Басылган: 13.08.2023
After almost an hour's drive, just before reaching the destination, the navigation system said, turn left. But we couldn't. Bollards prevented us from turning. So we continued straight until the roundabout and turned back. Cindy said, no, you can also turn at the roundabout. What can I say, it was a steep uphill road and the street was so narrow. Two cars came towards us as expected. I couldn't move even an inch to the right. So they had to pull into a driveway somewhere so that we could continue driving. After 600 meters, we finally reached our destination and as the driver, I was sweating profusely. I just thought, how can motorhomes drive up here, it's kind of strange. Hours later, a taxi driver told us (we didn't want to walk up after visiting Zoo Marine in 40 degrees) you went up here with the autocaravan?! Complete horror on his face. Wow, no one does that. The other road ahead is for motorhomes and much wider. That's something for you to think about.
The campsite was beautiful and so well designed. We felt immediately comfortable here and could have stayed longer. There were clay figures everywhere, a small zoo with chickens, goats, and donkeys. There were even alpacas! Everything was lovingly arranged. Definitely a insider tip, if you take the right road up!
We couldn't set up the tent, so we quickly set off and went down the hill to the Zoo - Marine... there was no queue at the entrance at noon and we definitely wanted to see the dolphin show later. We were just walking there when a staff member approached Cindy about her car, and bam, we were in the show that started 3 minutes later and had quasi VIP seats! Sometimes the car is good for something.
It was really beautiful and afterwards everyone was beaming and the highlight of the day was already checked off! Now off to the outdoor pool and cool off a bit! It was so crowded, we could hardly find a place to put our towels on the ground! But the pool was very refreshing and the girls went on a few rides! At the end of the day, we watched the Pirate Show - an acrobatic show! Everyone thought it was cool except Steffi who thought it was totally crazy! But tastes are thankfully different!
After that, we decided to end the day and go back to the campsite! But coincidentally, a taxi was right in front of us and took us up 😃 We also tried the pool there. And we had a great plan for the next morning! We leave the campsite at around 8:30 am and park right in front of the park entrance. The plan actually worked, except for the mega tantrum because we had to get up at 8 am and drive for about 5 minutes and then chill out until 10 am! Life is sometimes really unfair and tough on teenagers...
We spent another nice day there and after the bird show at 3 pm, we headed towards Spain, to Isla de Cristina and according to the travel guide, there are flamingos there. I'm curious to see.
Conclusion: Zoomarine Algarve is really worth its 37 euros for 2 days. It is a successful combination of amusement park, water park, and zoo. In addition, great importance is attached to sustainability and species conservation. Every show, whether with dolphins, sea lions, or pirates, has a clear message: only we can save the earth!