One day shortly after I
arrived in Carvoeiro, I turned around and noticed a rather large building being
constructed off the Estrada do Farol. It seemed to have sprung up overnight like those
mushrooms one sees on the lawn at times, however my powers of observation are not
exceptional at the best of times and it may have been there since my arrival.
I stopped by the building site on Tuesday and managed to bump into a man named Leopold,
who is managing the Hotel Mirachouro Praia Project. I didn´t quite catch it but he may be
in charge of all the hotels in the group. The hotel is a large 131 roomed four-star hotel,
scheduled to open in July. Who knows, Carvoeiro.com may even crack the nod for the opening
party. Leopoldo is a very friendly and interesting man - it turns out that he was born in
Carvoeiro so this project is very close to his heart.
Tourism was made up of royal visits and the elite used to turn up here for summer when
Leopoldo was a boy. He recalls many concerts with known musicians in the Jailhouse Bar 27
years ago - it wasn't called that then, but can you imagine! I´ve had a drink where the
famous had a drink....cool! It looks as if Bobby Stardust has carried on the tradition
with his great singing every night.
The Mirachouro family owns five hotels in the Algarve, three in Portimao, one in Albufeira
with this being the latest addition. We talked about how they wanted to maintain the image
of the village in the hotel and not put up a monstrosity - I think it blends in fairly
well with the rest of the street, being set back from the road a fair bit. I will include
some pictures when the builders disappear and things look a little better. We chatted
about the difficulty in getting guests from Faro Airport to the western Algarve. This
should be partly relieved by the new highway which (apparently) will be completed in eight
months time. We have noticed the large amount of messages devoted to driving on the EN125
and this also points to a problem.
It was rather amusing as I had walked onto the Hotel Mirachoura Praia´s building site in
a Pestana t-shirt. For those of you who don´t know Pestana is Portugal´s largest hotel
chain. I didn't realise it until Leopoldo pointed it out - he must have thought I was
spying or something. Anyway, we look forward to a good relationship with this great new
addition to Carvoeiro and we wish the Hotel Mirachouro Praia the best of luck with their
new business.
I stopped by at the Bar Lanterna Velha for a quick beer and to make some notes. Its a
lovely spot a block away from the hotel, with great interior decor and friendly staff. I
felt quite at home there. However it was a completely different kettle of fish when I
visited the O Boteca Restaurant. It is beautifully situated above the Praia Paraiso,
however a certain waiter called Peter is rather unfriendly. All I wanted was the name of
the manager and I get this curt reply "We´re eating I will tell you in 20
minutes!". Okay, admittedly they were having a staff lunch, but the doors were open
and customers were sitting on the terrace waiting for the staff to finish - I've never
seen anything like it. All they have to do is put a chain across the terrace and say
we´re closed until whatever time. Anyway - I will never eat there unless I cant help it.
Service doesn't just begin at opening time. On the other hand we have had a wonderful
report by a visitor who ate there - he said it was fantastic, so please go and try O
Boteca for yourself. Remember, I haven't eaten there, just tried to do business with them.
Cheers
Nick - nick@carvoeiro.com
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