algarve tips and advice

jebnevin

Hi all, me my girlfriend and another couple , are heading down to the algarve in mid april for 12 days.were in mid twenties and were looking for a bit of advice . First let me tell you what were looking for from the hol. WE wanna avoid horrible over touristy places but would like some where fun too. maybe a few nice coastal towns worth visiting nice rustic villages and lively beach towns. were fans of nightlife , surfing , fishing, walking , scenery ect. please help us figureout which dives to avoid . thanks.

Gemma01

Mid April is not yet peak season so it shouldn't be swarming with tourists. I only stayed in Faro ( I assume you're flying into Faro) for a few days but I thought it was a city worth spending a few day in. I would definitely recommend renting a car (it was cheap enough) and just driving around to smaller villages.

johnfás

Caldas de Monchique is a lovely little spa village where the "local brew" of Algarve Spring water comes from. It is set in the mountains and well worth a visit particularly if it is a sunny day. Its about an hour from both Faro and Vilamoura.

I found alot of the Algarve seaside to be soulless. Faro is meant to be a nice city (we only flew out of it so never explored it); Vilamoura is just like any other Marina but it is quite nice... just stay well clear of Albufeira - total dump. If you do hire a car also drive all the way west to Sagres where Henry the Navigator had his sailing school, it is the most westerly point of the Algarve.

sfakiaman

Tavira is a lovely old town, not particularly touristy and there are great beaches nearby.

magentas

the countryside in the algarve is really pretty. There's a lot more to it than over-crowded beaches.

we went on a day trip to Seville which was fantastic but very tiring!
Don't miss Silves, Sagres and Monchique which are lovely little towns

Go to any travel agents over there and you'll find loads of brochures on things to do:)