Portugal Information
Monte Gordo is a large town, spaciously laid out with wide streets. The main road through Monte Gordo separates the beach and promenade from the rest of the town. o­n the town side, the road is lined with an array of shops, cafes, bars and restaurants and o­n the opposite side there is a wide, open promenade, with palm trees and benches and the golden sandy beach runs along in front.
Monte Gordo’s town centre is, again, incredibly spacious, with wide streets and flat cobbled areas. The town has an abundance of places to eat and drink, with large areas of outside seating. The flat cobbled pedestrian areas in and around the town make it easy for pushchairs or wheelchairs.
In general, this end of the Algarve is so flat that is ideal for walking and cycling and Monte Gordo is equipped with many places to hire bicycles if you want to get out and about. There are several golf courses close by (and more in construction), water sports of all kinds ( it's particularly good for kite surfing and wind surfing along this stretch of coastline), jeep safaris to inland lakes or leisurely boat trips along the Guadiana river.

Another nearby town of interest is Castro Marim. It has the remains of a castle o­n o­ne hill and a fort o­n the other. This is a large area of land which is home to some 153 species of birds, including storks, avocets, sandpipers and flocks of flamingos. There are also more than 400 plant species and various reptiles, amphibians and mammals.
This eastern end of the Algarve is quite different from the central and western
areas - being a lot flatter, and the beaches backed by sand dunes, not cliffs. The water tends to be a few degrees warmer as well. It is great for all ages - the beaches are fantastic for children and access is excellent for people with mobility problems. There are also plenty of restaurants, bars and cafes to suit all tastes and budgets.

Vila Real de Santo António 
At the end of the 19th century the town was a major canning centre for sardines and tuna. It is still a thriving community based o­n fishing, agriculture and tourism.
The riverfront is attractively laid out with trees and water features and there is also a marina where you can watch the boats.It has a large town square, which is edged with orange trees and populated with low white buildings, shops, cafes and restaurants.
Vila Real has a lovely open sandy beach, which stretches for several kilometres uninterrupted towards Manta Rota, near to Tavira.

A relaxing way to see this eastern end of the Algarve (and the western end of Spain) is to take a boat trip along the Guadiana to Alcoutim. It passes through some beautiful countryside and changes from the very flat scenery around Vila Real to a backdrop of rounded hills with lush vegetation and a few houses here and there until you arrive at Alcoutim. Here you can see castles o­n hilltops o­n both banks of the river as reminders of the past. 
If you haven't visited this area before do give it a try. The water is a few degrees warmer, the beaches are lovely and they certainly can't get crowded!

Cabanas is situated some 7km east of Tavira, at the beginning of the lagoons of the Ria Formosa Natural Reserve. Cabanas derived it's name from the huts (cabanas) that were erected during the early 18th century by then tuna fishermen to store their fishing gear in for the last 30 years tourism has also played an ever increasing role. What was, until a few years ago, a small, sleepy village with a handful of cafés, is now turning into a very popular tourist resort.

To the west of Cabanas lies the 'Octopus Capital' of the Algarve - Santa
Luzia! In latter years the fishermen of the village turned their talents to catching octopus and to this end lower clay pots to the sea bed in the shallower waters to lure the octopus in. Octopus is considered quite a delicacy although it can be an acquired taste!

Tavira If you can summon up the energy to leave Cabanas for an hour or two to explore a little further, then a visit to Tavira is a must. It is probably the most attractive town in the Algarve and despite the increasing numbers of
tourists who visit is still very much a Portuguese town. The riverside near the market building, with it's outside cafés and garden area, is always a good place to stop awhile and watch the world go by. The beach of Ilha de Tavira is just a short boat trip away from the town where you feel as if you have arrived at your very own desert island as the white sands stretch into the distance.
Tavira is a really attractive town with some lovely, quite grand, buildings reflecting it's wealthy past particularly around the Praça da República area and then typical rows of portuguese 'town' houses with tiled fronts along narrow cobbled streets; shops to browse in; pretty gardens and squares to sit in and, of course, plenty of restaurants and cafes for refreshments! The beach at Tavira is a fabulous island beach, Ilha de Tavira, a 14km long offshore sandspit. Ferries cross from the town centre throughout the summer and all year round from nearby Quatro