bee

Taste Tavira > Annick shows you around

Tag: bee

Jardim do Coreto: A Green Oasis by the River

Events & Festivals,  Local Pleasures,  Taste TaviraPosted on

In the heart of Tavira, just a stone’s throw from the Roman Bridge, lies a peaceful escape where locals sip espresso, grandparents chat in the shade, and children chase pigeons past azulejo-tiled benches. Welcome to Jardim do Coreto —Tavira’s oldest public garden and one of its quietest joys.

Whether you’re in town for a weekend or staying longer, this little green square deserves a slow visit.

💚 A Garden With History

Jardim do Coreto dates back to the late 19th century , when public gardens began popping up across Portugal as peaceful civic spaces. Tavira’s version still holds onto its old-world charm, with wrought-iron lamps , a vintage bandstand (coreto) , and a leafy layout that offers cool shade on warm afternoons.

The garden has been lovingly maintained and slightly modernized—benches are freshly painted, the flowerbeds rotate seasonally, and there’s even a small fountain tucked between palms and pine trees. But it never feels overly curated; it’s as if time moves slower here.

☕ A Place to Pause

The garden faces the Ribeira Market Hall (Mercado da Ribeira) and sits between two of Tavira’s best riverside viewpoints. It’s a natural spot to:

  • Enjoy a pastel de nata from a nearby bakery
  • Read a book under a jacaranda tree
  • People-watch as locals pass by on their way to the Roman Bridge
  • Catch a live band during festival weekends (yes, the bandstand is still in use!)

Parents love it because there’s space for toddlers to roam safely, and the benches offer welcome rest between longer sightseeing strolls.

🎨 Azulejos, Arches & Anchors

Take time to admire the historic tilework embedded into the seating—some depict rural life, others the nearby sea. There’s even a nod to Tavira’s fishing history, with anchor motifs and ship imagery hiding in plain sight.

At the garden’s edge, you’ll spot the gentle curve of the Gilão River —a photographer’s dream in the golden hour. Keep walking and you’ll reach the Praça da República in under a minute.

🌺 Practical Tips

  • Where : Across from Mercado da Ribeira, along the Avenida Dr. Mateus Teixeira de Azevedo
  • When to visit : Early mornings for peace; late afternoons for golden light and people-watching
  • Nearby cafés : Try Padaria Vila Doce or A Casa, both just steps away for takeaway snacks or quick lunches
  • Public WC : Located just outside the Mercado or in the Praça

🌞 Why We Love It

Jardim do Coreto may not shout for attention—but it doesn’t have to. It’s the kind of place where you’ll see a 90-year-old man reading the Jornal do Algarve, a teenager strumming a guitar, and a tourist like you smiling quietly, feeling oddly at home.

Sometimes, Tavira’s best surprises are the still ones.

🎶 Jardim do Coreto as well: Music, Dance & Local Festivals

Throughout the warmer months, Jardim do Coreto transforms into a vibrant cultural stage—welcoming residents and visitors with music, dance, and festivity under the shade of palm trees and the old iron bandstand.

  • 🎤 Fado no Coreto returns every summer from mid‑July to late August . Emerging fado singers like Pedro Viola , Helena Candeias , Inês Gonçalves , Melissa Simplício and Sara Gonçalves take turns at the bandstand, bringing the emotional intensity of traditional fado to this intimate garden setting—part of Tavira’s official “Verão em Tavira” cultural programme.
  • 💃 For the last years , the garden also hosts two Grand Summer Balls , celebrating generational conviviality and popular culture. These include live dance orchestras performing beloved Portuguese and Latin rhythms, inviting everyone—young and old—to dance on warm July nights under the open sky.
  • 🎪 During spring, the leafy garden becomes a central spot for Mostra da Primavera , Tavira’s Spring Show. In April, Jardin do Coreto welcomes accordion shows , folk dance performances from local ranchos, puppet theatre, musical acts like the Banda Musical de Tavira , and community showcases that bring artisanal crafts and tradition together in one festive place.

Whether it’s the soulful strains of fado or the lively steps of a village dance, Jardin do Coreto pulses with Tavira’s cultural heartbeat all year round.

🍯 Sweetness of the Sun: Honey Producers & Bees in the Eastern Algarve

Local Flavours & Products,  Nature & BiodiversityPosted on

Honey and the Algarve go hand in hand—sun-warmed blooms, aromatic herbs, and busily buzzing bees all combine to make some of Portugal’s most beloved honeys. Here in Tavira and across the Eastern Algarve, small apiaries are reviving traditions, supporting biodiversity, and crafting pure, seasonal honey based entirely on local flora and age‑old methods.

🐝 Bee Heroes of the Algarve

Apicultura Algarve – Founded by Tomás

Tomás, a Belgian-born ecologist with a master’s in Sustainable Rural Management from the University of Algarve, fell for bees while researching raspberry crops. He started Apicultura Algarve to support pollinators and produce 100% raw honey in harmony with nature. His hives dot the Serra Algarvia , Barrocal , and Baixo Alentejo , offering small-batch honey without pasteurization or additives.

Melaria do Monte – Manuel & Célia Jesus

Located near Monchique (1,5 hour drive) but with production zones reaching into the Eastern Algarve, this family business began in 2003. Manuel, raised in a beekeeping family, now runs 350+ hives. Harvests happen from May through August , using natural smoking techniques and careful handling.

  • Varietals include orange blossom, thyme, and wildflower
  • Sold in eco markets and select Algarve shops
  • Proudly uses no mechanical filtration or heat

🌼 A Taste of Local Flora

Each honey reflects local blossoms:

  • 🍊 Orange Blossom Honey – Springtime freshness, pale and floral
  • 🌿 Thyme Honey – Rich, earthy, and high in thymol
  • 🌰 Carob Honey – Autumn-harvested and bittersweet, perfect with cheese
  • 🍓 Medronho Honey – Rare, late-season from the strawberry tree, slightly bitter

Production depends on rainfall and flowering seasons, so local honeys vary every year—true slow food at work.

🧂 Real Honey: Pure & Protected

Portugal’s local honeys are among the EU’s most genuine. Look for labels like:

  • “Mel de Rosmaninho” (rosemary)
  • “Mel Multiflora do Algarve”
  • Or simply buy from the Tavira Municipal Market on Saturdays for zero-km authenticity.

Beware: the Algarve wildfires of 2023–24 devastated many apiaries. Projects like Tomás’s are critical for bee recovery and future harvests.

🍯 Experience It: Tastings & Tours (not personally checked)

Note: The tours and producers mentioned have not been personally tested by Taste Tavira. Please check availability and reviews before booking.

Tasting Tavira’s Salt Soul: A Visit to the Historic Salt Pans

Local Flavours & Products,  Nature & BiodiversityPosted on

There are many things that sparkle in the Algarve sun—ceramic tiles, whitewashed rooftops, chilled vinho verde… But none quite like the salt flats of Tavira. Just a short walk or cycle from the old town, these shallow pools shimmer with a history and craft that stretch back centuries. If you’re curious about where your flor de sal comes from—and you fancy a peaceful stroll with flamingos for company—this is your sign to explore Tavira’s salty soul.

✨ Ancient Tradition in Every Grain

Tavira’s salt pans have been used for salt production since Roman and Moorish times . Even today, the process remains charmingly low-tech: sun, sea, and wind do most of the work, while local salt workers—called marnotos—rake the gleaming crystals by hand.

The real treat? Flor de Sal de Tavira . This delicate salt “flower” forms on the surface and is skimmed gently using wooden tools. No additives, no industrial machinery. Just pure, sea-born flavour.

🚶 How to Visit (And When To Go)

You can explore the salt flats freely by walking or cycling along the Ecovia Litoral trail . From Taste Tavira AL , head toward R. Eng. João Bruno da Rocha Prado, and continue on gravel paths. Best times? Early morning or sunset , when the pools glow pink and gold. July, August, September and early October are the harvest months.

📏 Birds, Colours & Calm

The salt pans aren’t just about salt. They’re part of the Ria Formosa Natural Park , a Ramsar-designated wetland teeming with birdlife. Depending on the season, you might spot flamingos, herons, avocets or even spoonbills, wading delicately between the glinting pools.

And then there’s the colour: subtle pinks, dreamy turquoise, even rusty reds—all caused by natural algae and minerals. Bring your camera, or better yet, a moment of stillness.

🚢 Want to Go Further?

If you prefer a deeper dive, local outfits like Monte da Ribeira (near Estoi, by car) offer sometimes guided salt-harvesting experiences (€28), complete with tools, history, and hands-on raking (yes, you can try it!). Check for actual information.

Or visit Salinas do Grelha (Olhão), where you can also float in a mineral-rich salt lagoon (think Dead Sea… but Algarvian!).

🌿 Salt That Tells a Story

Back in town, look for locally harvested flor de sal at artisan shops or farmer’s markets. This is salt that speaks of place: sea air, sun-drenched patience, and the quiet determination of marnotos.

A visit to Tavira’s salt pans isn’t loud or flashy. It’s slow, grounding, and strangely moving. Just you, the wind, the birds, and a glint of salt underfoot.

Tavira & the Mediterranean Diet – A Coastal Town With a Surprising Role

Local Flavours & Products,  Local Pleasures,  Taste TaviraPosted on

At first glance, it might seem odd: Tavira , a charming town on Portugal’s Atlantic coast, is the country’s official representative for the Mediterranean Diet on UNESCO’s heritage list. Wait… not even on the Mediterranean? Correct. But don’t let the map fool you — the spirit of the Mediterranean is everywhere here.

The UNESCO recognition isn’t about being near a particular sea. It’s about how people live, eat, and connect with their land and each other. And Tavira nails that. Local food traditions here are deeply tied to nature, seasons, and community. From the way people shop at the market to the way meals are shared — slowly, socially, and often with multiple generations — Tavira keeps those Mediterranean rhythms alive.

One thing that makes this region special is its landscape . Tavira stretches from the salt marshes and fishing towns by the coast , through the fertile floodplains of the Gilão River , all the way into the hills of the barrocal and serra inland. Each zone has its own character — and its own use.

  • The coastal zone is where you’ll find salt pans, shellfish farms, and small fishing boats.
  • The barrocal (a transitional zone) has limestone-rich soils, great for olive trees, fig trees, almonds, citrus , and aromatic herbs .
  • Further inland, the serra (with its schist and granite soils) is more rugged — ideal for goats, honey production , and wild herbs that pop up in local cooking.

What ties it all together is the short line from producer to plate . Small-scale farmers, beekeepers, fishermen, cheesemakers — many of whom work just a few kilometers from the town — contribute to everyday meals. Classic Algarvian dishes reflect that mix : think fish caught that morning, greens picked from the back garden, cheese from a cousin’s goats in the hills. It’s seasonal, fresh, and very personal.

If you want to dig a little deeper (pun intended), pop into the Museu Municipal de Tavira , where the exhibition on the Mediterranean Diet tells the story behind the food — from convent sweets to sacred herbs to family traditions. And if you’re around in September, don’t miss the Mediterranean Diet Fair . It’s food, music, workshops, and dancing in the street — basically, the whole lifestyle wrapped into one weekend.

So no, Tavira isn’t on the Mediterranean. But in terms of values, flavours, and traditions? It absolutely belongs at the table.