Parque Natural da Ria Formosa and Faro – Portugal (Apr 24)

We really REALLY love it here, it ticks all the boxes! 

On the islands of the Parque Natural da Ria Formosa we walked for hours along the golden sands without seeing a single soul… it felt like we had stumbled onto our own little corner of paradise.

The turquoise sea, April sun, lines of sea shells along the shoreline and warm breeze helped us to relax and simply appreciate the sights and sounds of nature. Small wading birds were scurrying up and down the shoreline dodging the waves looking for food, and gulls in their hundreds took to the air as we approached on “their” empty beach, I could go on but you get the picture! 

We came here for my birthday weekend a couple of years ago and loved it. A £29 flight and £15 per night accommodation (per person) made it impossible not to return. This region is just bliss, so easy to get to, and there’s so much to see and do – it is perfect for a long weekend. Most people fly into the nearby airport and head off straight away to one of the many commercial hotel complexes or larger resorts further along the Algarve. However, they are seriously missing out on a gem.

It is small enough to have its own distinctive character, with its old walled town, historic buildings, restaurants, quay, nearby islands with amazing wildlife and glorious beaches, but it’s also large enough to have a bit of night life, with bars and clubs staying open till the early hours – lots of music and entertainment. 

Being on the southernmost tip of Portugal, the weather is as warm the welcome from the locals, it’s also incredibly beautiful with the local national park stretches for miles. It has abundance of sea life and bird life, with dunes, wetlands and seagrass meadows which are recovering after decades of decline. And as for value…. Wow, once here you can seek out the most amazing quality food at really great prices, I’ll do my usual list of recommendations at the end.  

This place has a mega relaxed pace. We arrived mid morning and being too early to check-in we caught the number 16 bus to the local beach. We “could” have walked to the beach from the airport, as it’s only about 45 minute trek along a cycle path, but the buses run regularly and costs only a couple of euros.

So carrying our tiny rucksacks, selected to avoid aircraft baggage fees, and with just about enough clothes for our four day break, we walked along the beach until the roads disappeared under the soft golden sand, found a quiet spot (which wasn’t difficult) and relaxed. 

That just about sums up how we spent the rest of the weekend. 

People fly half way across the world to seek out beaches like the ones that exist here. And as for the weather, wow it was just perfect, with temperatures in the mid 20’s every day.  

For some reason, and I can’t remember why, I looked up the weather in this town a few years ago on a weather app, it somehow got stuck on my favourites. Every time I glanced at it, the weather always looked great, so we stuck it in on our list of places to visit… no more scientific than that! I think it’s a place we will return to again and again. 

We decided to spend this trip exploring the closest islands, Ilha Deserta, and Ilha Farol although we didn’t sit still on either, walking for miles along the shoreline taking in Barreta and Culatra. Over the two days we took boat rides across the lagoon, mostly on ribs, but occasionally on a larger ferry. The shuttle took minutes, the ferry a lot longer.

As we we are here out of high season and in the spring, the place was empty, and the wildflowers were in full bloom – orange trees everywhere. 

Our favourite beach bar was Mar Amais, on the Atlantic side of Farol. The bar overlooks an idyllic sandy beach, and looks more like the kind of beach shack you see in a movie, such a chilled atmosphere. We had some great fresh sea food in a tiny restaurant called Aqua Chill on the main road in Culatra…. I say main “road” tongue-in-cheek, as there are no cars on the island and the main road is a footpath that weaves between the houses and the occasional bar and restaurant catering for guests.   

Our accommodation was perfect, clean, quiet, and the most ideal location. It’s tucked away in a small cobblestoned side street just next to the wall of the old town. It had a large roof terrace, which was the ideal place to start the evening.  

It genuinely felt like two holidays in one, totally chilled and relaxed by day, with night-life kicking off from about 9pm.

Unusually for us we decided not to eat ‘local” food every night, choosing instead to visit a Japanese/Chinese restaurant which had crazily low prices, but with great quality food (£22 each including wine). We also found an Indian restaurant equally pitched in both quality and price. We’d recommend both! Details below.

And then we discovered 24 Bar Faro…. Hmmmm, what can I say about this place! Well with a special 24 hour long “happy hour” offer of x2 cocktails (plus x2 shots) for £10, we felt compelled to sit down and sample a few, Long Island Teas,  Margaritas, Mojitos & Pina coladas… needless to say we got chatting to Flavia, the bar lady and cocktail maestro who gave us plenty of tips for our holiday, both for now and for when we return (one of the reasons we headed off to Farol on our penultimate day). Oh and there was large festival/music stage in the marina, which was hosting local bands… it would have been rude not to stick around!

We returned to 24 Bar for a second night, but bailed out a lot earlier than the 4am closing time that Flavia has to work onto.  We bumped the not her again at Sunglass Hut airside at the airport where she has another job, so we’ve now exchanged contact details and hope to see her when she visits London with her boyfriend and/or child, or on our next trip out to Faro.

The final day we took a boat back to Praia de Faro and after wandering the beach we heading back to the airport on the number 16 bus, the reverse of what we did four days earlier, an evening flight meant we squeezed a full extra day on the beach :). 

Oh and we treated ourselves by going to what is arguably one of the nicest hotels in Faro for a “walk-in” breakfast… all you can eat for under £13 and a great view from the rooftop terrace.

Hints, tips and details

Flights – Wizzair £29.99 per person each way.

Accommodation – “Happening guesthouse” £15pppn (9 Rua de Sao Francisco m, 8000-169, Faro). Perfect for a few nights stay, has a large roof terrace, shared bathrooms and kitchen, and in a location that is incredibly central, right next to wall of the old town. The entrance is via quiet cobblestone street. Five minutes walk from ferry station.

Bars – 24 bar faro – great value cocktails and beer

Restaurants

1. Chalet Restaurante, Chinese, Japanese. Buffet fixed price. Great value.
2. Namastey Restaurante Indiano – great quality
3. Faro Hotel and Beach Club – great fixed price walk in breakfast
4. Aqua Chill -Seafood Bar & Restaurant, Culatra, for great quality fish and local food.
5. Wax Restaurant, Faro Beach