3 nights at the hotel

Missed me? Well, it has been a whole 5 weeks since I got back from my last holiday so you should've known that the next one was only round the corner. Determined to make the most of every bank holiday this year, me and Katie have just got back from a long weekend in Albufeira, Portugal. Despite a shaky start (we were drinking pints in the airport pub when we noticed the board said 'gate closed' and had to run, after the mardy woman at the check-in desk had already casually told me I might get 'offloaded' for putting Jenni on my boarding pass instead of Jennifer), we arrived to beautiful weather!

So I'm not usually one to be fussy over a hotel room (given that you generally spend so little time there on a holiday) but when we got to the Vila Recife and were showed to our room, we had literally been catfished. After a hilarious faff, we settled on the third room where we finally had a balcony; the tiniest balcony ever. I'm very much of the opinion that anything that makes funny memories is a good thing though (even if there wasn't room to swing a cat out there).

After a quick outfit change, we headed off in search of a lunch spot and pretty much stumbled on the perfect one straight away; a cute little restaurant with a massive terrace over looking the beach. And after sangria and some lovely food, we were down there like a shot!

We then did the must-have holiday ritual of buying vodka, lemon fanta and paprika Lays, before heading back to the room to get ready. We also bought Bacardi breezers which ended up being another faff/funny story because we had no bottle opener and spent 10 minutes wrestling with them. The hiss when we finally got them open was ridiculously satisfying! For night 1, I wore lace bodysuit, bright crochet skirt and lace up black mini-heels, and we started with cocktails and mixed charcuterie board. Albufeira is not somewhere I've been to before (I've been to the Algarve, which is close) but it's a lovely place with loads of lovely restaurants to chose from (albeit with very similar menus) and then it's got a really good strip of bars too. Not exactly Ibiza but still pretty good, especially for a long weekend or somewhere that's not your main holiday of the year! Plus, it lacks the poser-ness of somewhere like Marbella or Ibiza, which is always a bonus in my eyes.

Katie had been to Portugal a lot as a kid and knew of a really good water park so when we got up the next morning, we went on a mission to find tickets. We did find (and buy) tickets; but accidentally for the wrong water park. Luckily, we realised before we got there and eventually ended up at the right one, (Aquashow) where they had loads of slides, lazy river, wave pool and "water rollercoaster" (essentially a log flume that you go on in swimwear). Despite it being a Saturday, the park wasn't too crazy busy and we managed to easily get on everything and had the best time!

We finished up with pints of Sangria before going back to the hotel to get ready for night 2! This time, I went with black denim shorts, oriental wrap blouse and black heels (proper ones, not mini ones). We'd spotted this restaurant with cute balconies overlooking the main street the night before, but their menu didn't include any of the nibble-type food we'd been looking for. But this time, we were much hungrier and their steak just called out our name! And then while we were there, a man down below quite literally started calling our name as he serenaded us from the street!

I am undoubtedly a terrible singer and never in a million years would I dream of singing in public (even when very drunk). But that sure doesn't stop me loving watching other people do it. Pulled in by the happy hour cocktails (sex on the beach, classic holiday choice), we had such a good time singing along (quietly) at a karaoke bar before continuing on for shots and dancing until half 5.

We'd initially planned a day at a beach club for Sunday but we didn't drag our slightly hungover selfs out of the hotel room until half 1 and by then, we figured we'd just have a day at the beach again. We wandered a little further than the day before and found a lovely stretch of restaurants right on the beach, where we considered water but then opted for sangria instead. After a few hours of sunbathing, it was back to the drinks which were helpfully being brought round the beach (ice cold and all).

It's pretty much my ultimate rule to always wear something white towards the end of the holiday to maximise that tan and even though my tan after 3 days was not exactly groundbreaking (although it was building on that of other holidays), it was still worth a little white number. Instead of an all white outfit, I went with a white bralet and then added bright orange skirt and gold leaf clip (super cute). Again, we had another amazing meal by the sea and then made the absolute most of the PR offers in all the bars (and our own charms) because I think we only paid for the very last drink of the night. So basically, Albufiera is a great night out for those on a budget (if you can work the system right). Although, I have to say that a shot made from sambuca, baileys and rum set on fire (drank through a straw) was possibly the worst thing I've ever tasted.

We'd managed to largely avoid feeling too rough on all the other days but our final day was certainly not a fresh one (not helped by the fact that we had to get up, pack and check out). Luckily it was nothing that a tasteless-but-functional cheese toastie couldn't fix and soon we had perked up and were in search of a pool to spend our last day at. Although our hotel had a pool, it was really busy so we thought we'd take advantage of someone elses and ended up at Hotel California. The place had very beach club vibes and the pool was on the roof; they made a mean strawberry daiquiri too.

We stayed as long as humanly possible up to the time that our transfer arrived to pick us up but then it was time to head off to the airport and wave goodbye to Portugal. It's hard to explain how good the holiday was because it was all in-jokes and you-had-to-be-there-moments and I-couldn't-explain-it-if-I-tried's but we literally had the best and funniest time. I would be expecting some serious holiday blues but luckily, we jet off again on Sunday!