I was keen to ensure that the villa I booked was big enough to ensure we didn't get under one another's feet. I was not disappointed. Casa Karolina is huge & and is set in beautiful gardens with 3 large outdoor seating areas, (2 on the ground floor & 1 on the 1st floor). The living areas & the bedrooms are all big, so if anyone wants a bit of 'me time' they can take themselves off to their room or another part of the villa to be alone. The large open plan dining/lounge area is very comfortable, (the sofa is amazing I wanted to bring it home), however we spent very little time inside, the weather was lovely, so we ate on the terrace outside the kitchen & in an evening sat outside the lounge, playing card games until the early hours. The pool gets the sun all day, so we were able to use it at any time of day it was always warm. We hired a pool table & a table tennis table from a local company to add to our entertainment & there was loads of room for them outside. There is a massive modele continente supermarket 10 minutes walk from the villa. We did a big shop when we arrived & got a taxi back, but the rest of the holiday we just walked down for what we needed & walked back. We did walk down to Vilamoura beach one day, but it's a good 30 minutes walk and we didn't fancy it again in the heat, so next time we got a taxi & went to Falesia beach which is not as busy. There are loads of really nice restaurants at & around the marina, we didn't have a bad meal all the time we were there. The only thing that separates the restaurants is the service. The one's on the marina are sometimes so busy that the service isn't as good. Our favourites were the 2 Italian restaurants in the block behind the marina (Stracta & Don Alfonso). There are bars dotted around the marina & the block behind it, we had a wander & a drink before dinner whenever we went into Vilamoura & went to some really nice bars. It's easy to get a taxi from the villa, we called & usually one arrived within 20 minutes. There is a taxi rank at the marina so we didn't need to book one to return. The taxi cost between 6 & 8 euros depending on the time of day. We went on a boat trip in the 2nd week of our holiday which we all really enjoyed, we booked online but could have done it down on the marina. I would recommend this villa to anyone who wants to stay in a nice quiet area but still be close to amenities. We had a lovely 2 weeks, thank you Claude & Maria!