Travel:

Flying from the UK to the Algarve
Faro is the main (and only) airport in the Algarve. There are direct flights to Faro from many UK airports. We have tried a number of different ways of getting there. Since we live close to Heathrow and Gatwick, and because our family has grown up, our choices are inevitably biased.
	Hunting for Flights
	Once on board, there is little to differentiate one airline from another. The flight is only 2.5 hours each way, so you need to put into perspective the importance of any differences vs the price for the flight. We think that total cost is the most important consideration when selecting flights, followed closely by the jungle of ground based issues (airport check-in, luggage etc. all of which is discussed in more detail below).
	Price
	The basic cost of your flight will vary depending on Time of year you want to travel Day of week that you travel How far in advance you book Flexibility of time and day Which UK airport you select (taxes and surcharges vary!) As we write this, in Spring 2008, we have yet to see the impact of easyJet's acquisition of the BA franchise GB Airways. This merger seemed on the face of it to give easyJet a near monopoly, but we understand that BA will operate new flights under their own banner between Gatwick and Faro. We have also become aware of major changes occurring among the many low cost no frills airlines where flight prices are extremely competitive but they are looking for alternative sources of revenue.   So, depending on airline and airport, you also may need to consider: Cost of getting to and/or parking at chosen UK airport Any costs for checked baggage Optional add-on costs for pre-boarding or allocated seats Optional add-on costs for extra legroom or similar Additional costs on board for food and drink Armed now with the list of considerations, you can now set about hunting for available flights. A great start point is to use the many new competing Flight Search Engines appearing on the Internet. These will each search many different airlines to find best deals for your chosen dates. These search engines do differ in the way they operate, they differ in the list of airlines that they search, and naturally they differ in usability and features, so we advise trying at least three different searches to get the best coverage and options. Once you have found the best flight on the search, its usually one click to take you to the actual airline booking system and you then book directly with the airline.   Hint: When hunting around for flights, many airlines are happy to quote and carry you one-way only. Occasionally some worthwhile savings can be made by flying out with one airline and returning with another. But do ensure that if you have left your car at the airport, the returning flight comes back to the same airport ! A mistake we've made once with really tortuous consequences.
	Here's our top 3 Flight Search Engines - Click on their logo to try them:
	Which Airline ?
	Travelling as we do predominantly from London Gatwick and occasionally London Heathrow, the choice of carrier has narrowed down to a two horse race, with a close 3rd runner. There are quite a few other choices that the above search engines will offer when travelling from various airports around the UK, however, we cannot offer any first hand experience, but some of the points below may help.
	There's little to fault the service and convenience of BA, so whenever the flight price is close to that of easyJet, this would be our first choice. Unfortunately, competitive as they try to be, they rarely get close to the no frills pricing, so we only get to fly them one time out of six. Why we fly with British Airways: The BA website is lovely to use; their prices are all quoted up front inclusive of all taxes and surcharges (Other airlines please take note!) If you only have hand baggage (as we do most of the time), you can check in and get seat assignments on-line Even if you have checked baggage, you can either check-in and get seat assignments on-line or at one of the many touch-screen kiosks in the airport and then go to the "fast bag drop" counters. Note: with the popularity of on-line check-in, the queues for "fast bag drop" sometimes seem very long, but each party checking in takes much less time, so these queues move quite smartly. BA usually get the cream of the arrival and departure gates at Gatwick, which may mean shorter walks.   If we must find fault with BA, it is their website that only allows you to check-in on-line within 24 hours of flying time - or 12 hours if you are not a member of their frequent flyer program. We've never understood this constraint - particularly as other airlines (notably easyJet) manage to do it.
	No frills airlines sometimes get bad press and alarmist coverage on TV, but we do understand that they operate under different conditions from the main flag carriers, and while their prices are substantially lower we continue to give them our business. We've flown over 20 legs with easyJet between London and Faro in the last couple of years, and have yet to experience any problems that were not shared by all other airlines, notably delays due to fog in London or early morning at Faro, and of course the ever threatening strikes by French Air Traffic Controllers.   We like to fly with easyJet and take advantage of their very competitive prices despite: When booking on-line at easyJet.com, the price shown is before taxes and surcharges, which are only added in at a late stage (but before payment) in the booking process, and going back to change selections is unsatisfactory. UPDATE: EasyJet now show fares including taxes and extras. Have you noticed how the "extras" on EasyJet are so much lower than BA for apparently identical flights ? Although we do approve of travel insurance as a necessity, we hate the way easyJet.com automatically adds in their own insurance at a late stage of the booking process on-line. You have to explicitly remove it, but that's easy to miss, and changing it after you have booked leads to punitive penalties. Ironically easyJet's policy for changing tickets if your plans go awry are somewhat more adult than the main flag carrier airlines. EasyJet will change any leg (one way ticket) for a nominal fee plus the difference between what you paid for that leg and the prevailing cost of the new flight. Cheap flights with British Airways do not allow any change at all, and tickets have to be thrown away and new ones bought at the prevailing rate.
	When flights at reasonable prices are not available with either of the above two airlines, we've been known to fly with Monarch Scheduled services (not Charter). One can book on-line, check in and get seat allocations on-line and the on-board service is as good as one can expect on British Airways or other major carriers.

 

Driving Instructions
From Faro Airport to Carvoeiro Town
	When you book a rental with us, we will send very detailed joining instructions and map to find our property. In the meantime, we invite you to download our legendary driving instructions from Faro.

About this Travel Page

We visit Carvoeiro about 5 or 6 times each year, and we have experienced quite a wide range of travel options. This is simply a resource that chronicles our own views, and we hope that it helps you find the best and most appropriate deals wherever you are travelling from.

Please note: we neither take, nor get paid for any advertising.

 

From Airport to Carvoeiro

Both our properties are exceptionally well positioned for walking into Carvoeiro town, where there are many bars, restaurants and the town beach, but you'll barely do the Algarve any justice unless you have a car for at least part of the time, and we tend to prefer it all of the time. By the time you've taken the costs of Taxis to and from Faro airport plus short term car hire as you need it, you may well find that hiring a car for the entire holiday including travel to and from the Airport is a good deal. With the arrival of the new Motorway, and our excellent instructions, driving to and from Faro airport is really quite painless. Carvalho Beach - 10 mins drive East.

Car Hire Since car hire in the Algarve is extremely popular, it also means that there are many firms competing for your business, and we have tried a number of them. They seem to fall into 2 categories. There's the big name Hertz, Avis and the like, and then there's a plethora of local firms who are typically a lot cheaper, but may have slightly older cars and often somewhat damaged cars (CHECK this carefully before driving away). The price difference between these two groups can be quite large, so do shop around.   Practically all the companies will meet you at the airport. Most of them will actually have the car at the airport itself and there's no bussing. However, do check where you return the car to. Some return to the airport car parks (very convenient), while others are off airport and will bus you to the airport (very short distance, but adds 10-15 minutes to the whole experience).   We check the market annually for price, service and reliability, and we're still happy to recommend this company:

AlgarveDriver will meet you at the airport with a car waiting in the airport car park and you return the car back to the airport itself. No bussing, no fussing. You can book on-line with no deposit to pay and sort it all out when you arrive at Faro airport. They will also offer the best price and if you find it cheaper elsewhere, just contact us here at OurCarvoeiro and we'll probably get them to match your price.

Taxi/Transfer service

If you would prefer not to drive from the airport, you could just hail a taxi outside the airport building and a metered run in a licensed taxi to Carvoeiro should cost around €55-€65   Our suggestion would be to book a private transfer service and an English speaking driver will meet you at the airport and take you right to your door. They are fully insured and although we haven't used this ourselves, we have numerous recommendations from people who have. FaroTransfer.com are owned by the same folks who run Algarve driver, so you can even book a hybrid service where they can transport you and all your luggage from airport to Carvoeiro, and deliver a car right to your door at no extra charge.

 

Arriving at Faro Airport

When you land, unless you have arrived on TAP Air Portugal, who seem to be the only airline to use the Jetways, your plane will be parked out on the apron, and busses will be waiting your plane to transport you to the terminal building. So, really no need to rush to get off the plane as the busses will actually wait for all passengers to disembark before setting off.. After you have queued for the pedantic Portuguese immigration officials to examine everybody's passport, you'll find yourself in the baggage hall. Faro baggage handlings is relatively efficient, and partly as a result of the long bus journey, long immigration queue, and partly due to good spacing of incoming flights, you should not usually have long to wait for the luggage. On exiting the baggage hall through customs which is very low key, you'll then be confronted by the horde of meeters and greeters. There are the standard big name Car Rental desks to the right, but as you move to the left, running the gauntlet of holiday company signs and chauffeurs with private names, you can carry on down the long narrow hall to find YOR car Rental (a.k.a. Algarve Driver) positioned at the meeting point further down on the left. You will also have passed at least two ATM cash machines which will accept most UK credit cards and debit cards, and will display all the instructions in English (or whatever language your credit card is based in). To the right is the exit to outdoors, to the sun, to the taxi ranks and the car parks. Its all very civilized and the staff, police and franchise holders are all very polite.   You've arrived in Portugal and the holiday begins.  ENJOY !