Ray McAllister heads for the hills and finds the quieter side to the Algarve

EVERYONE knows the Algarve does great beach holidays.

The best climate in Europe brings Brits by the thousand to the villas and apartments off the coastal strip, all hell bent on sea, sand and sunshine.

But jet into Faro Airport, and, just for a change, don’t turn left or right. Carry on up into the hills and discover a whole new Algarve.

This is a quieter, quainter Algarve, dotted with small towns and old-fashioned villages; its sun-scarred landscape, brown and dusty but dramatic and appealing at the same time.

And it was here I found Monte Do Casal, a haven of a hotel, as far from the hustle and bustle of everyday life as it is possible to imagine.

It’s an exquisitely-appointed 18th century manor house that