SPAIN & PORTUGAL TORRES VEDRAS DESTINATIONS E


mbarking on a ‘Trail of Discovery’ through the


countryside north of Lisbon, you might expect to uncover a few little gems from the local area – but it turns out, you might just learn a few things about yourself. One thing I discovered is that this golf malarkey isn’t quite as simple as it looks. João, our ever-patient instructor, deserved a medal for not wincing every time my club churned up the grass on the immaculate 18-hole golf course, entirely missing the ball teed up in front of me. That’s my back-up career as a pro golfer off the agenda, then. Thankfully, we weren’t there


in the peak golf seasons of March and April or October to November, so didn’t have to endure too many withering looks from the pros on the lovingly tended fairway.


◗ HIT THE TRAIL The impromptu golf lesson was one of the activities on the Trail of Discovery, essentially a grown-up treasure hunt around the tiny villages and sweeping scenery of Portugal’s Torres Vedras, a small coastal region just 20 miles or so north of Lisbon. It’s been devised by local blogger Vanessa Martins on behalf of Dolce CampoReal


It’s a timeless landscape, steeped in history, rolling countryside, vineyards and tiny villages


Lisboa – a hotel surrounded by vineyards to one side and mountain ranges to the other – to encourage guests to get outside the resort and explore the Torres Vedras area in greater depth. Though there’s already plenty


to do in the resort – including a state-of-the-art Mandalay Spa, outdoor swimming pool and the golf course – this gorgeous region will awaken everyone’s inner explorer. It’s a timeless landscape,


steeped in intriguing history and blessed with rolling countryside, crisscrossed by vineyards and studded with tiny villages. The trail is certainly a clever


concept. While the golf nut in the family is teeing up, the rest of the gang can bond as they follow a set of seven simple clues around the countryside. There’s cycling to the village of Turcifal, with its cobbled


27 September 2018 travelweekly.co.uk 77


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