VILLASCAPES 25TH ANNIVERSARY
Vale do Lobo Beach
On the 15th November Villascapes celebrates its 25th birthday. Our aim over the last 25 years has been to help you find your perfect holiday at the best price and to help you get the most out of your time in the Algarve. As you can imagine a lot has changed over the years.
EARLY ANECDOTE: With a background in travel, and having set up the company in November 1993, we travelled out to Portugal the following January to meet with suppliers and look at properties. It was not the warmest month on record and we were staying in one of the village houses near the beach and praca at Vale do Lobo. On the first morning of the trip, we wanted to make an early start and got up while it was still dark. This was the moment we discovered that you could not have the heater and the kettle on at the same time and the fuses blew. That meant that we had to wait for it to get light before we could find the fuse-box (outside) and electricity was restored!. We think it was the first and perhaps only time that anything has got in the way of Nichola viewing properties - certainly dodgy keys and security alarms don’t. And anyone who has ever travelled with Nichola will hear the words “I’m just going to …” with a sinking heart as you know it’s going to be at least another hour before you get a coffee break or lunch!
Fortunately the electricity network has much improved since those early days!
NO INTERNET: - Can you imagine we didn’t have websites and emails in the early days! Sending out villa details in the post with photographs, and speaking to you on the phone were the main channels of communication.
LOCAL SUPPORT - We must mention our local managers most of whom we’ve been working with all these 25 years. As we all know having people you can count on in resort is of the utmost importance. We would give a special mention to Carla at the Val Verde apartments who really does go above and beyond, as attested to by many of our clients!
GOING THE EXTRA MILE is what we try to do at Villascapes. We have an extensive knowledge of the area of the Algarve that we work in. We know not just the resorts and the properties, but the beaches, the restaurants, what to do on a day out and we’re happy to share this with you if you need a little local advice – just take a look at our website or get in touch. We are proud that so much of our business comes from repeat clients some of whom have been with us since the very beginning. We are even now dealing with the sons and daughters of some of those original clients! We are also fortunate to get many referrals. You might like to read some of their testimonials HERE
FEEDBACK: We get a lot of pleasure reading the comments that you send us after your holidays and the comments you leave on our Facebook page. But we have also gained lots of new skills running the business. For example Nichola has developed a keen interest in photography and this has become a hobby for her as well as very useful for the business.
THE FUTURE: The Algarve has changed a lot over the last 25 years and the area keeps on growing and changing, fortunately in a good way. Whether you like some of the new very modern villas in some of the areas, they certainly provide a talking point, and variety is the spice of life after all! Certainly the infrastructure in many of the resorts has improved immensely. We remember many of the roads being in quite a poor state and pavements were in short supply. These things have greatly improved, with not only pavements, but cycle paths too. Quinta Shopping plaza didn't exist when we first started and the entrance way to Vale do Lobo was not nearly as smart as it is now. What is certain, however, is that this area has retained its original character and continued to grow in popularity.
At Villascapes we are always working to keep up to date with the new local projects, new resorts, properties and activities so that we can continue to provide you with the specialist holiday guidance that we are known for.
Do give us a call on 020 8579 2854 or drop us an email (nichola@villascapes.co.uk) if you'd like to have a chat about any of our resorts or properties, all of which can be viewed on our website at www.villascapes.com
We look forward to hearing from you.
HERE'S TO THE NEXT 25 YEARS!
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