Once you’re atop of the hill you’ll see the town becoming you to wander its beautiful streets and keep in mind that Ferragudo has only been an official town since 1999, so lots of the rural atmosphere is still here.

Ferragudo is quite a popular destination for many locals because of its Sunday flea market, set along the river Arade. But for those settling in for a few days or who want to take in the typical atmosphere, there’s always the large cobbled square – Praca Rainha Dona Leonor – which is full of cafes and a general great place to just sit, relax and watch the people buzz around you.

Sitting on the Arade and offering views dirreclty across to Portimao, the local port can be an attraction in itself when you see big cruise liners moored across the river almost as big as the buildings. Ferragudo was once a rather thriving fishing village and some of that activity is still there especially when it comes to the riverfront walkway where several restaurants offer great seafood dishes.

One attraction that you shouldn’t miss is the Sao Jao de Arade fort  which you can see in its full glory from the beach nearest the village – Praia da Angrinha. The fort originates from the 15^th century and has benefit from later additions during the 18^th century.

Then you can head towards the lighthouse and you’ll see many villas overlooking the coast and in case you’re into walking, the furthest beach is the Praia dos Caneiros which has some great coffee, but a bit expensive.

Keep in mind some Algarve car rental services for your visit to Ferragudo.

The town of Monte Gordo, as opposed to most other destinations in the Algarve is actually a pretty large and spacious one; many of its wide streets having been exclusively dedicated to pedestrians.

The place used to be a rather thriving fishing village benefiting from a very wide variety of fish species thanks to the warmer waters of the Mediterranean.

The town is located just a few kilometers from Vila Real de Santo Antonio, being situated practically on the border of Spain, but the two towns are two quite different entities.

Monte Gordo saw a major change in the late 1990s when the Casino Hotel opened. This change came in the form of high-rise apartment buildings, thankfully however, the miles-long stretches of wide golden beaches have remained unspoiled by building sites, there is nothing to ruin the coastline view of the town. Monte Gordo is quite a popular destination for summer visitors thanks to the warmer Mediterranean waters.

The beach decking features access for disabled people in several locations and there is also a rather small but attractive park where one can find plenty of seating in the shade when needing to escape the hot summer Algarve sun.

Even though the place is known by tourists it doesn’t mean that it’s that tourist-focused, the place featuring several good Portuguese restaurants where you’ll find some traditional cuisine. This is an important distinction to make especially when comparing to very popular destinations such as Albufeira which has many bars and restaurants catering to English tourists for instance.

There are lots of pay-to-park facilities located close to the beach and along the promenade, the promenade is also where a monthly antique market is held on the fourth Saturday.

One other great advantage of Monte Gordo is that you can hop into Spain to enjoy some tapas in Ayamonte.