The Algarve, Portugal’s southernmost region, is renowned for its charming towns, beautiful beaches and delicious seafood.  It is a favorite vacation destination of the Portuguese and the rest of Europe so we were eager to see what all the fuss was about.  Even though the weather was still cool and damp when we arrived, the Algarve did not disappoint.  We had time to spend a few days each in three Algarve towns: Lagos, Tavira and Faro.

Lagos

Our first stop was in Lagos, one of the most popular vacation spots in the Algarve.  Lagos is touristy but still pleasant.  The main square and the streets shooting off from it are closed to vehicle traffic, making it a nice place to just walk around.

Lagos’s real attraction, though, is its beaches.  Unfortunately, when we arrived the weather was unseasonably cold and drizzly.

The less than ideal weather did not detract from the beauty of the dramatic coastline.  We spent our favorite day in Lagos hiking along the cliffs from town all the way out to Ponta de Piedad, admiring the little beaches hidden along the way.

The cliffs’ vibrant colors and undulating shapes were truly breathtaking.  The water off the beaches below was crystal clear and a gorgeous shade of turquoise.  These were some of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen in my life.

We ended the hike with a delicious lunch at a cute little British-style pub near the coast.  (There are tons of British expats in Lagos;  I guess some people get hooked on the nice weather and never leave.) As luck would have it the sun started to come out just as we were finishing our meal. We got to enjoy some time on the sand at one of the beaches we had admired from above.

Tavira

We had a little bit of an adventure actually getting to Tavira. We arrived at the Lagos train station all ready to go only to find a hand written note saying they were closed due to another greve (strike).  Luckily the bus station was only a few blocks away so we headed there and were able to get bus tickets for a couple hours later.

By the time we got to Tavira summer had officially arrived in Portugal.  The weather was gorgeous and we loved finally getting to spend some time in the sun.  Tavira doesn’t have a ton to do but the town itself is lovely, with lots of quiet little squares and lanes to explore.

Tavira is in a part of the Algarve where the coastline consists not of dramatic cliffs but of a river delta.  This means there aren’t any beaches in the town itself so we spent our couple of days there strolling along and sitting near the river instead.

In addition to great gelato and a pretty river Tavira has a camera obscura built in an old water tower where we paid a few euro to check out 360 degree views of the city.  There are also ruins of a medieval castle which were fun to climb around on.

Overall it was a relaxing couple of days and I really enjoyed getting to explore a slightly quieter and less touristy corner of the Algarve.

Faro

Faro was the most activity-filled leg of our Algarve tour.  This was largely thanks to Jorge, the fantastic manager of Faroway Hostel, who sat us down as soon as we arrived and provided maps, restaurant recommendations, brochures and hand written lists of must-dos for our time in Faro.  This was way easier than spending hours on internet research and we ended up taking a lot of his suggestions.  These included:

A Free Walking Tour 

Though they might seem like a touristy cliche we have found walking tours to be a great way to get acquainted with a city, especially when we arrive with little knowledge or agenda.  The Faro Free Walking Tour gave us a good overview of the city’s history, from Roman times to the present.

Our guide also happened to be an ornithologist, which was very exciting because he was able to provide lots of information about some of Faro’s most iconic residents: the storks.  These massive birds are EVERYWHERE in Faro and each nest is at least three feet in diameter.

Apparently at one point this particular breed of stork was critically endangered so various laws were enacted to protect them.  These include a prohibition on moving or removing a stork’s nest.  Now the storks have made a comeback and love building their nests on top of tall buildings all over town.

Watching Portugal in the World Cup

We were super excited to be in Portugal to watch the team’s first match of the World Cup.  We knew from our time in Vietnam that nothing creates a festive atmosphere better than watching the national team play in a high stakes competition.

For this game we joined the crowds in Faro’s waterfront square to watch the game projected on the huge outdoor screen.

Portugal was the underdog but managed a tie against their heavily favored rivals, Spain.  In this case a tie seemed to be almost as good as a win and the crowd left rejoicing into the night.

A Boat Trip to Isla de Farol

Like Tavira, Faro sits at the edge of a delta.  All of the beaches are on ‘islands’ where the edge of the delta meets the sea.  Jorge had recommended we take the ferry to Ilha de Farol for a beach day.

A Bike Ride to Ilha de Faro

The only beach near Faro that is accessible by land (there’s a bridge) is Ilha de Faro.  On our last day in Faro we rented bikes and took a long leisurely ride along the coast from town to the beach.  The ride itself was nice but the beach was packed and super hot.  We didn’t stay long and ended up being glad we’d already gotten some beach time in on Farol.

We had mostly chosen to spend a few days in Faro because it’s the town with the airport but it ended up having a lot more to offer than easy access to our flight to Scotland. It was a great place to wrap up our time in Portugal: with beautiful architecture, sun, and great food .