Portugal’s prime minister, Luís Montenegro, expressed his conviction today that the “overwhelming majority of working Portuguese people” will go to work tomorrow – the day of the general strike. Upon
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A court in Lisbon decided today to suspend the 13-year prison sentence facing former banker Ricardo Salgado, 80, due to his having Alzheimer’s disease. In today’s session at the Central
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Portugal’s CHEGA party has held a press conference today to say the party will propose in parliament that any worker should be able to retire after 40 years of contributions
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A Portuguese lawyer suspected of having helped to illegally regularise the status of around 4,000 immigrants in Portugal has been remanded in custody today, while his co-defendant, an Indian businessman, is
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Minister of foreign affairs, Paulo Rangel, has expressed confidence regarding Portugal’s chances of returning to the UN Security Council – saying the country’s greatest asset in this regard is its
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The weather in mainland Portugal is set to change from today, with temperatures expected to drop to 6º-7ºC, and strong winds, IPMA meteorologist Maria João Frada has told Lusa news
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When we think of stunning beach destinations our minds immediately flit to the likes of the Maldives and Bora Bora.
However, it turns out the world’s leading beach destination is much closer to home, in Portugal.
In the World Travel Awards – considered to be the ‘Oscars of Tourism’ – the Algarve won out for a record-breaking fourth time, beating idyllic destinations like the Maldives, Jamaica, the Galapagos Islands, and Turks and Caicos.
This Portuguese tourism hotspot claimed the title in 2024, 2021, and 2020, with the Philippines briefly dethroning it in 2022 and 2023.
Other nominees in the category this year included the Seychelles, Maui, Indonesia, Costa Navarino (Greece), Porto Santo Island (Madeira) and Zanzibar – so there was certainly some stiff competition.
But having been crowned Europe’s Leading Beach Destination 10 times over the past decade, it’s clearly a firm favourite.
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With 200 kilometres of beaches between the southwest coast near Aljezur and the eastern end close to Vila Real de Santo António, the Algarve proved a hit with this year’s competition judges, who ranged from tourism professionals to press and travellers.
Coupled with white sand, clear sea, and a tepid climate with 300 days of sunshine a year, it remains a sure-fire choice for those who like to sunbathe.
Of the more than 100 beaches in the region, the most pristine offerings can be found on the Costa Vicentina, while more cosmopolitan coastlines surrounded by resorts are dotted between Lagos and Faro.
There are also 88 Blue Flag beaches in the Algarve – one of the largest concentrations of BF titles in Europe. To qualify as a Blue Flag, the water quality, environmental management and cleanliness must be of an excellent standard.
7. Praia da Luz – Luz
8. Praia Sao Rafael – Albufeira
9. Praia dos Tres Irmaos – Alvor
10. Praia da Gale – Gale (near Albufeira)
Last year, 4.4 million Brits flocked to Portugal, many of them heading to the popular resorts of the Algarve.
According to Beverley Boden, head of aviation, tourism, and finance at Teesside University, affordability is a major factor in its popularity.
‘Living costs are much lower than the UK, making it attractive for both short breaks and long-term stays,’ Beverly tells Metro. ‘With the usual appeal of a short flight, more departure points and extremely cheap fares, all contributing to the appeal.’
@emwanderstheworld Discover the beautiful Algarve region of Portugal🍊🌊🌞💌🪴👙🐟🍓🇵🇹 The Algarve has the most beautiful blue waters and the cutest coastal towns! I cannot recommend this destination enough!💛 Make sure to walk to Ponta da Piedade and the Seven Hanging Valleys trail🥾🌊 I stayed in Lagos during my trip but recommend towns such as Carvoeiro or Portimaõ as well! You simply can’t go wrong!💌 #algarve #algarveportugal #lagos #portugaltravel #portugal #interrail #solotravel #backpacking #visitportugal #creatorsearchinsights #portugalsummer
♬ DAISIES – Justin Bieber
The expert claims that the reason Algarve’s beaches often outrank those in East Asia and the Caribbean is in part because they’re ‘stunning’, but also because of their proximity.
‘In essence, it is a taste of paradise on your doorstep with guaranteed sunshine for cash strapped Brits,’ she adds.
‘The destination has natural charm, and the government has taken swift action to preserve its culture and crack down on unsavoury behaviour, adding to its appeal.’
Nikolaus Thomale, co-founder at holiday home co-ownership platform MYNE agrees, telling Metro: ‘The beaches are spectacular and the quality of villas and holiday homes is exceptionally high.
‘It’s also incredibly easy – there’s great infrastructure, English is widely spoken, fantastic food, and a sense of safety that families really value.
‘Simply the best choice for anyone looking for sunshine without the stress.’
Metro‘s travel editor Kristina Beanland has been to the Algarve 21 times and is well-versed on how to avoid the tourist traps and stuffy crowds.
A staple part of our family holiday to the Algarve always included a boat trip on the River Arade, inland towards the historic town of Silves,’ she says.
‘Cruising the calm waters, with lunch and a (usually too warm) vino verde is a novel way to travel. Tours on a traditional fishing boat depart from Portimão, with prices from €35.
‘Silves feels like a time warp. Stroll along cobbled streets before heading up to the imposing ochre-coloured castle, which costs just €2.80 to enter.’
Ferragudo is another must-visit for Kristina – a quaint fishing village, not far from popular Albuferia.
‘Growing up, this place felt untouched by tourists, and while it’s now getting more attention from those in the know, you can still feel like you’re experiencing authentic Algarve here,’ she says.
‘Stroll along the cobbled streets and stop for a coffee and a tosta mista (a glorified toasted ham and cheese sarnie — but they somehow do them differently in the Algarve).
‘Wander along the harbour, where you’ll see fishermen bringing in their catch, or chefs in restaurants, barbecuing the fish. There are beautiful beaches to spend your days at here.’
Madeleine McCann was just three years old when she went missing from the apartment she had been sleeping in during a family holiday to Portugal.
The little girl’s disappearance sent shock waves around the world and sparked a massive investigation that continues to this day.
Christian Brueckner, a 48-year-old German, is the main suspect in the case, and he is currently behind bars for raping an American woman in the Algarve area where Maddie went missing.
But a fresh search near where the toddler was last seen 18 years ago, covering 20 properties, cisterns, wells and ruins, has begun.
This search will be focused more on groundworks and roadworks, which had been taking place when Madeleine disappeared. Police fear she may have been buried in trenches near Praia da Luz.
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Germany’s FBI, known as the BKA, is using ground-penetrating radar to see if it can find any traces of the young British girl.
But just when did Madeleine McCann go missing – and how old would she be today?
Madeleine McCann was on a spring break from the UK at the child-friendly resort of Praia da Luz in the Algarve region of Portugal with her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, and her two-year-old twin siblings.
She and the twins had been left asleep at 8.30 pm in the evening of May 3, 2007, in their ground-floor apartment while her parents and a group of family friends dined in a restaurant 55 metres away.
Mr McCann checked on the children just after 9 pm and found everything to be in order.
Another parent, eating out with the McCanns, Jane Tanner, walked past the flat where the McCanns were staying on her way back to look in on her own children and saw a man carrying a small child.
Another of their friends checked on the McCann children as well as his own at 9:30 pm, and Kate McCann took a turn checking on Madeleine and the twins at roughly 10 pm. This time, Madeleine was nowhere to be found.
The police were called, and even though 60 hotel staff and guests searched the grounds that night, the child wasn’t found.
The man Jane saw became a primary suspect in the investigation into the three-year-old’s disappearance. However, the Metropolitan Police discovered six years later that the man had nothing to do with the case and was just carrying his sleeping daughter home from a creche.
Maddie’s parents, from Rothley, Leicestershire, have vowed never to give up hope of finding their daughter.
Up Next
Madeleine McCann would be 22 today. She was born on May 12, 2003.
She has been missing for over 18 years now.
Last year, parents Kate and Gerry shared a message on Maddie’s 21st birthday saying they are ‘still looking’ and ‘still missing’ their daughter.
The message, accompanied by a picture of the toddler, read: ‘Happy 21st birthday Madeleine. Still missing. Still missed. Still looking.’
Brueckner has denied all the charges against him and any involvement in Maddie’s disappearance.
Brueckner is known to have frequented various areas in the Algarve region surrounding Praia de Luz.
Up Next
He allegedly exposed himself to a German girl on a beach in Salema in April 2007 and is said to have sold cannabis to teenagers near the holiday apartment where the McCanns stayed, according to MailOnline.
Multiple searches have been carried out in Portugal and Germany over the years, including a remote reservoir in Algarve.
In May 2023, authorities searched the Arade dam reservoir northeast of Praia da Luz, where Brueckner is thought to have stayed often in his Volkswagen T3 camper van, but didn’t find anything of note.
He may have visited the spot around the time of Maddie’s disappearance.
When searching an abandoned factory owned by Brueckner, detectives made disturbing findings they have revealed now, including children’s clothes, toys and a suitcase full of images of young girls.
They also found more than 75 children’s swimming costumes, a handgun and chemicals, which were never tested before police destroyed them. They are thought to have been chloroform or ether.
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Police in Portugal have begun using radar to scan roadwork trenches for any traces of the body of Madeleine McCann.
Madeleine was three when she disappeared on May 3, 2007, during a family trip to the child-friendly resort of Praia da Luz in the Algarve region.
Authorities launched a fresh search near where the toddler was last seen 18 years ago, covering 20 properties, cisterns, wells and ruins, according to sources close to the investigation.
This search will be focused more on groundworks and roadworks, which had been taking place when Madeleine disappeared. Police fear she may have been buried in trenches near Praia da Luz.
Police received a tip-off after suspect Christian Brueckner’s trial last year about where someone who took Maddie’s body would dump it, prompting the new search with high-tech ground-penetrating radar.
Germany’s MI5, known as the BKA, is using ground-penetrating radar to see if it can find any traces of the young British girl.
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A nearby property, which was used by the suspect Brueckner, 48, will also be a focal point.
The German national used a cottage just half a mile away from where she disappeared as a ‘rat-run’.
Though this is the first major search for Madeleine in nine years, there are worries police may not find anything.
The last major search was in June 2014, and saw British police dig around Praia da Luz with sniffer dogs and use ground-penetrating radar.
Those Scotland Yard digs were linked to the theory that Madeleine died during a break-in and burglars dumped her body nearby.
British officers also failed to produce any evidence pointing to the missing youngster’s whereabouts.
Up Next
Ground-penetrating radar, which is being used by German authorities in Portugal right now, uses high-frequency radio waves to detect any changes in the soil.
The transmitted waves, when returned back to the receiver at the surface, can help create a sort of topographical map of the soil beneath the operator’s feet.
The technology was used in Canada to identify burial sites on the grounds of former residential schools, where hundreds of indigenous children were found.
Kisha Supernant, who works at the University of Alberta, previously explained how the tech works.
‘When we’re using it to try to locate potential unmarked graves, what we’re really doing is we’re sending that signal through the ground and then trying to create a map of what we think we see below the surface,’ she told the Vancouver Sun.
‘When you dig a grave, you disturb the soil … and ground-penetrating radar can sometimes detect that change in the soil from the digging of the grave itself.’
May 3, 2007: Kate and Gerry McCann leave their children asleep in their holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, while they dine with friends. They check on their children three times throughout the night, and, at 10pm, they find her missing
May 14, 2007: Police take property developer Robert Murat in for questioning and make him a formal suspect – this is later withdrawn.
August 11, 2007: 100 days after her disappearance, detectives acknowledge that she could be dead.
September 7, 2007: Maddie’s parents become formal suspects in their daughter’s disappearance.
September 9, 2007: The McCanns return to England with their two-year-old twins.
July 21, 2008: Portuguese authorities shelve the investigation and remove the McCanns and Murat as suspects.
May 12, 2011: Kate McCann publishes a book about her daughter’s disappearance on her eighth birthday
April 25, 2012: Scotland Yard detectives say they believe Madeleine could still be alive and release a picture of how she may look as a nine-year-old. They ask Portuguese police to reopen the case, but they say they have found no new information.
July 4, 2013: Scotland Yard confirms it has launched its own investigation and says it has identified 38 people of interest, including 12 Britons.
October 24, 2013: Portuguese police decide to reopen the case
June 3, 2020: Police reveal that a 43-year-old German prisoner, later named as Christian Brueckner, has been identified as a suspect in Madeleine’s disappearance.
January 29, 2014: British detectives fly out to Portugal
June 3, 2024: Sniffer dogs and specialist teams are used to search an area of scrubland close to where Madeleine went missing.
December 12, 2024: Detectives begin questioning 11 people who it is thought may have information on the case.
September 16, 2014: The Government states that the investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance has so far cost £10 million
October 28, 2014: Scotland Yard cuts the number of officers working on the inquiry from 29 to four.
April 30, 2017: The McCanns mark 10 years since her disappearance with a BBC interview.
May 3, 2019: Local media reports say Portuguese detectives are investigating a foreign paedophile as a suspect in the abduction of Madeleine.
June 3, 2020: Police reveal that a 43-year-old German prisoner, later named as Christian Brueckner, has been identified as a suspect in Madeleine’s disappearance.
April 21, 2022: Christian Brueckner is made a formal suspect by Portuguese authorities.
October 11, 2022: Brueckner is charged with three counts of rape and two charges of child sex abuse, unrelated to Madeleine’s disappearance.
May 3, 2023: Kate and Gerry McCann mark the 16th anniversary of Madeleine’s disappearance by saying she is “still very much missed” and that they ‘await a breakthrough’.
May 22, 2023: An area near the Barragem do Arade reservoir, about 30 miles from Praia da Luz, is sealed off as police prepare to start searching on May 23.
May 23, 2023: Searches begin with police divers in the water and officers with sniffer dogs and rakes seen on the banks.
June 23, 2023: A man named Helge B claimed to the German newspaper Bild that Brueckner almost confessed to killing Maddie, allegedly telling him ‘she didn’t scream’ when the pair talked about the case at a music festival
July 11, 2023: The German prosecutor involved with the case warns not to ‘expect too much’ from the search.
February 16, 2024: Brueckner’s trial starts over three counts of alleged rape and sexual abuse of two children not connected to the Madeleine investigation
October 8, 2024: He is acquitted of all the allegations due to ‘insufficient’ evidence. An appeal over the acquittal is launched, which is still ongoing
March 27, 2025: A 60-year-old woman is charged with stalking the McCann family
May 3, 2025: Maddie’s parents Kate and Gerry McCann mark the 18th anniversary of her disappearance with a heartbreaking message
September 17, 2025: This is the date Brueckner could be released from prison if no further charges are brought
Brueckner has denied all the charges against him and any involvement in Maddie’s disappearance.
Brueckner is known to have frequented various areas in the Algarve region surrounding Praia de Luz.
He allegedly exposed himself to a German girl on a beach in Salema in April 2007 and is said to have sold cannabis to teenagers near the holiday apartment where the McCanns stayed, according to MailOnline.
Multiple searches have been carried out in Portugal and Germany over the years, including a remote reservoir in the Algarve.
He may have visited the spot around the time of Maddie’s disappearance.
When searching an abandoned factory owned by Brueckner, detectives made disturbing findings they have revealed now, including children’s clothes, toys and a suitcase full of images of young girls.
They also found more than 75 children’s swimming costumes, a handgun and chemicals, which were never tested before police destroyed them. They are thought to have been chloroform or ether.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Fears are growing for a British tourist who has been missing for four days after a night out in Portugal’s Algarve.
Greg Monks, 38, had travelled to the party resort of Albufeira for a five-day stag do.
His parents and his girlfriend Nicole Ashleigh Kelso have now flown to the nearby Faro Airport to search for the Glaswegian as his disappearance is seen as ‘completely out of character.’
His sister Jillian sounded the alert on Friday, saying that he had last been seen in the early hours of Wednesday on his way back to the apartment he was staying in.
She wrote on an Albufeira website for UK expats: ‘My brother has not been since Tuesday evening.
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‘If you are currently there and have any information place contact me with any info.’
Jillian revealed that police had placed her brother around Cerro da Aguia, a ridge overlooking the coastline, on the outskirts of Albufeira, on the night he vanished.
The hill with residential properties is more than an hour’s walk west of the Albufeira Strip where Greg is thought to have left his friends, whereas the Novochoro Apartments he had checked into on Tuesday night is a 30-minute walk north.
Responding to the wave of support from British holidaymakers and expats as well as locals, Jillian said in a new Facebook post late last night: ‘Hi all.
Thank you for all information and shares and we truly appreciate it. There have still been no sightings or no updates at present.
‘As previously stated, this is so unlike Greg and we are truly desperate for answers.
‘I am now seeking help from residents of the Cerro da Aguia area to please check any home cameras or doorbell footage around between 2am and 5am on Wednesday as police believe he was in the area around this time.
‘Please share this if you know anyone in the area. Asking for people that live in Cerro da Aguia that have cameras that cover the street or parts of the street to send me a message with their name and phone number.’
Hospitals have been checked without success, but police are not thought to have yet carried out an exhaustive search of medical centres.
Jillian described Greg as a ‘really hard worker’ in his job and a ‘quiet guy’ whose disappearance immediately ‘threw up a red flag’.
She also revealed that he has a Thor-type Viking unfinished tattoo at the top of his right arm which would be visible if he was wearing a vest top or had no shirt on.
A GoFundMe appeal set up on behalf of the family to help the hunt for Greg has reached more than £12,500 this morning.
Organiser Gillian McCallum wrote on behalf of the tourist’s parents: ‘Our son Greg Monks went to Portugal for a stag do on Tuesday, May 27, and on the first night back out there he never returned to his hotel and has now been missing for three days.
‘We are desperately seeking Greg’s safe return and need your help.
‘There are professional search teams out looking for Greg and the family have all flown out to try to help find him but don’t know how long their stay will be.
‘They are doing everything they can. Every donation, no matter the size, will make a difference in our efforts to bring Greg home.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Madeleine McCann was just three years old when she went missing from the apartment she had been sleeping in during a family holiday to Portugal.
The little girl’s disappearance sent shock waves around the world and sparked a massive investigation that continues to this day.
Christian Brueckner, a 48-year-old German, is the main suspect in the case, and he is currently behind bars for raping an American woman in the Algarve area where Maddie went missing.
Prosecutors fear time is running out as Brueckner is nearing the end of his seven-year sentence for the 2005 rape.
Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.
But just when did Madeleine McCann go missing – and how old would she be today?
Madeleine McCann was on a spring break from the UK at the child-friendly resort of Praia da Luz in the Algarve region of Portugal with her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, and her two-year-old twin siblings.
She and the twins had been left asleep at 8.30pm in the evening of May 3, 2007, in their ground floor apartment while her parents and a group of family friends dined in a restaurant 55 metres away.
Mr McCann checked on the children just after 9pm and found everything to be in order.
Another parent eating out with the McCanns, Jane Tanner, walked past the flat where the McCanns were staying on her way back to look in on her own children and saw a man carrying a small child.
Another of their friends checked on the McCann children as well as his own at 9:30pm, and Kate McCann took a turn checking on Madeleine and the twins at roughly 10pm. This time, Madeleine was nowhere to be found.
The police were called, and even though 60 hotel staff and guests searched the grounds that night, the child wasn’t found.
The man Jane saw became a primary suspect in the investigation into the three-year-old’s disappearance. However, the Metropolitan Police discovered six years later that the man had nothing to do with the case and was just carrying his sleeping daughter home from a creche.
Maddie’s parents, from Rothley, Leicestershire, have vowed never to give up hope of finding their daughter.
Up Next
Madeleine McCann would turn 22 on May 12, 2025.
She has been missing for over 18 years now.
Last year, parents Kate and Gerry shared a message on Maddie’s 21st birthday saying they are ‘still looking’ and ‘still missing’ their daughter.
The message, accompanied by a picture of the toddler, read: ‘Happy 21st birthday Madeleine. Still missing. Still missed. Still looking.’
A new documentary following the Madeleine investigation by The Sun will air on Channel 4 tonight.
It claims to provide evidence to show that Madeleine is dead, including the disturbing findings made at the abandoned factory used by Brueckner.
The investigative documentary will be first shown tonight at 9pm on Channel 4 and on 4 on Demand streaming platform.
Brueckner has denied all the charges against him and any involvement in Maddie’s disappearance.
Brueckner is known to have frequented various areas in the Algarve region surrounding Praia de Luz.
Up Next
He allegedly exposed himself to a German girl on a beach in Salema in April 2007 and is said to have sold cannabis to teenagers near the holiday apartment where the McCanns stayed, according to MailOnline.
Multiple searches have been carried out in Portugal and Germany over the years, including a remote reservoir in Algarve.
In May 2023, authorities searched the Arade dam reservoir northeast of Praia da Luz, where Brueckner is thought to have stayed often in his Volkswagen T3 camper van, but didn’t find anything of note.
He may have visited the spot around the time of Maddie’s disappearance.
When searching an abandoned factory owned by Brueckner, detectives made disturbing findings they have revealed now, including children’s clothes, toys and a suitcase full of images of young girls.
They also found more than 75 children’s swimming costumes, a handgun and chemicals, which were never tested before police destroyed them. They are thought to have been chloroform or ether.
This article was first published on July 11, 2023.
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Share your views in the comments below
Before we get to when to book, there are two months locals say are a definite no-no, if you’re planning a break to Portugal’s stunning Algarve.
The region has just been named as the fifth best-value destination in the world for 2024 by Post Office Travel Money, making it Europe’s cheapest.
According to the brand’s Worldwide Holiday Costs Barometer, you’ll get more bang for your buck here than anywhere else on the continent, including Marmaris in Turkey and Sunny Beach in Bulgaria, where prices have risen in the last year.
However, after visiting last month, I was toldtime and time again by locals and tour guides to avoid July and August at all costs. Apparently, it’s simply too hot and too busy.
Obviously the heat hasn’t put people off so far, but one local told us that the area gets so rammed it’s become commonplace to see people queueing up to get into nearby mini-marts.
So, if peak summer holiday months are off-limits, when is the best time to visit this Portuguese jewel?
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Well, according to one of the brilliant guides who showed me some of the lesser-known areas, May is the sweet spot, followed by March, October and November.
It was a recommendation backed up by a second tour guide and, to be fair, these guys should know as they make a living out of the tourist industry.
I met both guides on a trip to the Algarve a couple of weeks ago in March (sensible time to go, apparently!) and can concur that it indeed was a really pleasant time to visit – if you aren’t planning to just flop and fly.
The weather got up to the early 20s, but at times it was cloudy and there were a few spots of much-needed rain – so while it wasn’t the best for sun-lovers, it was perfect for adventurers. (Again another travel insider said that if you’re thinking of an activity holiday in the Algarve – steer clear of the super-sunny summer months.)
Named ‘Europe’s best beach destination’ in 2023 for the tenth time in a row, the Algarve has 200km of stunning coastline with 88 Blue Flag beaches, ranging from stretches of golden sand to secluded rocky bays.
Undeniably these will always be a major draw for tourists, but there’s plenty more to do if you want a packed itinerary.
Our break was broken up with two contrasting areas of the Algarve – the more relaxed and traditional Carvoeiro, and the busier (but definitely not bustling) modern area of Vilamoura.
On top of that we took a little trip to the most amazing little tourist spot, Culatra Island, which had an amazing story to tell.
A small picturesque coastal town, Carvoeira combines beautiful sandy beaches with stunning cliffs and sea caves. Praia do Carvoeiro is the main beach, then there’s Praia da Marinha and Praia de Benagil. Visitors can also take a boat tour to get up close to the magical ‘grottos’ carved into the coastline, or take a walk along the top, as I did.
Called the Seven Hanging Valleys, due to the sea-made indents in the cliffs, the trail spans around eight miles, although our tour covered just half of that, as our guide Fábio Rodrigues, kindly incorporated a hotel finish into our walk, as it was nestled into the cliffside alongside one of the many caves.
The trek was organised by Algarfun, as we walked along the clifftops, Fabio told all about how the coves were formed by the sea and rainfall and shown various sinkholes along the way. Some would end up creating yet another cove, while others stood starkly as a simple reminder of the power of nature.
It was a stunning but rocky walk with some ups and downs, so for those who aren’t fans of a bit of legwork, further along the coastline you can also take a trip along the very safe boardwalk, which offers the same glorious views, which also takes you into the town.
There are plenty of places to eat and drink in Carvoeiro, too. As we went in early spring there wasn’t really an issue finding a table, but as the months warm up, even a small town like this attracts the crowds, so book ahead. There’s also plenty of shops to mooch in, especially if you’re after some of local cork and leather goodies.
If you love a bit of luxury-yacht spotting, this is the place to be as it boasts one of the largest marinas in Portugal and is filled with so many envy-enducing mega-fancy boats.
It’s also home to a bustling hub of activity day and night, whether you want to take a stroll around the shops or restaurants or a trip to some beautifully sandy beaches, such as Praia da Marina and Praia da Falésia, where you can just chill or do something a bit more adventurous like jet skiing and parasailing.
Culatra is an island located in the Ria Formosa Natural Park, situated just off the coast and requires a boat to get there, which you can either hire privately or take the ferry from Olhão or Faro.
As we took a mile-long walk from the lighthouse in Ria Formosa Natural Park, along the beach, our guide Diana Nunes explained that the island is made up of three areas: one which is home to tourists and locals, another which is the main tourist post and another spot, called Ilha da Culatra, where the president of the island, Sílvia Padinha lives.
Although Ilha da Culatra allows visitors, you’ll not find one Airbnb here, as this place is strictly home to locals only. You can’t even buy your way to owning a place on the island – and plenty have tried apparently.
It’s no understatement that this place looks like a postcard picture. Colourful old boats line the quay, the beaches are golden and litter-free, while the houses and streets, wihch are surrounded by an array of greenery, carry a beautiful simplicity.
Diana arranged for us to have local fresh oysters with Sílvia, who has been a gamechanger in turning the island around. Home to a small fishing community, she has helped it become a designated protected area due to its ecological significance.
As an oyster virgin, the pressure was on for me not to gag in front of the President if I didn’t like them. Thankfully I was a convert, and ended up guzzling eight of them – and that was before a lunch of prawns, cuttlefish and clams at the local restaurant, followed by a freshly baked pastel de nata from the only bakery on the island.
Other popular spots in the Algarve include Albufeira, Lagos, Faro, and Portimao, with dolphin-spotting tours and sunset cruises departing from each throughout the busy season.
Faro’s Old Town is a must-see for history buffs, while families can enjoy theme parks like Zoomarine and Slide & Splash. There are also a number of nearby vineyards, where you can sample the local wines and find out how it’s produced.
According the Met Office, you can average maximum temperatures of 29.1°C in July, with hardly any rain and up 12 hours of sunshine each day during the summer. January is the coldest month, seeing peaks of 16.2°C and 60mm rainfall.
Regular flights to Faro are available from most UK airports, with return fares in May starting at £37 according to Skyscanner. The most expensive month is August, when a return will set you back at least £103.
The Tivoli Carvoeiro is just a five minute walk from the town centre, but also has the most amazing restaurants if you don’t fancy eating out. The very classy The One restaurant offers amazing dishes such as Guineafowl Casserole and Porcini sponge, while the hotel’s sushi chef serves the most delicious platters (which include up to 46 different types) in the rooftop Sky Bar, which also offers breathtaking views over the Atlantic.
The hotel has it’s own spa, pool and gym, as did our other hotel, the Tivoli Marina Vilamoura, which offers an incredible couples massages.
A great way to start the evening was at The Argo cocktail bar in the hotel, where the mixologist served magical creations, including the sea-inspired The Argo. Their main restaurant, Pepper’s Steakhouse, is a meat-lovers dream with not only wagyu on the menu but also a brilliant share platter of a trio of meats including lamb, sirloin steak and entrecote. Meanwhile, their beach restaurant, Purobeach, is the perfect place to wile away the hours in front of the sun, sea and sand thanks to an in-house DJ and delicious food and wine.
Nightly rates at Tivoli Marina Vilamoura Algarve Resort start from 300 Euros per night based on two sharing a Superior Marina View Room with breakfast.
Nightly rates at Tivoli Carvoeiro Algarve Resort start from 225 Euros per night, based on two sharing a Superior Room with breakfast.
To book visit www.tivolihotels.com
For more information about visiting the Algarve click here.
A British tourist has been found dead in an Algarve holiday apartment.
The alarm was raised around 7am this morning at the Orada Tourist Apartments near Albufeira Marina in Portugal.
The man, 30, travelled there for a vacation and it thought to have been staying with a friend, who alerted emergency services.
Respected Portuguese daily Correio da Mana is reporting the whereabouts of the friend, whose nationality has not yet been made public, is not known.
Portugal’s GNR police force were the first force alerted but the investigation has now been handed over to the country’s Policia Judiciaria force.
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As well as police, firefighters and ambulance workers were also mobilised as part of the emergency response.
The victim was declared dead at the scene.
Police are now investigating the circumstances of the death.
Portuguese police have confirmed the dead man was a 30-year-old British national who was on holiday.
The four-star apartment complex has an outdoor pool and 220 apartments plus a reception area that is staffed 24/7.
A well-placed source close to the ongoing investigation said: ‘The British man’s body was found on the floor by the toilet door in his apartment.
‘There was a lot of vomit around him.
‘Police suspect he had suffered some sort of health issue.
‘The GNR force took a call around 7am this morning from an English speaker they believe was a friend saying a man was probably dead in the flat.
‘But that same person simply then disappeared and the police can’t find him at the moment which is what’s odd about all of this and why the PJ police were called in.
‘They are trying to establish his whereabouts at the moment.
‘The dead man had been due to leave the apartment this morning so was probably going to fly back to the UK and investigators are trying to confirm it was his friend who called them and whether he ended up just going to Faro Airport after making the emergency call.
‘They find it all very weird that he didn’t realise he needed to stay around after making the call as the person who phoned the emergency services.’
Another source added: ‘There are no obvious signs of any violence in the apartment or anything pointing to the man’s death being the result of a crime.
‘But a post-mortem has yet to take place and the Policia Judiciaria will carry out a full forensic examination of the apartment and speak to reception and ask for CCTV footage.
‘Officers will also try to track down and speak to the person that called.’
Police sources said the dead man was on a ‘short break’ to Portugal and he is understood to have travelled with only a small suitcase.
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The prime suspect in Madeleine McCann’s disappearance worked in the tapas bar her parents were at the night she disappeared, according to a man who knew him.
German criminal Christian Brueckner, 47, lived just a 12-minute drive from the Ocean Club tapas bar frequented by Kate and Gerry McCann.
The McCann family were staying at the resort in Praia da Luz, in Portugal’s Algarve region, when Madeleine went missing from their holiday apartment in 2007 when she was just three years old.
Now it’s emerged Brueckner worked cash-in-hand at the restaurant, according to claims from a British acquaintance, Ken Ralphs, MailOnline reported.
This may have given him access to a booking ledger showing staff that McCann’s children would be alone that night.
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Ralphs, who knew Brueckner at the time, claims the German man recruited a mutual friend as part of a plot to kidnap a child just a week before Madeleine disappeared.
They intended to sell the youngster to a childless couple, the 59-year-old claimed.
But he believes the extensive media coverage highlighting a distinctive mark in Madeleine’s eye made it impossible to sell her.
Ralphs fears they felt they had no choice but to ‘dispose’ of Madeleine after they kidnapped her while her parents were out with friends dubbed ‘The Tapas Seven’.
He took his suspicions to police in both Portugal and the UK immediately after Madeleine’s disappearance.
But he still doesn’t know if they ever used the information in their investigations – and he’s not alone.
Brueckner was named as the chief suspect in the case by German prosecutors in 2020, more than 13 years after Madeleine vanished.
He’s never been charged in connection with the case and he denies having any involvement in her disappearance.
Brueckner is currently in a German prison for the rape of a 72-year-old woman in her Praia da Luz home in 2005.
He is on trial for five unrelated charges, including three of rape, alleged to have been committed in Portugal between 2000 and 2017.
All the attacks took place close to where Madeleine vanished in Praia da Luz in May 2007, it is claimed.
Brueckner spent 12 years living in and around the small resort town as part of the region’s drifter community.
Ralphs, a former community champion in Greater Manchester, ended up there after fleeing the UK in 2004 because a police blunder put his name in the hands of suspected criminals.
He started receiving death threats after giving police information on a gangland murder for which the suspects were cleared.
Once in Praia da Luz, he and his wife joined the drifter community, moving from place to place in a campervan.
Ralphs had seen Brueckner at car boot sales, town centres and camping spots on the region’s beaches.
They met through a mutual friend, a penniless man who lived in a hidden encampment with his wife, children and Brueckner in Carrapateira – 10 miles from Praia da Luz.
After spending a night sitting around a campfire drinking beers alongside their families, the mutual friend told Ralphs about Brueckner’s plan.
‘We sat by the fire until the early hours of the morning, and that’s when [John] started to cry and confess’, Ralphs told MailOnline.
‘[He] told me Christian was planning to take a child from Praia da Luz. He then clarified it was not ransom, but that it was to take a child to sell to a German couple who could not have children of their own.
‘He assured me the child would not be harmed.’
The friend asked Ralphs to keep it a secret, telling him: ‘Christian knew many people who will pay good money for a child who cannot give birth, and that the child would be taken from a rich family with more than one child [of their own] so the parents would not grieve as badly.’
He tried to convince his friend to stay away from the criminal world, even offering to train him in his work fixing caravan satellites so he wouldn’t be part of Brueckner’s plot.
But they never spoke of it again. A week later, Madeleine was gone.
Ralphs was visiting his dad in Stockport when the news broke.
‘First thing I said was “Oh for f*** sake”. My dad asked what’s the matter, and I told my dad,’ he said.
Keen to avoid dealing with police in Manchester again, he travelled to Workington in Cumbria and delivered a statement informing them of the plans and that Brueckner worked at Ocean Club, Ralphs said.
He also gave Cumbria Police a hand-drawn map of the teepee camp in Portugal, urging them to pass it to Portuguese officials searching for Madeleine.
Cumbria Police said it had no record of Ralphs’ statement from 2007.
Ralphs returned to Portugal days later to look for his friend at the encampment only to find all but a bamboo cage destroyed by fire.
He found the surviving item ‘unusual because the cage wasn’t there before’.
After searching other beaches, he found another mutual acquaintance, a French man who informed him their friend had left him his dog as he was going to Africa.
He gave his information directly to the Portuguese police but was told his friend claimed not to know him and that he’d unlikely been involved because he had a family of his own.
Ralphs was ‘gobsmacked’ to then run into an apron-clad Brueckner near Ocean Club, where police were interviewing all staff members.
Brueckner, however, may have slipped under their radar because he worked there off the books.
When Brueckner was named a suspect in 2020, Ralphs went back to British and Portuguese police but both told him they didn’t have his original statements from 2007.
Ocean Club did not respond to MailOnline’s requests for comment.
A fresh flurry of calls and tips has flowed towards investigators since Brueckner appeared in a German court last week.
One of the rapes he is on trial for was so brutal his victim feared the knife-armed Brueckner would behead her, the court in Braunschweig heard.
The other two rape attacks were allegedly committed against an elderly woman in her 70s and a girl aged 14.
Brueckner will not respond to any of the charges he faces.
His lawyer Friedrich Fülscher dismissed the evidence as ‘abysmal’ and said: ‘The defendant is using his right to remain silent.’
‘Our client has been subject to media attention, he has been accused of kidnapping and killing Madeleine McCann by members of the media and prosecutors, without evidence,’ he added.
‘We are not dealing with the worst criminal story of the post-war period but it will be hard for the court to put it out of their minds.’
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A sickening online chat between the prime suspect in the Madeleine McCann case and another paedophile ‘could be a hint’ as to who is responsible for her disappearance.
The three-year-old vanished from an apartment in the Algarve in May 2007 and convicted sexual predator Christian Brueckner has been identified as the key suspect because of his movements in Portugal at the time.
German police have uncovered a vile exchange between Brueckner and another paedophile on his computer in which he writes explicitly about wanting to abduct and kill a little girl.
A public prosecutor leading the investigation, which has now dragged on for 16 years, says the conversation may provide a crucial clue because of the use of the letters ‘mm’.
In the chat, which was too sickening to be made public in full, Breuckner describes how he wants to ‘document’ his kidnap and murder of a child.
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One message from Breuckner reads, ‘oh, if the evidence is destroyed,’ to which the other paedophile replies: ‘Mm.’
Hans Christian Wolters, a prosecutor in Braunschweig, told BBC’s Panorama: ‘Yeah, maybe it could be a hint. It could be. Of course, it’s important for us.’
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When asked if it could be part of a ‘bundle of evidence that could convict Brueckner’, Mr Wolters said: ‘Yes, this could be something like that. That could be a piece for the big puzzle.’
Mr Wolters said he is ‘sure’ that the toddler is dead, that she was killed in Portugal and that they only have ‘one suspect’ – Brueckner.
‘We think that he was involved in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann,’ he said.
‘And we think that he murdered Madeleine McCann. That’s our stand.’
The 46-year-old is currently behind bars in northern Germany serving a seven-year sentence for the rape of a 72-year-old American woman in Praia da Luz in 2005 – the same village where Madeleine went missing.
He is being held at a high-security prison locally named as the ‘Alcatraz of the North’ in Oldenburg, near Bremen, and is accused of a string of further crimes in the area between 2000 and 2017.
It’s alleged that he carried out two sex attacks on children and three rapes, two of which he reportedly filmed at his former residence in Praia da Luz.
The trial, which is expected to last at least one month, could begin as soon as February next year and is likely to be held at Braunschweig High Court after it was ruled that Brueckner can be tried in Germany for the alleged crimes.
German prosecutors have not yet charged Brueckner in connection with the disappearance of Madeleine and the case against him is not yet fully known.
But his history as a convicted thief, child abuser and rapist is well documented and the recently discovered online chat evidence suggests that he appears to have fantasized about abducting and killing a young girl.
Investigators also say his phone puts him near the ground floor apartment 5A on Rua Dr Agostinho da Silva where Madeleine was staying when she disappeared while on holiday with her parents Kate and Gerry McCann.
After getting hold of his phone number from May 2007, transmitter data showed he received a call near apartment 5A between 7.32pm and 8.02pm on the night Madeleine vanished – she was reported missing at 10pm.
Mr Wolters says he is ‘sure’ that Brueckner was near the apartment that night but when questioned as to who was on the other end of the line, he admitted: ‘We don’t know. We know only the number.’
He said that the call is ‘very important’ to the investigation.
‘We have some kind of evidence,’ Mr Wolters said. ‘So maybe these are pictures, videos, chats, documents, something like that.’
In May this year, an extensive three-day search operation was carried out by police at a reservoir near Praia da Luz that Brueckner once called his ‘little piece of paradise’ and would stay at in his campervan.
Mr Wolters said: ‘At the reservoir, we are searching for evidence, not for the body of Madeleine.
‘I can’t speak about the results because the investigation of the things we found there is still ongoing.’
Officers had previously found child pornography on USB sticks buried under Brueckner’s dead dog at an abandoned factory in eastern Germany he owned and used to live at.
It’s thought that USB sticks may be among the items investigators were searching for at the reservoir in Portugal, the BBC reported.
When asked about when the case could be solved, Mr Wolters added: ‘I hope that we will come to an end in the next year.
‘Maybe we need some more time but I hope that we will finish the investigation in the next year.’
It also emerged that Portuguese police travelled to London earlier this year to apologise to Madeleine’s father Gerry in person for the way he and his family were treated.
Brueckner has denied killing Madeleine and wrote a string of dark letters from his prison cell to protest his innocence.
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Wildfires in Portugal have forced the evacuation of hundreds of people from local towns and dozens of tourists from hotels.
More than 1,400 residents of the southern town of Odemira were asked to leave yesterday, as around 800 firefighters fought the spread of the blaze.
So far, nine personnel from the fire teams have been injured while tackling the flames, which are quickly spreading south towards the Algarve.
On Monday, Portugal’s hottest temperature of the year was recorded in Santarém, north-east of Lisbon, where the heat reached 46.4C.
Weather forecasters predict much of the Iberian peninsula will be hit by temperatures of 40C or more this week.
The Odemira fire has destroyed around 16,600 acres of land, with the town’s mayor Helder Geurreiro describing the situation as ‘critical, difficult, and complex’.
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Four hotels and a campsite in the area have been evacuated, leaving more than 100 tourists searching for somewhere new to stay.
Civil Protection secretary of state Patricia Gaspar told a news conference: ‘The weather conditions we are going to experience in the coming days means any small occurrence [fire] could become a big one.’
The Portuguese national weather agency IPMA has put around half of the country at the highest warning level for rural fires, including most of the central and north-east regions as well as the far south.
Another wildfire in the Castelo Branco area at the weekend was tackled by more than 1,100 firefighters with the help of 14 water-carrying aircraft.
Smoke from the blaze drifted 60 miles to the Fátima Sanctuary where Pope Francis was addressing pilgrims on Saturday.
Many places in southern Europe have been affected by wildfires in recent weeks as blistering heatwaves continue to linger.
Almost 2,500 acres of land were burned over the weekend in Spain, from the south-western city of Cadiz to the region of Catalonia in the north-east.
And last month, fires on the Greek island of Rhodes required the evacuation of more than 20,000 locals and holidaymakers – the biggest such effort ever undertaken in the country.
The ‘El Niño’ phenomenon has exacerbated the worsening effects of climate change this year, forcing temperatures up close to European records.
Impacts have been felt around the planet, with forest fires also spreading widely in North America.
On July 27, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres declared the era of global warming had come to an end and the ‘era of global boiling has arrived’.
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Items found by police in the search for new evidence in the Madeleine McCann case are said to have not thrown up any new clues, sources have said.
German prosecutors are said to have hit a ‘roadblock’ it has been reported.
Police have spent the last two weeks analysing items discovered during the search in the Barragem do Arade reservoir in Portugal, 30 miles from where Madeleine went missing.
Prosecutor Christian Wolters said the individual items seized as part of searches would be evaluated over the coming days and weeks.
None of the item can yet be linked with the investigation into the missing girl’s disappearance.
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The materials were later sent to Germany for testing.
Police were given the go-ahead to search the area after German prosecutors received ‘certain tips’ about the case.
It was carried out at the request of German investigators who believe the suspect, convicted sex offender Christian Brueckner, kidnapped and murdered the youngster.
A source told The Sun Online: ‘Sadly, it’s looking increasingly like the search of the reservoir will not provide any answers or fresh leads.
‘It’s too strong to say it was a waste of time, but officers are naturally really disappointed.
They added: ‘It feels like a bit of a roadblock has been hit. However, there are still some items to carry out checks on and the police team will continue to work hard.’
Detectives spent three days scouring the reservoir near Praia da Luz that Christian B, 46, once called his ‘little paradise’.
Maddie was just three-years-old when she vanished from her holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in 2007.
German police are confident that Christian B, who was named as the prime suspect in Maddie’s disappearance in 2020 is their man.
Christian B is currently serving a seven-year sentence for the 2005 rape of a pensioner in the Portuguese resort of Praia da Luz.
He was charged with three offences of aggravated rape and two offences of the sexual abuse of children, in alleged crimes spanning 17 years between 2000 and 2017.
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