows I would certainly recommend that you consider trying something other than A/I.

Tend to agree with Sagres - given the info in our original post it wouldn't have occurred to me to recommend Albufeira to you. I didn't reply earlier because it's a while since I've been to the Algarve and I know that some of the resorts have changed in that time eg Alvor is more developed now than when we used to go to that end of the Algarve so thought that any advice I could give probably couldn't be relied on. But if thought Albufeira probably wouldn't suit you on the basis of the way it was in the past then I am sure that the way the resort has developed it will have made it even less rather than more like what you are looking forward.

Lagos has become more developed too over the years but friends who own an apartment there assure me that its basic character hasn't really changed and feedback from others here suggests that is true. And given that there will possibly be 5 of you and a bit of a squash in the standard economy hire car, Lagos has the advantage of being something of a public transport hub - you'll be able to get around and visit some of the others places quite easily by bus.

And, yes, I'd give Praia de Rocha a very wide berth if I were you. It does have a beatiful beach but it is definitely my idea of high rise hell. I first went to the Algarve nearly 20 yrs ago on a cheap AOA and PdR was the first place that people were being dropped off from the transefer coach and I literally sat there praying 'Please don't let her call out our name'! Thankfully she didn't and we ended up in Alvor - basic but exceptional value for money right on the beach and within easy walking distance of the village centre. But the sight of PdR alone was enough to make me vow that I'd never ever do another AOA to the Algarve just in case. After that we always did DIY villa holidays.

SM

Not recommending it because I've never been before but the old town sounded at the time I did a bit of digging & research on the A/I's that were availabe (although I could be wrong) more attractive than the new part of town .

I've also been to Alvor many many moons ago and it was a beautiful place . The beach was fabulous there .. lot's of rocky coves that you could walk through in one direction and vast openess in the other with a sleepy little village behind but as I say a long time ago.

As a newbie to Portugal (our first visit was two years ago) I had asked for advice here on HT as to which resort would suit and was told Lagos. My needs other than A1 were pretty much the same as yours Kristell and Lagos didn't disappoint. It is quite a large place but still regains a small town feel in the centre with it's quaint alleyways, shops and restaurants. Not being beach holiday people as such we hired a car and were able to explore the surrounding countryside, where we found some lovely little villages and wild unspoiled beaches to the west, though we did enjoy our morning walks along the beach.
We stayed in the Vitasol Park Apartments, the apartment we had was large and well equiped but a bit of out of the main town, the walk back was especially hard work as it's situated at the top of a fairly steep hill, not best situated on a very hot day.
We have since transferred our affections to Sagres (No not the HT member, though he's a nice guy ) but the small town to the very west of the Algarve, but I think this appeals to people wanting a very active holiday,i.e surfing, climbing or hiking. It's a long way from Faro but the beaches are fantastic.
We intend returning to the Algarve on a pretty regular basis and I'm sure at some time we will stay in Lagos again.
BTW we did visit Alvor two years ago and found it very attractive and not at all crowded, though there was some buildingwork going on.

Agree re PDR SMa - we popped in, had a mooch around and popped straight back out again, we weren't keen on Armacao de Pera either.

Armacao de Pera .. thats the resort I was trying to think off ... We stopped there too the year after we went to alvor but cant remember it being that nice . Remember though we were teenagers in love at the time so we wern't really bothered much by our surroundings

Judith wrote:

We have since transferred our affections to Sagres (No not the HT member, though he's a nice guy

thought 'he' was a 'she' - don't know why - sorry!!!

We have since transferred our affections to Sagres (No not the HT member, though he's a nice guy ) but the small town to the very west of the Algarve, but I think this appeals to people wanting a very active holiday,i.e surfing, climbing or hiking. It's a long way from Faro but the beaches are fantastic.

And those who want a simple, quiet holiday relaxing I too really fell in love with the smaller resorts in the far west like Sagres and Burgau and this 'conversation' has reminded me of their delights. Now that the journey to Valle Gran Rey on La Gomera in the Canaries has become just a bit too taxing for my 84 yr old parents it's set me thinking that perhaps the time has come to re-visit that end of the Algarve. Yes, some distance from Faro but a shorter flight with a taxi transfer straight to where we'd be staying rather than flight-taxi-ferry-taxi. Must get searching

SM