The history of this once tiny hamlet isn’t very well known till around the middle of the 13^th century when the Moors conquered it and placed it under the control of the larger nearby Silves. The hamlet later become an official town, only for it to be mostly destroyed during the earthquake of 1755. however the settlement continued on, becoming an administrative town in the area which lived off agriculture, in the past. This is a very short Lagoa guide, meant to give you a better idea of the place’s history as well as present.

One of the main attractions of modern-day Lagoa comes from the start of the 19^th century when the parish church was inaugurated, however there’s an older church, the Igreja de Misericordia which dates to the middle of the 18^th century. The parish church features a very pleasant Baroque facade which is enhanced during the months of May and June when the surrounding jacaranda trees blossom. There also a war memorial erected nearby which pays tribute to the Lagoan soldiers who fell during the African colonial wars.

One other interesting building in the city is the Convento do Sao Jose which was built in 1713 and managed to survive the 1755 earthquake. Nowadays the building is used as a place to exhibit various art collections as well as house a small theater for cultural events. The building has an intriguing little feature in the style of a turn-box door, which was used to pass unwanted babies to the nuns in the convent. The mother would place the baby and any other small possessions on a shelf in the box and talk through a small aperture with the nun on the other side. The revolving door meant that the baby would reach the nuns without the mother having to show her face. Just a little piece of the curious history around this building and town.

During the month of August, the town plays host to a major commercial and rural produce fair named Fatacil. The fair exhibits products from all across the country, not just the region. This turns into a more major event because it offered something of an excuse for national bands and singers to do what they do best.

We mentioned earlier something about wine. During the months of September and October, the country lanes are packed to bursting with trucks and carts which shuttle freshly-picked grapes to the various wine-makers from the fields. The majority of the wine produced here is red and high in alcohol content, usually aged in a solera under a film of flor yeast which imparts a nutty character to the wine, making it taste something like a fine sherry.

The surroundings of the town are very interesting to explore as well, for instance the nearby town of Estombar is an even older settlement. This is where the famous 11^th century Arab poet “Ibn Ammar” lived and is a place of many legends related to subterranean passages stretching for up to twelve kilometers.

The nearby beach of Carvoeiro is located just a few kilometers south of Lagoa and its claim to fame being that it is amongst the most photographed and painted scenes in the entire region of the Algarve. This place too, used to be a simple and small fishing village, but thanks to investment from tourism development in recent years, it has grown into a fully-fledged holiday resort. It now features two golf courses, a tennis complex and even a riding centre nearby. Also close-by is Porches, a small town well-known for its very high-quality potteries and other hand-painted ceramics.

It should be noted that both these destinations can be relatively easily accessed from Lagoa with the help of some Lagoa car hire services. Also a near by is Portimao and Lagos that are very interesting to visit as they have many options for the shopping and for the night life.

Whether you’re planning to spend your entire trip here, or you’re just interested in visiting the place, our Lagoa transfers from Faro Airport can be employed to bring you here and back again, whether it’s to the airport or some other of our available locations, nothing could be easier.

Get a quick idea of what you should expect from your holiday trip to the Algarve, the region’s main characteristics, features and attractions, it’s so much more than simply sunny weather and white beaches.

Travelling to the Algarve

Things to see and do in the Algarve

Algarve

The Algarve is a world renowned travel destination being one of the top European destinations for those individuals who are looking for the warmth of summer all year long. This region of southern Portugal is popular due to many features, one of them being the great weather of course, but this is compounded by the over two hundred kilometers of clean beaches, clear water and not to mention a very diverse culture and heritage.

The region is also very diverse when it comes to the attractions that it offers its visitors, whether you are looking for a calm and tranquil holiday resort on the ocean coast or you are more interested in the idea of partying and the nightlife, you can find either of those option in the Algarve, as well as everything in between and more.

Those individuals who are into outdoor-type activities will be glad to know that the region has other geographical features besides white sandy beaches, it has coves, capes, cliffs, mountains and valleys, and many, many hiking trails, so whether you prefer to trek on foot, via bike, or with the aid of some type of motorized vehicle the Algarve will not disappoint.

Now if you thought those were enough reasons for most people to start seriously considering the Algarve as their next travel destination here is another reason that will absolutely clinch the deal for some of those yet to decide. The Algarve is the premiere golfing destination in Europe and arguably in the world, featuring over thirty world class golf courses, all of them within an easy one or two hour drive from any of the main resorts, no golf enthusiast will want to miss this opportunity.

These are only a short description of what the Algarve has to offer in regards to tourism potential, they only scratch the surface as it were and we haven’t talked at all about the diverse culture of the region, its interesting history, or the various places that you can visit while on your trip there. Not to mention the great and varied local culinary options that are available in any city, resort or village that you might find yourself visiting during meal time.

Algarve Beach

As mentioned earlier the region is a very popular tourist destination, in fact its population tends to triple during the peak of the holiday season, receiving up to seven million foreign tourists during this period and up to three million Portugal residents, so it is indeed a popular and depending on your choice of resort it could be rather crowded during this period. Of course some people enjoy it but even in this case you will want to book your accommodations earlier in the year so as to make sure that they will be available and not as expensive as they would be during the peak time.

The same advices would also apply if you are planning to use some Algarve car hire services while on your trip there, booking in advance will pretty much assure that you’ll have the type of car that you need available for you during your stay.

Link List related to Algarve

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Portugal Car Hire

Cheap and quality Portugal car hire.

The Unknown Algarve