Small-group Day Tour Of Silves And Monchique With Wine Tasting

This is so worth doing and despite being inland away from the coast it is great to see what feels like the real Portugal. Our guide Filipe was excellent. He was clearly passionate and knew his stuff about Silves and Monchique as well as the local flora and fauna, the history and buildings. The day was great, we were picked up from our hotel around 0900 and got back around 1830. We went to Silves first which as stunning and so interesting. Then we went to Monchique and the highest point of the Algarve where you can also see Morocco in the distance. We had lunch here which Filipe kindly organised and let’s just say it was special. They had a special of the day as well as other local dishes which are highly recommend especially if you like meat as their speciality is Black Iberian pig. We were also able to sample the local moonshine before heading to an outstanding local winery where we were treated like royalty. The views and the wine were to die for. We were never rushed and it was so interesting as Filipe knows a lot of stuff, he was attentive and fun but also gave us time on our own which was great. We were with two other lovely couples and we all loved it. An unforgettable day! Thanks so much Filipe.

Our goal was to get a feel of the countryside in the Algarve and this tour was really good. Our tour guide Rui was awesome, great communication from the company, and picked us up at our hotel in Lagos. The small towns of Monchique and Silves were awesome. His recommendation for lunch was perfect and the day ended at the winery. Great tour!

After a slight confusion with pickup location all worked out and Tour guide Filipe was great! He is very knowledgeable and kept us informed of every aspect of the unique itinerary! We had a small group of 4 which was even better! If you have interest in seeing more of Portugal than they typical tourist areas, this tour is great and Filipe is your guy!

Filipe Simão was our guide today and he was amazing! He’s knowledgeable, smart, funny, and professional. We had a perfect day and smiled non stop. Thank you for the unforgettable experience! Izzy and Danielle

We had a fabulous day. Starting with Silves in the morning. A beautiful historic area. Followed by Monchique, where we visited Caldes and tasted the famous spring water direct from the mountain. Foia for views of the whole Algarve and an authentic artisan craft location. Our guide recommended a place in Monchique for a delicious lunch. We finished with a stop at a stunning vineyard. It was a perfect day which was a good balance of plenty to do and enough time to take it all in. Filipe our guide was very knowledgeable on the history, geography, the diversity of the plants and architecture. We have been coming to the Algarve for many years but still learnt a lot. Would highly recommend!

Everyone in my group had a wonderful time. Rui, our guide and driver, had grown up in Monchique, and had a great deal to share about the the beautiful village. Rui was a lot of of fun, never a dull moment as we traversed our way through Silves, Monchique, and the winery. This is a small group tour that anyone who could walk would be able to do.

My husband and I joined this tour with guide Filipe. He was genuine, knowledgeable and passionate about the areas we visited and its history. He was attentive and generous with his response to questions and explanations of everything we were seeing. A long but wonderful day that I would highly recommend to anyone wanting to explore this incredible part of the Algarve. Obrigado Filipe!

Filipe was wonderful. He was so accommodating, friendly and generous with us. We felt like family everywhere we went.

Our tour of Silves and Monchique was excellent. Felipe knew absolutely everything about the towns and sites we visited, sharing information along the way and during our tours - very involved yet giving us plenty of time to explore and shop on our own. When I mentioned that I loved cork Portuguese handbags, he made sure that we examined the cork trees and bark that we saw during the tour and found cork stores for me to look into. He gave us two cafe recommendations, and then recommended menu items in the wonderful little Monchique cafe that we chose (the Iberian black pig was indeed tasty). The wine tasting at the end of the tour was the perfect end to a perfect day!

Excellent experience! It was a well conducted opportunity to visit new areas in the Algarve, which was what we wanted. Filipe was a very informative, knowledgeable, friendly guide who went above and beyond to make this tour memorable. The view from the top of the mountain was awesome. The wine tasting was almost a bonus to the tour, and gave us an opportunity to try wines from a boutique, local winery. Would definitely recommend this to anyone interested in visiting the Algarve interior.

Our guide Rui, is very passionate about this area of the Algarve. He made the whole experience fun for us.

Antônio was the best host! He was attentive and personable and communicated well throughout the tour. He allowed for extra time during the winery stop since it was the last stop of the tour. Being a smaller a group made for an overall better experience.

Antonio was an excellent guide. Courteous, efficient, patient and full of great information. A lovely overall experience and a tour that covered all the bases. Highly recommend.

Comfortable vehicle, could hear Filipe speaking during the drive. Learned a lot about the area, history, and architecture.

Pedro Abrantes is a fabulous guide! We were with him for 2 days, and enjoyed every minute. On the Lagos Tour, he took us to incredible spots with breathtaking views. He knew an awesome lunch place overlooking the ocean, an afternoon treat and walk through the village. We truly enjoyed talking with this guy. He spoke from a perspective of vast experience in several areas. He took hundreds of photos of us from all angles and lighting - certainly one of my favorite things. THEN, I left my iPad in his car. He’d already left the area but came back without hesitating. I appreciated that so much! The second day, he took us from Lagos to Lisbon, stopping in Silves. The history of Silves came alive through his stories of the castle and winding streets. If we ever get back to that area - he’s our guy!

I was traveling solo and with no car so this was a wonderful and reasonably priced option. You definitely get a bang for your buck. We visited Silves, and Monchique and did some wine tasting. The group was small and intimate. The pick up was on time and the vehicle clean. I had a great day and do recommend this company. Last but not least our tour guide was super friendly and funny, and took great care of us. Thank you Rui and South Explorers for a wonderful day!!

Brilliant day, start to finish, couldn’t recommend it more highly if I tried. Antonio was very friendly, knowledgeable and interesting, kept us informed from before the trip, and throughout the day of the trip. We visited the most beautiful places, well off the beaten track, nothing was rushed, but neither was there too long on any location. My favourite trip this holiday, and possibly ever in Portugal.

Antonio our guide was so well spoken and very knowledgeable. We learned a lot about Portugal! I would refer this tour to others.

Filipe was amazing! He really made the trip for us incredible by his vast knowledge of everything. So grateful we got to spend the day with him and if we and more time we would’ve loved to do another tour with him.

We went on a full-day tour with the amazing guide Filipe, and it was truly one of the highlights of our trip. His pride in the region and the depth of his knowledge were extraordinary. He answered every question with care and made sure everyone in the group felt comfortable and included. The tour itself was exceptionally well-planned. The information Filipe shared with us at the beginning of the day beautifully tied together with everything we experienced as the day went on. The mix of history, botany, and personal anecdotes made the whole experience both educational and heartwarming. Highly recommended!

Had a great half day tour of Silves with wine tasting. Our guide Filipe was exceptional - knowledgeable, engaging, very entertaining and truly well rounded. He seamlessly blended fascinating historical insights with rich details about region’s agriculture, local foods and wines. Every step felt thoughtfully curated, and his passion made the experience truly unforgettable.

Filipe was one of the best guides I've had. He is super knowledgeable and shares so much information throughout the trip! He also speaks many languages to help all. The tour visited two locations that we would not have went to otherwise but are happy we did. Silves has so many unique plants that you wont get to see anywhere else!

An absolutely amazing trip yesterday. Filipe picked us up from our hotel in Lagos bang on time. After collecting the other passengers we set off for Silves. Along the way Filipe informed us of Portuguese and regional history which was great. Silves castle was fantastic. We had about 30 minutes to wander around (20 more would have been perfect for the history buff in me) and we then toured the two town churches. We then drove to Monchique, stopping to admire the storks nesting along the way. We visited the spa and then had over an hour in the town. We took lunch so that we had more time to explore and we're glad we did. Other passengers spent most of their time at cafes for lunch. We then drove up to the highest point in southern Portugal with amazing views. Sadly it was slightly hazy so we couldn't see as far as usual but it was still spectacular. Then onto a winery where Filipe gave us a tour and explained the process. Then we sat outside and sampled some beautiful wines. It was a wonderful trip. Highly recommended. A special mention of Filipe who was fantastic. Very friendly with a great sense of humour, he was incredibly knowledgeable and informative. An amazing guide and host

A fun day exploring a castle, visiting a winery. Very nice outing. It was an easy, comfortable day trip with a very experienced guide.

Great day trip to see something a little different than the coastline of the Algarve. Felipe was a great guide - very knowledgeable and accommodating to everyone. Great day with beautiful views!

We had the most amazing tour with Philippe. It was easily the best part of our stay in the Algarve! He was very friendly and incredibly knowledgeable about everything there is to know about the Algarve region - from history to the environment to local animals. We were so impressed! The wine tasting was very lovely and a perfect way to end the day. We couldn’t recommend this tour enough!!!

Great tour full of information about the area. Beautiful scenery and interesting attractions Guide was knowledgeable and very attentive to the group. Would highly recommend.

It was fantastic!!! Fantastic communication even before the day, night before and morning. Filipe (our driver) was considerate helping my Mum with some of the walking areas. Castles and churches we went straight into (no queuing for us) and his knowledge on the history, his passion for his culture was a delight. It was a full day and everyone was wonderful. I would highly recommend.

Our guide was amazing and knew the area very well. They picked us up from our villa without issue. views and wine tasting was brilliant! Would highly recommend and would go again

Great tour of the countryside! Our guide Filipe was very friendly and knowledgeable about both Portuguese history and the landscape.

We had a great time on our tour Our guide was Antonio. I have learned so much more about Portugal. He went out of his way to make sure we saw the fabulous wild life. Thank you again Antonio it was a great day.

We had a good time during the tour, our guide was just amazing, couldn’t ask for better. The winery was great, very good wine spending time with a very pleasant host.

We had 2 tours with this company; both were excellent. Rui took us to Monchique and Silves. He was very knowledgeable about the area. On a different day, Antonio took us on a custom private tour to see Vanessa Barragao’s textile art studio in Albufeira, and then to Carvoeiro for the afternoon to see the spectacular beach rock formations and caves. We really appreciate Antonio being willing to work with our special requests for this tour. Both Rui and Antonio were lovely - very well informed, friendly and helpful and made our tour a great experience. We will use their services again when we are back in Portugal, and would recommend them highly.

I feel like we went to so many places. We had poor visibility from the viewpoint so he bought us a shot instead…even better!

The tour was varied & interesting, it was great to visit different places. Margarida was an excellent guide, making it a relaxing trip combined with lots of local knowledge.

Great Day out, office kept us up to date with pick up time right up to arrival which was on time. Margarida, our Driver and Guide was absolutely superb. Fantastic knowledge, great driver and a lovely person. Never been on this kind of trip before and have been to Lagos several times but if all are as professional and interesting and you're lucky enough to have someone like Margarida to be your leader then what a fantastic day and company.

This was a well paced thorough day. Margareda was a great host! Very knowledgeable and super nice! Great value!

Excellent and Informative trip. A well organised trip. The guide Rui was very impressive, knowledgeable and funny.

Canceled the trip on us but we saw them still go on the trip so we must have been overbooked and booted. Do yourself a favor and avoid profit seekers instead of memory makers

Love! Love! Love! This was one of my favorite trips so far. Our tour quite was so much fun and took us to all the best places. Monchique was beautiful and the alkaline water was the best discovery. We would absolutely book this tour again and again. 10/10

Great tour with a variety an interesting location! Good way to see the country side away from the water

My husband and I had the best day on this tour and saw parts of the Algarve region we never would have been able to find on our own. Our guide, Antonio, was extremely knowledgeable of all the sites we visited and answered any questions the group had. I also appreciated that the tour group was kept small so it didn’t feel like you were lost in a big crowd. We would recommend this tour to anyone looking to learn more about Portugal’s history and taste good wine!

We had Antonio he was great we enjoyed the day with my husbands brother and wife! We would highly recommend this trip with Antonio!

Very enjoyable trip, very relaxed with plenty to see, and a decent amount of time to explore. Antonio is very knowledgeable and considerate, helping us avoid busy times for lunch, and advising on good eating spots. We felt we saw and experienced a range of inland attractions at the Algarve, with good company, and finished with good wines. A very pleasant day out.

Excellent trip. Very relaxed, comfortable minibus. Antonia is very knowledgeable and friendly. The timings were very good, and we missed the lunchtime crowd. Gret to see other villages and inland scenery.

Brother, sisters and I took a day (afternoon)-trip from Lagos and it was truly lovely. If you are the type that prefers to spend time outside, yet still like castles, this is a trip for you. The people in the town are super friendly. If you are lucky(as we were), you will look up and see entire walls of stork nests (seriously!). The only negative I can say is that there is a lot of dog poop in the streets. (That seems to be a problem in a lot of Portugal and perhaps education on how the bacteria ends up in the water table when it rains might help the situation.).

Antonio is an excellent guide, friendly and with a wealth of information on all aspects of the area. The tour itself is well paced, giving you just enough time at each location to not feel rushed, while also not feeling like you have seen too little. The sights are amazing, including both wonderful historical sites and the area's natural beauty. I would absolutely recommend this tour specifically, but also any of Antonio's tours as he is a fantastic and personable guide.

It was supposed to be a wine tour, but for me it was not. We where first dropped off on an old castle that has nothing to do with wine, then we visited a wine domain, of which we only got to see the terras to taste a few wines and that was it. No visit of the case, no walk though the vineyard or what so ever. If you really want to make it a wine tour, add some more vineyeards to the program in stead of just one, and do not limit yourself the the terras.

This trip was fantastic! Antonio was a wonderful guide who really knew his stuff. Would highly recommend this tour to anyone!