SMASHES IT

lesson – a racquet sport similar to squash.

Thankfully, the court is outside, with sparkling glass walls, making the fast-paced game the ideal cardio blast.

But Quinta Do Lago isn’t all game, set and match. After two days of tennis, I decide to try my hand at golf, its other attraction.

As I’m a beginner, I hit the driving range for a lesson and am surprised when, two hours later, I am whacking golf balls like a pro.

Lunch is at Koko, a beachthemed bistro next to the mini golf and overlooking one of Quinta’s three award-winning courses. I settle on the spicy piri piri chicken and rice, topped with a fried egg and an espresso made from local coffee beans.

Later, I take a five-mile bike ride along the Algarve’s lovely beaches, timed perfectly for the sunset.

An hour of cycling makes me peckish, so I park the mountain bike and head to the resort’s laidback seafood joint The Shack.

Here they serve up a tapas feast of prawns, crayfish and mussels reeled in by the resort’s fisheries. BBC SHOWS COACH BREAK: A five-day break, including four nights’ half-board, tickets to BBC Gardeners’ World Live and the BBC Good Food Show at the Birmingham NEC, plus a day trip to Worcester, is £304. Depart June 11 from south west pick-up points. Visit shearings.com. I spend my final day of the holiday in the hustle and bustle of Quinta’s nearest town Loulé, a 20-minute drive north of the resort.

Wandering around, I watch the stallholders at its famous market seduce tourists with cheeses, port, herbal teas and souvenirs hand-crafted from cork.

Back at the Magnolia, I take a quick trip to the sauna and get a relaxing sports massage in the posh treatment rooms.

Boarding the plane later that afternoon, I flick through the hundreds of snaps I’ve taken.

Lining them up ready to post on social media it suddenly hits me.

These colourful pictures are the first I’ve ever posted without needing a tint or a filter to boost their vibrancy.

I’ve captured the natural beauty of the Algarve and, what’s more, the healthy holiday hotspot had brought out a natural me too. COSTA BRAVA CAMPING: Seven nights at Camping Cala Canyelles in Lloret de Mar is just £228. Price based on a family of six sharing a three-bedroom Da Vinci Lounge mobile home. You will arrive on June 2. Find out more at alfresco-holidays.com or book on 0161 332 8900. THAILAND: Book by Wednesday for a one-week stay in a Deluxe Room Garden View with breakfast at the four-star Anantara Resort Hua Hin Hotel from

£755. Travel from Gatwick on dates from September 1 to October 20. See emiratesholidays.com or call

0208 972 8949.