Visit Faro

Ringed by ramparts, the old town takes two hours on foot. You enter through the Arco da Vila, often topped by a stork's nest, to reach the Se cathedral and its bell tower, from which the view reaches the rooftops and the lagoon. The bone chapel of the do Carmo church, its walls lined with skulls, and the municipal museum in a former convent complete the loop. The whole area stays lived-in and quiet, away from the seaside bustle.

The Ria Formosa nature park protects 60 kilometres of lagoons, islets and salt pans. Boats leave the harbour for two to three-hour trips in search of seahorses and water birds. For swimming, bus 16 reaches Praia de Faro in twenty minutes, a sandy beach on a barrier spit, or a ferry runs to Ilha Deserta, with no buildings or cars.

The eastern rail line makes Faro a practical car-free base for the Sotavento. Tavira, with its 37 churches and fortified bridge, is 35 minutes away; Olhao and its 1916 brick market halls 10 minutes; Vila Real de Santo Antonio, on the Spanish border facing Spain across the Guadiana, under an hour. Each town is a half-day visit, easily extended by a ferry across the lagoon to a quiet beach island.

To the west, the Algarve changes character: ochre cliffs and enclosed coves replace the flat lagoons of the east. Lagos, 1h45 by train, gives access to the Ponta da Piedade caves by boat and to the cliff-backed Dona Ana beach. Continuing by rental car, Cape St Vincent marks the south-western tip of mainland Europe, about 1h30 from Lagos, especially spectacular at sunset behind its lighthouse.