Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Ilha Deserta
(Animaris; 917 811 856;
www.ilha-deserta.com
)
operates four ferries a day to/from Ilha
da Barreta (€10 return). The same company also runs 1½-hour year-round boat trips (€25)
through Parque Natural da Ria Formosa. Boats leave from the pier next to Arco da Porta
Nova. Taxi boats also operate from here, or from the nautical centre.
TAXI
Ring for a
taxi
(
289 895 790)
or find one at the taxi rank outside the train station.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Milreu & Estói
Ten kilometres north of Faro, the Roman ruins at Milreu make a pleasant excursion.
Several hundred metres up the road is the sleepy but attractive village of Estói, which
boasts a derelict but charming 18th-century rococo palace and gardens, some of which has
been recently renovated into a posh
pousada
(inn).
WALKING THE VIA ALGARVIANA
Covering some of the most beautiful scenery in the Algarve, the 300km Via Algarviana walking trail crosses the
breadth of Portugal from Alcoutim to Cabo de São Vicente, taking in the wooded hillsides of the Serras de
Caldeirão and Monchique. It takes about 14 days to walk the trail. You may hear the contrary, but walkers assure
us that the Via Algarviana is definitely
not
yet fully marked and some signs have been vandalised. New military
maps are accurate. The best times to walk the trail are between March and May; hunting season takes place on
Thursday and Sunday from October to June - be careful on these days. For more information, visit
www.viaalgarviana.org
(run by environmental group Almargem) or
www.algarveway.com
(a private website run
by enthusiasts). The official Via Algarviana route booklet (€7) is available from the Algarve Tourist Association's
tourist offices.
Sights
Milreu Ruins
(adult/under 25yr €2/1.80; 10.30am-1pm & 2-6.30pm May-Sep, 9.30am-1pm & 2-5pm Oct-Apr)
Set in beauti-
ful countryside, the ruins of this grand Roman villa provide a rare opportunity to gain in-
sight into Roman life. The 1st-century-AD ruins reveal the characteristic form of a peri-
style villa, with a gallery of columns around a courtyard. In the surrounding rooms geo-
metric motifs and friezes of fish were found.
ROMAN RUINS
