Classy charming Estoril - Simon Dinsdale. Date of travel: Jun 2011
Estoril still retains an old fashioned stylish charm. I first visited Estoril as a young boy in the early 1970s, and fell in love with it then, needless to say I returned many times as an adult. Whilst many of the tourists now go south to the Algarve to a more commercialized world, Estoril still holds onto its old fashioned elegance. Leafy lanes around Monte Estoril give it an alpine feel, whilst small restaurants are dotted around and I have eaten in most of them, and never found a poor one. Much of the architecture around Estoril dates back to the 1920s, and 30s with two classical arches housing shops and restaurants standing at the end of El Parque Do Estoril, and Europes largest Casino sitting at the top of the gardens. Whilst the black horse drawn cabs of my childhood have gone, the Hotel Palacio draws one back to another more sedate era, when British and German spies would socialize in the beautiful wood panneled bar during the second world war. If you can't afford to stay at this classical historical gem, then there are many hotels to appeal to a lower budget. My favourite part is Monte Estoril which is both resedential and has two nice hotels the Saboia and the Eden very well located opposite a lovely little garden well people stroll and sit or take a drink at a little round cafe. For the elderley or the less mobile these two hotels are a good choice as many of the other are situated up the steeper parts, which can be a hard trek on a hot day, on uneven pavements. The 20 minute walk to the pretty fishing village of Cascais, along a flat seafront promenade linned with seafood estaurants and cafes is a real pleasure. Estoril is a special blend of a resendetial spa town, and a mixture of the more discerning tourists which compliment each other perfectly. In an ever increasing commercialized world, Estoril is a sedate and refreshing change.