Exploring the Algarve: A complete guide to Loulé, Lagos, Portimão, Albufeira, Faro and Tavira.
Exploring the Algarve - A Four Day Road Trip
It’s a real shame that it’s taken us three and a half years to get our butts down to the Algarve, which is only a five hour drive away! The Algarve is one of those bucket list destinations that is on everyone’s list, and BOY, what a box it was to tick off.
I can see why the region is popular with not only locals, but the international community too. What’s not to love about 300 days of sun, jagged coastlines with hidden caves and beaches to your heart’s content.
We spent four days exploring some of the region’s most popular destinations, travelling to Loulé and Faro on day one, Tavira and more of Faro on day two, Portimão on day three, and Albufeira and Lagos on day four.
It was a busy few days, but that’s exactly how we like to travel, jam-packed adventure!
Rather than spending four days sitting beside a pool, we wanted to get out there, explore the towns, eat some great food and experience some of the excursions that make the Algarve such a popular destination.
Our home base for the four days – The Best Western Dom Bernardo in Faro. Located in Faro’s city centre, a short walk from Faro Marina, the Old Town and the cathedral. We liked that it was walkable to almost everything in Faro’s Old Town, and it made a great home base for driving out to Loulé, Tavira, Portimão, Albufeira and Lagos each day rather than switching hotels every night.
Having Faro as our base worked perfectly, allowing us to explore different parts of the Algarve each day without having to constantly pack and unpack.
Here’s how we spent our four days Exploring the Algarve.
Day 1: Loulé and Faro
We paired these two together since they sit so close to one another, giving us a relaxed first day between an inland market town and the coastal capital of the Algarve.
While the Algarve is famous for its beaches and coastal resorts, Loulé gives you a glimpse of a much more traditional side of the region.
Our first stop was the famous Mercado Municipal de Loulé, and as someone who has a serious love affair with food, this was right up my street!
The market is housed in a beautiful Moorish-inspired building and is packed with stalls selling fresh produce, fish, meat, local delicacies and Portuguese products.
We spent some time wandering through the market before exploring the historic centre.
Loulé Castle is another interesting stop, while the surrounding streets are perfect for simply wandering around and seeing where you end up.
Top things to do in Loulé
- Visit Mercado Municipal de Loulé
- Explore Loulé Castle
- Wander through the historic centre
- Visit the Igreja Matriz de São Clemente
- Browse the local shops
- Enjoy a traditional Portuguese lunch
- Explore the surrounding Algarve countryside
Faro: More Than Just an Airport
From Loulé we headed to Faro, the capital of the Algarve. Most fly into Faro Airport. For a little town in the Algarve, the planes were landing and taking off like it was JFK. So, if you’re considering this destination, do yourself a favor and fly to Lisbon and hire a car. Having wheels makes life a lot simpler, and I’ve seen the complaints about entering Portugal through this airport.
Faro’s historic center is surrounded by ancient city walls and is filled with narrow streets, traditional Portuguese buildings, cafés and restaurants.
We explored the Cidade Velha (old town), visited Faro Cathedral and wandered around the marina.
It was a great way to finish our first day before heading back to our hotel for a well deserved beverage and air-conditioning.
Top things to do in Faro
- Explore the Arco da Vila into the walled Old Town
- Visit Faro Cathedral and climb the bell tower for views over the rooftops
- See the slightly macabre but fascinating Capela dos Ossos, the Chapel of Bones.
- Strolled the marina in the evening and have a sun downer cocktail at LAB Terrace -Sunset Bar.
- Book the Ria Formosa island tour.
Day 2: Tavira and the Ria Formosa (Faro)
Our second day combined an eastern day trip with one of our favourite natural landscapes in the entire Algarve, the Ria Formosa lagoon system.
Tavira was one of the places I was particularly looking forward to visiting. Most friends said it was the more traditional and quieter part of the Algarve. It has a very different feel from the larger resort towns further west.
The town sits along the Gilão River and is packed with traditional Portuguese architecture, historic buildings, small squares and narrow streets. We spent time exploring the old town, crossing the famous bridge over the river and visiting Tavira Castle. The castle ruins provide some great views across the town.
We also visited the Igreja de Santa Maria do Castelo, one of Tavira’s most recognisable churches.
One of the biggest attractions in the area is Ilha de Tavira, or Tavira Island. The island is part of the Ria Formosa barrier island system and is home to a beautiful sandy beach. Boat trips take visitors across to the island, where you can spend the day swimming, walking along the beach or simply relaxing.
Unfortunately, four days means you sometimes have to make choices, so we couldn’t do everything. So we just did the €7 train ride that takes you around the historic center and to the islands salt pans.
Just another reason to return one day.
Ria Formosa: Algarve from the Water
From Tavira, we headed back to Faro to see the Ria Formosa Natural Park.
The Ria Formosa is a huge lagoon system made up of waterways, marshes, islands and sandbanks along the Algarve coastline.
Getting onto the water is the best way to appreciate it.
A Ria Formosa boat tour takes you through the waterways and around the islands, giving you the opportunity to see the area’s wildlife and beautiful natural scenery. We also got some down time to sunbathe and swim.
For us, this was a completely different Algarve experience compared with the dramatic cliffs and caves we’d experience later in the trip.
If you enjoy nature, photography or simply getting away from the crowds, I highly recommend adding a Ria Formosa excursion if visiting Faro. Sandra and Andre from Islands 4 You gave us an informative and memorable tour of the Ria Formosa.
Day 3: Portimão and the Benagil Coast
Day three was all about Portimão and getting out onto the Atlantic, and this was probably our most adventurous day.
Portimão is one of the Algarve’s main coastal destinations and it’s particularly well known for Praia da Rocha, it’s marina and the many boat excursions that depart from the area. But we weren’t there simply to lie on the beach. We wanted to get onto the water.
The highlight was our Benagil Cave Tour, and cheap as chips (under €15pp). If you’ve ever searched for photographs of the Algarve, there’s a good chance you’ve seen Benagil Cave. Our tour guide had to remind us all what made it famous. Only those older than millennial’s got close to the answer. It was made famous as a Microsoft Windows screensaver. Unfortunately now you are not allowed to walk around in the cave, only tour boats and guided kayak tours are allowed in for a limited time.
We headed out by speedboat and traveled along the coastline, passing dramatic cliffs, beaches and other caves along the way. It was fast, exciting and a fantastic way to see the Algarve coastline, and let’s be honest, getting thrown around on a speedboat is a lot more fun than sitting in traffic!
What we did in Portimão:
- Walked the riverside promenade along the Arade River
- Visited Praia da Rocha, with its dramatic orange cliffs and long stretch of sand
- Stopped for grilled sardines at one of the riverside restaurants, a Portimão tradition
- Took a boat trip out to the Benagil sea caves along the coast.
If you only book one excursion during your whole Algarve trip, make it a Benagil Cave tour from Portimão. Then again the Lagos cave tour is a staunch competitor, so do them both!
Day 4: Lagos and Albufeira
Our final day was another busy one because we wanted to see Albufeira and Lagos.
These two destinations are probably among the most recognisable places in the Algarve, but they couldn’t feel more different.
Lagos reminded me of the Cape Town Waterfront or the Monte Carlo marina, packed with luxury boats and yachts, surrounded by upmarket apartments built around the marina.
Albufeira, in contrast is known as the party town. “Never have I ever…” seen a bar advertise happy hour from 9am – 8pm…LOL. It’s steep cobbled streets are lined with bars and restaurants, with some beautiful beaches to boot.
We started our day in Lagos. The weather was of course perfect and we decided to do another cliff tour, as it is probably more beautiful than the Portimao cliffs.
The coastline around Ponta da Piedade is simply incredible. Golden cliffs rise out of the Atlantic, with arches, caves and unusual rock formations creating one of the most dramatic coastal landscapes we’ve seen in Portugal.
The Ponta da Piedade Boat Cruise was once again, cheap as chips (under €20) and you are on a smaller boat which allows you into tighter spaces.
Even if you don’t have time for an excursion, make sure you visit Ponta da Piedade and walk along the clifftop viewpoints. There are pit stops along the way if you need to refresh. Just remember to bring your camera. You’ll need it!
Next we headed back east to see what Albufeira had to offer and Mike was dying for an pukka English Fish n Chips with mushy pea’s. The most highly rated place on Trip Advisor was Lara’s Plaiace. Speaking to Lara’s mum, she told us that they were the only Fish n Chip shop in Albufeira, which astounded me as it’s bursting at the seams with Brits in summer. Nonetheless, it’s one of the Algarve’s biggest and most popular resort towns.
The historic center is full of narrow streets, restaurants, cafés and shops, while the beaches below the town are some of the most photographed in the region.
What we did in Lagos:
- Explored Lagos’ cobblestone Old Town and the old city walls
- Walked out to Ponta da Piedade to see the golden cliffs and sea stacks up close
- Relaxed at Praia Dona Ana, one of the prettiest beaches in the region with an ice-cream
If you’re looking for somewhere with plenty of activities, restaurants and nightlife, Albufeira certainly has you covered. But we were definitely not going to stick around for the nightlife scene, and opted to head back to Faro to chill with a vino and air-conditioning!
Final Thoughts on Exploring the Algarve
The biggest thing we took away from this trip is that the Algarve is about so much more than beaches. Yes, the beaches are spectacular.
But there are historic towns like Loulé and Tavira, the fascinating waterways of the Ria Formosa, the dramatic cliffs around Lagos, the caves around Portimão and the endless activities available from Albufeira.
And then there is the food. Anyone who knows us knows that food is always going to feature heavily in our travels, and the Algarve certainly didn’t disappoint.
Four days gave us a fantastic (short) taste of the region, but it also left us with a rather long list of places and experiences we still need to explore. I guess that’s the problem with Exploring the Algarve. Every time you tick something off the list, you find another reason to come back.
And I’m perfectly happy with that!
