from The Portugal News.com

A new and exciting development has begun in Lagos, the luxurious five-star Cascade Resort, which will consist of a five star hotel, apartments, villas, a performance sports academy, a wellness centre and a spa.

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Set in a unique location, between Ponta da Piedade and Porto de Mós, in Lagos, the 38 hectare development will have over 1.5 kilometres of sea front with eight beaches within walking distance. With a total investment of €100million, of which €70 million have already been invested, the resort will be opening in stages, with the hotel expected to open this summer and the Performance Sports Academies in the winter, on November 1st. Several other amenities are planned to open in 2011.

The five star hotel, which will start functioning with 100 staff, will have 86 rooms (all with sea views and verandas), a pool area, a small shopping centre, a health club, a spa, bars and restaurants. The resort will have a further 58 apartments, several luxury villas, ten kilometres of trails and walkways along the beautiful cliffs as well as the sports facilities, which will include two full size eleven-a-side football pitches, two half pitches, five hard tennis courts, a double ended golf driving range, a bunker and short-game practice area, a putting course and greens, as well as a medical centre, which will be developed in conjunction with Hospital Particular do Algarve and LuzDoc.

The Performance Sports Academies are set for success as Sven-Goran Eriksson, former England football manager, will be the Director of Football, Stefan Edberg, former world number one tennis player, will be Director of Tennis, and Martina Ertl-Renz, Gold winning Olympic skier, will be the Director of Recreational Sports. The Golf Training facilities are being designed by European Golf Design, a renowned name in the industry. Created to receive individual or full teams of professional athletes, the Cascade Resort is unique in its layout as the sports facilities will be in the heart of the resort, with wellness and fitness being its trump card, together with the unmatched location, which is surrounded by the sea.

During the presentation of the Cascade development, which took place at the picturesque Romantik-Hotel Vivenda Miranda on Thursday March 18th, both Stefan Edberg and Sven-Goran Eriksson gave their view of the project: “I am extremely happy to be part of this project, the weather is fantastic and the Portuguese people are always so welcoming and create a good atmosphere. I believe very much in this project” said Sven-Goran Eriksson. Stefan Edberg, who has 42 singles titles and 18 doubles titles under his belt in tennis, was also pleased with project: “My first experience of the Algarve was last year and I fell in love with it” he said, adding “This will be a very modern resort with great conditions for practising sport.”

The Swedish group certainly have the right people behind them in what they hope will become an admired and respected wellness resort that will welcome players, teams, coaches, corporations, individuals and families who share the same love of sports.