The Algarve coast is one of Europe’s most hidden gems which surprisingly hasn’t become crazy popular yet. When I was planning for my trip, it was easy simply because there wasn’t much information out there.
Now that I’ve been to the Algarve myself, here is my list of the best things to do in Algarve as well as my tips on where to stay and what foods to try 🙂
The Algarve has so many villages you would want to visit but unless you’re spending over a week there and are renting a car to drive around, you will probably have to prioritize a couple. For a perfectly balanced holiday head out to Lagos and Sagres.
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Things to do in Lagos
Lagos Portugal is my all time favorite place in Portugal.
Wanna know why?
It’s this picturesque and buzzing yet super tiny village full of energy, positive vibe, and friendly locals! I gotta tell you, as soon as I stepped foot in the town center I had this feeling I would love the place. I could smell delicious food from the many little restaurants perfectly aligned on both sides of the main street. Locals were rushing around to sort things out before the rush hour, and tourists were slowly strolling up and down 25 de Abril (aka the main street). I immediately bought into the town’s relaxing atmosphere but to my surprise, it turned out that there’s actually a lot more do to in Lagos. Read on for my list of best things to do in Lagos 🙂
Walk around the town center
Lagos is pretty small so you can easily walk around all the central little streets to discover the authentic houses, tiled streets, and traditional restaurants. The center of Lagos is where all the life is especially around dinner time when everyone’s back from the beach so it’s definitely the place you wanna be too.
Start off your walk from Praca de Gil Eanes. It’s a small square where a few streets of the so-called Old Town join together to form the hot spot in Lagos for street performers. It’s the place to listen to local singers showing off talent or admire dancers putting on a free show! Explore the area, pick a nice place for dinner, discover all the shades of white covering the buildings, and get inspired by some of the best graffiti you have ever seen.
Visit Igreja de Santa Maria
Founded in 1498, the Church of Santa Maria is a building of great significance for the locals of Lagos. Even though the church might seem a bit plain inside, its external architecture is quite distinct when compared to the rest of the town buildings which certainly makes it one of the few sites to visit in Lagos.
In going inside the church isn’t really your cup of tea, head over the square right in front of it and sit down for a rest whilst refreshing from the heat by the fountains.
Interesting fact: The church was founded in the same year Columbus “discovered” America.
Have a drink at the harbor
Surrounded by palm trees from all sides and boats waiting to be taken out for a ride, the harbor in Lagos is one of the most beautiful parts of town. It’s the perfect escape from the center if you’re in search for somewhere scenic, yet tranquil.
Luckily, there are also a few places where you can have a drink right next to the bay and the prices are surprisingly very reasonable. Not surprisingly, the harbor is the spot you can find stalls of the many companies offering trips into the grottos so like it or now, you’ll inevitably come here to negotiate yourself a tour but taking the time to enjoy it is a whole other part of the experience.
Do a trip to and into the caves & grottos
When you see pictures of Lagos, you probably see snaps from its caves and grottos and for a good reason. There are two ways you must indulge in these spectacular views, one is by doing a trip on the water and the other is by walking on top of the cliffs (see below).
In Lagos there are many options when it comes to a water trip to the caves. You can go on a small or a big boat which doesn’t actually go inside the caves.
You can also go on a big boat and then change into a small boat (to get into the caves) or you can go with a kayak. I told you, the options are endless!
I chose the option with a big boat first followed by a tour in a small boat. That way I could walk around on the boat and see the views from different angles but also go into the caves and take some pretty pictures (not really possible with a kayak I thought).
To my surprise, not many companies offer this kinda service but thankfully a small company called Boatrips does. I even got a discount from the €20 normal price (for a 2h trip) to €17.50 which I thought was pretty good. This trip was one of my highlights and it was so unbelievably beautiful, it’s a definite must. Watch my first ever video below to see why!
Do the walk from Praia do Camilo to Ponta da Piedade
This walk will absolutely wow you.
Lagos is famous for its many beaches, a lot of them cuddled at the bottom of the cliffs and the most magnificent thing is being able to see them all from the top.
You wonder how?
This is exactly what you’ll do if you do this walk from Camel beach to Ponta da Piedade. It could be a bit of a challenging walk because of all the ups and downs but OMG! it’s so so worth it.
It’s so beautiful that I was literally stopping for a picture every 2 minutes 😀 There is a proper road that goes all the way to Ponta da Piedade but don’t go for the easy option 😛 You’ll miss out on the gorgeous views!
Instead, walk along the path that goes right above and along the beach. At times it will feel more like a hike than a gentle walk but it’ll only take about 30min and it’s the only way to see views like this one so it’s totally worth it! 
Also, you wanna leave your flip flops at home for this one, you need good trainers here but it’s great, I promise!
Have some beach time at Praia do Camilo
There are a number of gorgeous beaches in Lagos and you can pick and choose which one you wanna visit as you’re doing the trips mentioned above.
I chose to lay down our towel at Praia do Camilo. It’s a small secluded beach, with fine sand and sandstone cliffs offering a wonderful shade from the sun.
That was my choice but it doesn’t mean it’ll be yours too and that’s ok. The important thing is to spend a few hours on one of the beaches in Lagos just relaxing and enjoying yourself. The options are plenty so you choose. For a list of the best beaches in Lagos, read my post here.
Things to do in Sagres
Oh Sagres! I can’t believe how unimpressed I was when I got off the bus and how amazed I left this little place.
Sagres is literally the tip of the Algarve, the last place on the coast before you hit the Atlantic ocean!
How crazy is the sheer thought of being on the tip of Europe?!
For me personally, this town gave me the kinda feeling I was looking for. The last 7 years in London made me appreciate the peace and quiet a lot, simply because I’m not getting any of it so when I got to Sagres it hit me.
I was trekking to the final piece of land on the coast for about 30min and there was absolutely no one else around, not a single other people. The place is remote, adventurous, and in places just like a desert, with only cactuses, blue water, and red caves all around! Absolutely incredible.
But is it for everyone?
I don’t think so! To love Sagres you gotta truly love nature, the outdoors, to have a bit of liking for things like hiking, cycling or surfing. So if you’re looking for a remote place with a laid-back feel, vast beaches, big waves, trekking trails with barely any people around, you’ll love Sagres just like I did. Below are a few of the main things to do and see in Sagres.
Praia da Mareta
As soon as you get off the bus or pull off at the car park, you’ll feel the breeze coming from the ocean. Follow the breeze and the smell of seashells and you’ll find yourself overlooking Praia da Mareta.
This is one of the longest beaches in Sagres and unlike what we expected, you’re almost guaranteed to find this place pretty deserted.
Head down to the beach for a dip into the water or just indulge in the views from the viewpoint standing right on top of the cliffs.
From here you’ll be able to spot the land’s end on your right-hand side (opposite the lighthouse). Head over to that final piece of land you can step on before you meet the endless ocean and the ever so enchanting horizon.
The feeling of standing on the edge of the cliff, watching the waves crash into the rocks, looking as far into the distance as possible and seeing how the sky and the ocean melt into one, it’s just impossible to put this into words.
So go experience it for yourself and let me know how it made you feel!
Ponta da Atalaia
From land’s end, keep walking anti-clockwise until you reach a little harbor called Ponta da Atalaia.
There isn’t a whole lot that is overly special about this place but again the views are simply stunning!
Praia da Baleeira
Praia da Baleeira is as secluded and isolated as you can get in Sagres. Hidden at the bottom of the cliffs, this beach ticks all the boxed if you’re looking for privacy and a bit of a hike as you go down to it and up to the road again.
Famed as one of the wildest beaches in Portugal, Praia da Baleeira sure deserves a place on your to-do list when you visit Sagres.
Cape Sagres viewpoint
I personally didn’t go over to the Tower and the viewpoint because I spent too much time indulging in the views from the other side of the beach but locals say that if you want to see the only actual tourist attraction in Sagres, you gotta walk over to the Tower because that is it 😀
So if you wanna be a real tourist, go see the Tower and send me a picture 😀 (since I didn’t take one LOL).
Surf at Tonel Beach
Sagres is the hotspot amongst the surfers as it arguably has some of the best waves in Portugal, if not Europe.
Tonel beach is the place you need to head over to if you wanna have a go at surfing or if you’re curious to see how perfectly sane people would go inside an ocean (without wetsuits) in water so cold you can barely feel your fingers when you come out.
And by the way, you don’t have to a surfing pro to give it a go.
There are a couple of places right on the beach where you can rent a board from and a few others in town so don’t worry if you don’t have your own.
They’ve got you covered.
Getting to Sagres: Unless you’re crazy about surfing, I’d suggest doing only a day trip to Sagres, from Lagos. You’ll need about 3-4 hours to see everything in town and you can easily get to it on the Eva buses so the actual commute is not a drag at all. And it only takes about an hour.
Visit Albufeira
Sadly my time in the Algarve ran out before I could go to Albufeira so I only passed by it but you gotta see this place.
It’s actually the largest and arguably the most energetic of all the villages on the Algarve, mainly because it’s full of life coming from its over one hundred different bars and restaurants.
A walk around its beautiful Old Town is a must.
If you love partying, definitely head over to the ”The Strip” which is basically the party street with loads of bars and clubs screaming to lure you in.
If you’re more towards the less party side though (like me), you’ll happily know that just like Lagos, there are a ton of different water activities you can have a go at and a few pretty beaches you can lie down on to suck in the sun and just enjoy yourself.
Related: Algarve in Winter – 25 Best Activities
How to get to these places
To get to any of these places from Faro airport you’d need to jump on bus 14 or 16 which will lead you to Faro city center.
From there you have two options, a bus or a train.
I went for the bus option to Lagos and back (costs €5.95 each way). That way I could actually see most of the Algarve even though just through the bus window 😀
And if you get the Transrapido (operated by Eva buses), it only takes slightly longer than the train, so about 2 hours and 10 min to Lagos and 40min to Albufeira.
To get to Sagres your easiest option is a 1 hour bus from Lagos (again with the Eva buses).
Where to stay
If you visit the Algarve just for a few days, you wouldn’t want to change location every day, and to be honest there isn’t much need to do so because everything you’ll want to see is so easy to reach.
So I suggest that you stay in Lagos.
The place I stayed is Blue Moon Guesthouse and it’s an absolutely fantastic little B&B. But sadly, exactly because it’s that good, it’s gone up in price A LOT since I stayed there. Nonetheless, if the price is right for you, definitely stay here. They’ll give you free tea/coffee every day, beach towels and umbrella and will even make up your bed every morning so how can you ask for more 🙂
To find a well-priced dorm or a comfortable private room, head to over to Booking.com, Airbnb or Hostelworld. I truly cannot recommend any other websites for booking your accommodation in Europe.
What food to try
Seafood Cataplana dish
This is a very traditional dish for the region and if you’re a seafood lover, you’ll lick your fingers once you’re finished 😀 It’s basically a seafood stew cooked and served in a large copper dish. For this one you gotta love all things clams, shrimps and prawns.
Bacalhau A Bras
This is arguably one of the most popular Portuguese dishes which basically screams “TRY ME ALREADY”, right?!
It’s made from shredded cod (bacalhau), onions, herbs, and straw fried potatoes, all mixed up with scrambled eggs. Basically, a plate of yummy flavors!
Caldo Verde
In Europe, you’ll know we love a good old homemade soup. And the Portuguese are no different. Literally a “green broth” this is a light soup with potato, onion, and garlic, all mixed with shredded kale, hence the name.
That’s it from me. I hope I’ve convinced you to book those flights to the Algarve. If you have a more specific question, pop it in the comments and let’s connect 🙂
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