Alvor - A pretty old harbour village for your beach getaway
Alvor is a delightful village with a distinctively Portuguese ambience; there are traditional whitewashed houses, narrow cobbled streets, and fishing boats are moored along the banks of the river. Alvor may be a relatively small village, but it contains a surprisingly large selection of restaurants, shops and late-night bars, all of which are found within the pretty historic centre.
A holiday to Alvor is often focused around the beach, but there is a lot to see and do within the surrounding region. There are exciting waterparks, boat tours, golf courses, nature trails, dolphin watching trips, along with day trips to the fortified town of Silves, the historic city of Portimão, or the lively resort of Praia da Rocha.
How long should you stay?
A week in Alvor seems to be more than enough time to explore and discover all the special locations of this pretty old harbour village. Depending on your trip style, Alvor is also suitable for a shorter duration but more intense journey remaining enjoyable. The prefect destination for a beach day trip! Feel free to scroll around the interactive map to plan your own itinerary.
The Weather ⛅️
In Algarve, you are very unlikely to be disappointed with the weather. However, bare in minds that you are near the ocean and thus it can get windy and chill at night (and day sometimes) - don't forget to see weather forecasts for the time your of visit but its always worth having something warm for the evenings!
Top Beaches In Alvor To Visit 🏖️
Discover the top beach destinations along the Alvor coastline and surrounding neighbourhoods based on the author's preferences. Although the below are my favourite beaches, Alvor has many beaches including the surrounding villages along the coastline.
1. Praia dos Três Irmãos
2. Praia João do Arens
3. Praia do Alemão
4. Praia da Prainha
5. Praia de Alvor
6. Praia de Alvor
7. Praia dos Três Castelos
If you have your own car, these beaches are a short drive away and 100% worthwhile:
8. Praia dos Caneiros
9. Praia do Carvoeiro
10. Marinha Beach
11. Praia de Nossa Senhora da Rocha
12. Praia da Cova Redonda
13. Praia do Vale de Centeanes
Dining-Out In Alvor 🥘
Alvor offers some of the greatest Portuguese food you'll possibly ever taste! With a large variety of options I always find the small local Portuguese restaurants offer the best dining. The order of each restaurant is in no particular order and includes something for everyone.
A Ribeira Alvor
Salsa Bistro
Alvor Wine
Bela Vida
Rib Eye Steakhouse
Cult n' Art Café
Restinga Ria
Casa do Rio
Intermaché (Supermarket)
Where to stay? 🏨
Alvor comes with many different styles of accommodation,
A short drive away...
I do also recommend looking on Airbnb for additional accommodation options…
Another Option, Algarve Boat Tours & More ⛵️
Along the coastline you're able to find so many different activities to do during the day. From water activities to mountain buggy rides, the Alvor and surrounding areas have something that suits all visitors holiday dreams.
Transport 🚊
Alvor is located approximately 1 hour drive away from the Faro International Airport and 10 - 15 minutes drive from Lagos. Renting a car allows you to explore more of the Algarve coastline.
Faro
This airport is the easier to get to Algarve. Already sets you in the area and good entry point to start your itinerary. Close to the city center, it has also the convenience of being quite small, which has its advantages.
Lisbon
More flight options, bigger airport however the airport is located abit far away from Algarve. Bud exist to do the liaison Lisboa - Faro or alternatively a 3h driver from Lisboa to Faro by car.
Getting Around Algarve 🚕
Once you have arrived in Algarve, you have an abundance of options offered to you. Previously my brother and I have used a mixture of the different options and ultimately boils down to your budget & time requirements.
Bus
You can get across Algarve pretty easily. However, bare in minds that you may have a lot of connections to do to get from point A to point B - thus making you lose a lot of time.
Uber
Yes, the American company has taken over the Portuguese south. With Uber (or regular cab by the way) you can travel from town to town at a quite affordable budget. Around 30-35 euros from Faro to Albufeira (40-45min drive), around 20-25 euros from Albufeira to Lagos (around 30 min drive). Thus, where a bus ticket from Albufeira to Lagos cost you 15 euros, if you are two or more, you may be tempted to take a Uber. (Alternatively use Bolt)
Car
Pretty affordable. Renting a car can seem to be one of the best options to get around if you travel as a couple or group. Distance between cities are usually within a 30 - 40 minutes drive. Driving in Portugal is safe and has nothing special compared to other places in Europe (e.g. Spain or Italy) As cities are human size you will never encounter the experience of driving like being in a major city.
Van
Roadtrips in Algarve is something that has already caught the attention of loads of tourists. You have plenty of areas where you could stop by and it's an alternative way of exploring Algarve. Algarve also have many transfer agencies covering all districts in Algarve although it can get pricey and unless a large group I would not recommend to solo & couple travellers.
My advice: depending on how many you are and how often you are moving around, you may want to get a car for easy accessibility or an UBER for short trips.
Sample Itinerary 🗺️
Assuming you are staying in Alvor for a full day, this would be the itinerary I would advise you to do. Alvor also makes for a pleasant destination for a day trip from other parts of Algarve as well as a full week trip. The following example itinerary is based on a one-day guide around Alvor. I'd also advise having a look at the different locations on the interactive map and shuffle things around to create a small itinerary for a day in Alvor that works best for your trip style:
Stop 1 (08h00 - 10h00):
Grab breakfast in Old Town nearby your accommodation before a long day. I would recommend a local pastelaria close enough to you for a good coffee and something small to eat (You will be snacking all day long). Before heading out it’s advisable to wear sunscreen and stock-up on some drinks and food in a cooler box for your day (the best is to stop by the supermarket):
Stop 2 (10h00 - 15h00):
Take a walk over to the Alvor Broadwalk and enjoy a peaceful walk to start off your day with a good tone. Throughout your walk you’ll come across many coffee shops, ice-cream stalls and small beach shops to visit. Once you’ve had enough of a walk I’d recommended heading for a lunch along the beachfront before going to relax and cool off on the beautiful beaches and here is some options below:
Stop 3 (15h00 - 18h00):
Now it's time to take a stroll through the historic small streets of Alvor. Here are some spots to take a look at, but honestly just wandering is the perfect idea since it is such a small town with tons to see. Whilst wondering around I’d definitely say it’s worth finding a small local Portuguese restaurant offering traditional food for a good lunch before continuing your journey through Alvor.
Stop 4 (18h00 - 21h00):
Time to grab some early dinner so you can head back to your accommodation or the beach with enough time to see the sunset, grab drinks, or relax. Here are some options for lunch and/ or dinner food:
Hope you have the best time visiting Alvor 🌅
P.S - don't forget to look back here from time to time as this guide will be continuously updated with more of the best about Alvor, Portugal. (Staying updated with the season)
If you find this information helpful, any tips are appreciated for my work :)
Looking for more guides around Alvor? Check out this guide below!
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