We have just returned from 3 weeks at Vila Sol in this lovely apartment. It has everything you need to able to enjoy your holiday. Best bits are the roof terrace where you can enjoy a lovely sunrise each morning & sunset at night with great views of the stars.As well as sunbathing (sun trap) you can eat there as there is a table & chairs but we found that eating on the balcony which is off the lounge was easier in the evening (didn't have to walk up the steps with food etc) and you still get the sunset. We had a lot of meals in there are two barbecues (Webber) the kitchen has everything you need.The beds are comfortable, the shower in the bathroom is great. The balcony overlooks the gardens & the pools.
It is a short walk to the Vila Sol Plaza where there are restaurants, 2 cafes and a small grocery shop. We had two meals at Oscars which serves basic pub food (I'll give it 7/10)it also has some entertainment & quiz nights. We had a 'special' meal at Moon. A lovely 'fine dining'restaurant which looks out over the golf course, service was good and staff very friendly. Cost for three of us was 127Euros. There is also the Wildfire restaurant which we heard good reports about but we went there when we first arrived just for a drink, we were still in our travelling clothes (jeans etc) and received a less than favourable reception from one of the waiters, it was a Saturday night and we were not in our best clothes, so I refused to go back there.
We decided not to have a car as we do a lot of driving at home. You can walk to Quartera in 45 minutes and Vilamoura in 1 hour. We usually got a taxi back which was between 6-8 Euros. The most local supermarket is Pingo Dolce which provided us with everything we needed and was 15 minutes walk. Unfortunately first part of the walk is on a main road with no pavement and you need to be careful as it is rough underfoot. We got used to it although I did have one fall by the roadside. We found a slightly better country road into Quartera.
We loved the beach in Quartera, there are plenty of pavement cafes and places to eat (also toilets) on the promenade which is safe for walking. We found the best food there was in the side streets, lots of local food especially fish at reasonable prices.
Overall can recommend this apartment and Vila Sol for a quiet relaxing holiday although I think we will have a car because trips to the supermarket will be easier and we could go out to other restaurants at night.
