Faro, the capital city of Algarve, is located at the heart of the Ria Formosa lagoon, a natural reserve that surrounds the southern coast of Portugal, acting as barrier between the coast and the Atlantic Ocean.
Faro is an attractive and safe city, modest in size, where it is easy to get around. The climate is very pleasant and all facilities and attractions are within walking distance from the hotels. Weather in early July is usually nicely warm and sunny. Faro has a city museum and several other monuments, namely churches and convents, where the gothic and baroque style architectures and ornaments co-exist in harmony with foundations of Moorish origin.
Many other important symbols of Portuguese historical heritage, together with landscapes of unforgettable natural beauty, can be appreciated in Algarve, in locations that are close to Faro and thus easily reached by bus or train.
Discover Faro
The Manuel Bivar Garden is a beautiful reception area for visitors, overlooking the marina, Ria Formosa and the sea.
Nearby, Arco da Vila offers access to the old town, known as “vila adentro” (into the town), where you will find the 11th century Arab Gateway, the oldest horseshoe arch in the country. This is the gate through which those arriving to Faro by sea could get into the City. From here, a tangle of streets begins that are well worth meandering through, to explore their nooks and crannies. Many archaeological findings that testify the city’s history can be admired in the Municipal Museum, located in the 16th century Convent of Nossa Senhora da Assunção.
In Largo da Sé, dominated by the buildings of the Bishops’ Palace, you will find the Cathedral, erected in 1251, after the Christian re-conquest, on the site formerly occupied by the mosque. Inside is one of the most remarkable collections of sacred art from the 17th and 18th centuries in the Algarve, a period that is also well represented in the Church of São Francisco, with its beautiful gilt carvings and tiles. Nearby lie the two watchtowers that protected the Arco do Repouso where, legendarily, King Afonso III rested during the conquest of Faro.
Worth experiencing …
Discover Muslim traces in the “vila-adentro”; visit the Cathedral and climb the bell tower for a view over the city and the estuary; have a rest at the Arco do Repouso, like King Afonso III did; strolling along the riverbank, marvel at the sunset on the Faro Islands or Culatra beach; climb to the Cape Santa Maria lighthouse, the most southerly point of mainland Portugal, and admire the landscape during the summer; finally, spend a day on the beach at Deserta Island and enjoy a space untarnished by humans.
