Algarve: The sunny region that provides a perfect mix of luxury and sustainability - what should you do there?

Luxury: but make it sustainable - and the place to do it? The Algarve. Being greeted with bone-warming heat, Faro immediately strikes as solace from the bitterness of the British winter howling away just across the Atlantic. The Algarve is sunny, joyful and only three hours away - just a mere blip compared to the royal region's welcome, arms wide open with a Mediterranean-esque glow. 

The Algarve is situated in the south of Portugal a region reigning over 54 cities/towns/villages, with Faro as its capital. It was voted Europe's Leading Beach Destination at the 2023 World Travel Awards, for the tenth time, and it's not hard to see why.

Where to stay

Vila Vita Parc Resort & Spa

Blue is the colour of Portugal, streaming through as a party banner to celebrate one of its biggest exports: the sea, and honouring this is what the Vila Vita Parc, a five-star resort sitting in the soul of the Algarve, does so well. Despite being a green and eco-friendly resort, blue streaks through it as it stretches over 22 hectares and winds up at a private part of the Atlantic Ocean. Like outside, like inside, or so they say.

The Green Key certificate awarded resort filters through reality, leaving behind only relaxation with cosy notes as personalised touches scatter throughout the halls, dining areas and even the coasters of Vila Vita Parc - making you feel homebound wealthy, as one Belgian designer, Arne Quinze, bring cohesion between sea and resort.

A standard suite goes for around €250/£220, in the low season to €700 in the high season per night for two adults in the Deluxe Room Garden View (there is an also an ocean view available), which includes free self service breakfast every morning from 7:30am- 10:30am. There is a max capacity of 302 guests, with varying options for accommodation, including spacious family stays, romantic honeymoon apartments, a magnificent penthouse, and adult-only areas with each area adorned with artworks from local artists praising the Algarve.

Spending time at the resort itself leads to shoulder-dropping moments as tension melts away, but the spa is where the real work happens. Housing three spa studios, the resort acts as a haven of mindfulness, with deco inspired by the glorious sun cave to include yoga sessions, meditation practices, and a HYPOXI studio – a method of mixing low-impact exercise with vacuum and compression technology. A hair studio, Turkish bath, sauna, ice grotto and plunge pool, along with seven pools are scattered around the resort. 

Vila Vita Parc should be commended for its commitment towards being environmentally conscious through its smaller touches. The temperature in every room can be controlled - with the option to switch off the heating or air conditioning. Any temperature control switches off automatically when the patio doors slide open, and back on again when they close, ensuring low wastage. Small amenities such as slippers are wrapped in eco-friendly packages, and towels, which come fresh, are only changed on request. 

The 12 restaurants, including one 2 Michelin Star restaurant, spoil in culinary delights, from national cuisine to Italian, Arabian and Japanese, all provided for through local farms to reduce food miles - so you can dine finely with low guilt.

What to do

Morgado Do Quintao

Lounging beneath a 2000-year-old olive tree as the sun beamed at 25C, I learnt you don't need to drink alcohol to enjoy a vineyard. The Morgado Do Quintao, which was founded in the early 1800s by the Count of Silves, still remains in the same family over 300 years later - and in recent years, the vineyard has branched out to reach the Algalve community. Offering a range of delightful treats, Morgado Do Quintao offers a Farmer's Table, where visitors have the opportunity to taste meals made from the family's recipes, sourced locally (from their own farm) and sustainably. The water is recycled, with no harmful pesticides dancing in the air to harm either plants or wild animals (featuring wild rabbits, and the occasional boar). 

The wine, I'm told, is bold, sweet and minerally, (the desert wine was buttery) handpicked with the greatest of care and only harvested when a specialist comes in to sample the grapes - there is no set date but it occurs twice a year, in May and November. The food is abundant, with locally rich tuna and cod making an appearance on the table, along with succulent olives (as a Muslim, I appreciated how adaptable the vineyard was). 

Honouring the vineyard was important for the company, and the finishing touches radiated cosiness and pride as the owners (a brother/sister team) passionately talked about the type of wine used - a mixture of both red and white grapes for each bottle. 

A tour of the vineyard revealed lush green fields in a 40-hectare space, flushed with baby and older vines ready to provide authentic wine for anyone to enjoy. The company ships internationally on a smaller scale, but for the richness of the experience, it provides a must-see on the tour of the Algarve as the steps towards sustainability and supporting local businesses. 

iSea Charter

Deep, crystal clear waters calmly shimmer across the Ria Formosa, a 70km wide natural lagoon considered one of the country's seven natural wonders. 

It was the perfect day, like every day, bar 11 this year, as the wind minimised the sea breeze when the sun hid behind brilliant white clouds, and we boarded a speed boat to reach the iSea charter boat sitting just at the edge of the lagoon.

iSea Charter, formed in 1995, has passionate staff whose care for the environment to the point it becomes infectious to their visitors, as they make it their mission to use sustainable resources for their charters, with this particular boat being solar-powered. The company releases no waste into the natural reserve, recycling the grey water and using glass instruments for drinks served on the trip. It follows the speed limit enforced on the lagoon, which differs in accordance to the size of the boat, as the company becomes adamant about preserving the lagoon and showing off the natural beauty - and contributing to the seahorse sanctuary - that the Algarve offers. 

iSea charter offers three trips, a full day (7 hours), a half-day (3.5 hours) and a sunset trip (2 hours) that takes you around the lagoon and the six islands sitting on it. 

After a glorious day floating along the sea surface, be sure to check out the Marisqueira Restaurant on the marina, which offers local food straight from the sea.

For dinner, there is Restaurant Veneza, a restaurant offering locally sourced food as you can embrace a cosy and informal setting. The staff are warm and welcoming, and passionate about wine so do take a minute to gaze at the wine cellar as it envelops the restaurant, offering some of the best wine in Portugal. 

Loulé

Loulé is an authentic Portuguese market town, popular for a day trip, as it's bathed in rich muted colours. Courtesy of Loulé Criativo, we saw a glimpse of how local artists are supported across the region. Weaving is a traditional medium showcased by a few artists and a workshop offered by the council up in the hills. 

Casa do Esparto is run by a group of local women who, almost maternally, teach visitors the traditional methods of weaving and plaiting, allowing anyone who comes to partake in a bonding activity. The group uses local resources and convenes in a repurposed primary school as they act to adapt to their environment and reuse what they have rather than build anew. 

The twist sees traditional forms used in contemporary ways, such as creating wine holders to entice more visitors to partake in Portuguese traditions in an environmentally friendly manner - that uses local people and local resources to boost its economy. Sustainability and reusing old materials sit at the heart of the latest project, with noted mediums being socks, old pieces of wood and weaving. 

Tourists are encouraged to join in with workshops, with some tailored for children. Throughout the town, shops that partake in the project are marked with an 'L', where you can wander in and look at how local people continue their traditional forms - and don't forget the only Islamic baths of its kind found in Portugal that provide a snippet of history into how Portugal was formed. 

After a day floating around the glorious town, you can wind your way upwards to Quinta do Freixo where you can get food from farm to table. The farm boasts of an ownership of five generations, as it takes on regenerative farming to help care for its land and the ecosystem that lives in it - and sustains the relationship between plants and animals. The farm is huge and luscious, winding roads ebbing with the landscape. 

The food, which comes from the farm (bar the salmon I ate due to religious reasons instead of the homegrown beef) utilises the rich fertile soil offered by the Algarve as it continuously provides rich fruitful bounties for the local people in the region to enjoy. 

Feeling welcomed from the minute I stepped off the plane, the Algarve offers a rare combination of pure luxury that emerges you into its culture, as well as ensuring sustainability is at its heart.