Portugal is one of the most welcoming countries I have ever visited and I think any summer can shine happier if you take at least a week or two to visit the sunny shores of the southern side of the country. With this in mind, I set out in search of a few of the most exciting events to brighten your days there. What to do in the Algarve this August 2018? Here are a few ideas:

Our first stop today is in Albufeira. This lovely tourist resort is one of the most prominent towns on the Algarve coast. There are a couple of events that are bound to mark the last month of summer in town. The Festa da Nossa Senhora da Orada (which translates into “The Festival of Our Lady of the Oracle”) is celebrated on August 14th. This is the day when the patron saint of fishermen is honored with a lovely procession that follows the mass at Igreja Matriz. The procession continues up to the beach, where fishermen honor the saint and then return merrily to the church. The procession is definitely not the only thing to look forward on this day. The celebration is also marked by a town fair and fireworks in the town center.

How to get to Albufeira? Well, if you are lodged in the Algarve, you can always book an Albufeira private transfer and benefit from a private transport option for you and your group.

The second memorable day to celebrate this August in Albufeira is the Municipal Holiday which is scheduled for the 20th of the month. Sports events and a lot of fun, as well as firework shows and a loot of good cheer can be counted among the things to look forward to.

The occupancy rates in the region’s tourist accommodation establishments reached a solid 92.1% last month, representing a 2.4% increase when you compare the number to August of 2012.

This increase in occupancy rates is attributed mostly to a rather significant rise in French, German and British markets – these three registering a healthy 37.9%, 21.8% and a rather modest, but still good, 10.4% increases, respectively – thus making the month of August the most successful since 2008, and that can only be great news.

The growth of those markets made up for the 4.9% drop in Portuguese tourists.

According to the president of AHETA – Eliderico Viegas – thought he French market especially grew considerably, this only represented 4.9% of the total, which is still dominated by British tourists, while at the same time, admitting that this higher occupancy rate does not necessarily mean an increase in profit, because the tourist establishments had to lower their prices in order to attract the business to begin with.

He did also add however, that if the occupancy rates continue their upward trend for the following four to five years, the region might reach the same level of success that it registered in the past.

During the last month of the calendar summer, the areas of Carvoeiro/Armacao de Pera saw a 3.9% increase, Monte Gordo/Vila Real de Santo Antonio 3.4% and Albufeira a 2.3% registered the biggest boosts in their occupancy rates.

Albufeira was the municipality that registered the highest occupancy rate, hitting a 95.8%, while Tavira was the lowers with an 86%.

We don’t have other numbers to go by, but we’ll keep an eye on what happens to the tourism numbers in the future and see how the region deals with the recent calls to not close down for the winter.

The momentum that he is referring to has to do with the fact that at least till the present time, the tourism numbers in the Algarve have been showing a positive and upward trend, and that he considers that this is reason enough for the Algarve to establish itself as an all year-round destination.

He appealed to businesses operating within the Algarve tourism industry to stay open for as long as possible because in his words, it is ‘essential’ to try and ‘keep facilities and infrastructures connected to tourism open’ during this coming winter; because that’s what is needed to start the process of reaching the goal of making the Algarve into a winter destination.

Silva continued to say that the Algarve tourism industry as a whole is working on the 2012/14 winter campaign and he said that the campaign has shown very positive results in securing about 100,000 nights to be spent in the region on top of all of those already contracted for this winter.

He stressed that the region has to affirm itself as a year-round destination and in order for this to happen, each and every public and private entity have to help create the conditions so as to reach this objective.

Mister Silva is quite uniquely experienced in the subject, having been mayor of Albufeira – one of the region’s major tourist hotspots – for a decade, and now being re-elected as the president of the RTA; he is quite aware of the seasonality aspect of the region and that’s why he is trying to change that.

We can only hope that he manages to do this for the overall good for everyone.

You may have heard of Guia, but only if you’re a very big foodie, because the place has become quite famous nowadays thanks to its great chicken piri-piri and its local wine. Back in the 16^th century when Portugal firs discovered the piri-piri pepper, it became a major trading item with other European countries. The Chicken piri-piri is believed to have started somewhere in Angola and Mozambique, but it is today world-known as one of Portugal’s national dishes, which in turn makes Portugal the biggest consumer of chicken in Europe.

The village features a number of windmills which have played a major role in the past of the region, having been a centre for the milling industry. These have been such an important part of the village that the mill is present on Guia’s coat of arms.

A well preserved windmill can be found on the grounds of the vineyards of Adeva da Cantor – the vineyard of the singer – this being the name Sir Cliff Richard gave to his enterprise, which has produced some award-winning wines in a few very short years.

Guia can be a good pit-stop, featuring a good daily covered market for fish and vegetables – for self caterers – as well as quite a large array of restaurants and café/bars.

For those employing some Algarve car rental services, you’ll be glad to know that the place has lots of parking just off the high street and there are also several ATM machines. For a more relaxed stroll you should stroll around the many back streets to gander at the cottages which feature brightly colored frontages and a couple of bigger houses with carved stone door and window surrounds.

However, the authorities in Albufeira have started a campaign to alert all beach-goers about the problem of possible cliff-falls, the campaign will be active till the end of August.

This campaign will be carried out across all the major Albufeira beaches so as to inform visitors about how to prevent accidents as well as warn them about various other hazards. The municipality authorities are distributing bilingual pamphlets and bracelets as well as organizing informative sporting activities in order to raise awareness about the potential dangers.

The authorities have been taking this problem very seriously for a long time, and they have been preparing the terrain long before the bathing season actually started. Quite a few controlled rock demolitions were conducted under the supervision of the environmental authorities in order to prevent as many possible accidents during the summer as possible.

The main alderman for the Albufeira civil protection – Carlos Quintino – stressed in a statement that despite the very active efforts of the authorities to minimize these risks, nature is still unpredictable – and so is human nature we might add – so respecting the warning signs is absolutely necessary.

We mentioned earlier that the Albufeira authorities have been looking at the problem for a long time, and 2013 will be marking the fourth consecutive year in which the ‘Proteja-se das Arrivas’ campaign will be organized by the Civil Protection of Albufeira.

For a bit of history, the campaign started because of the collapse of a part of a cliff on the Maria Luisa beach in Albufeira – four years ago – which killed five people, the gravest accident registered on Algarve beaches. If you want to visit Algarve beaches we suggest that you take an private Albufeira transfer so you can enjoy the best holiday.

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.

It appears that a similar project is underway for regional tourism as well, because what better place to start promoting one’s touristic capabilities than in one’s own country.

The project is called ‘Rediscovering the Algarve’s Secrets’ and is part of the tourism authority’s push to show both journalists and tour operators alike some of the region’s hidden gems. Focusing on the ‘hidden’ part might just be one of the things needed to boost the region’s tourism, since the major gems are quite popular by now.

The first of these ‘familiarization trips’ will be held in Alcoutim on April 18 and the twenty participants will be exploring the region as well as its tourism potential as well as partake in a number of special activities prepared for their enjoyment.

A statement from Desiderio Silva – the president of the Algarve Tourism Board – said that journalists are needed to be made aware of the Algarve from a different perspective, so that they can then in turn help to ‘sell’ the destination much better through their own experiences. The idea behind  this initiative being that the Algarve has many more points of interest with high tourist potential that are not known to the wider holiday-making public, and this will definitely help.

Other familiarization trips are planned to take place until the end of the year, with the next one taking place in Albufeira in May.

A great idea, and quite an innovative one, showing that the Algarve Tourism Board is seriously looking into all sorts of solutions to their overall problems; the effects of this project won’t be very large and most likely won’t be seen for a couple of months at least, but they project is definitely a step in the right direction.

The online travel site TripAdvisor – one of the most visited travel websites – has rated the Falesia beach in Albufeira as being the best beach in Portugal and the 18^th in a top 25 of European beaches.

Another Algarve beach that has been awarded as being the 22^nd in the top 25 is the Ponta da Piedare in Lagos, whilst Cascais beach in Lisbon is the second best Portuguese beach and 21^st on the European list.

When it comes to the Top 10 Portugal Beaches, as expected the Algarve beaches occupy most of the positions, with the Falesia in Albufeira taking the top spot – as we mentioned earlier, Olhos d’Agua being ranked fourth and five other following them, all of which are to be found in the Western Algarve. They are as follows:

Ponta da Piedade in Lagos

Praia da Rocha in Portimao

Praia Dona Ana in lagos

Praia da Luz in Burgau

Praia de Odeceixe in Aljezur

Albufeira was voted one of the top European beach destinations in 2012 as well, thanks to the great beauty of its beaches and the diversity which placed the entire municipality as 6^th in the Top 10 of Travellers’ Choice Awards.

We should also note that Albufeira was also given top marks for its good environmental practices and 20 blue flag beaches in the district.

So there you have it, in case you needed an extra boost to decide whether or not you’ll go to the Algarve for your next holiday, the visiting masses have decided and they’ve decided that the Algarve beaches are definitely worth your time.

And in case you want to see as many of them as possible, don’t forget to employ some Algarve car rental services while on your trip, they will serve you well.

The Algarve is known for stupendous beaches and wonderful, towering cliffs, making for great water activities and sunbathing, as well as a great nightlife meant for those who love to party once the sun sets. However for those who visit the area with their children there’s also the Zoomarine Algarve Park, a popular attraction in the region for a number of years.

Zoomarine alligators

Guia is where the park is located and that is at about ten kilometers from Albufeira, so it is very easy to reach with the help  Faro car rental in case you want to drive yourself there or if you like you can buy the ticket with shared transportation bus.

The park itself is a combination of Zoo, amusement park and marine center, offering exciting and thrilling experiences for the entire family, but mostly for the younger ones.

One of the major attractions of the park is its wonderful displays of marine mammals, seals, sea lions and dolphins. There’s also an exhibition centre, an aquarium, and there are other animal exhibits as well, such as tropical birds, parrots, flamingos and even alligators, always an interesting view.

There are a lot of shows in rapid-fire succession, each of them last for about half an hour – so as to constantly keep the attention of the young ones, with amazing tricks being performed by the animals.

Zoomarine Fun, Portugal

Dolphins are by far the biggest attraction at the Zoomarine Algarve Park, and for good reason, because the park offers a dolphin interaction program through which you can play with them in the water. Usually a thirty-minute session with trainers is ideal before you try to dive into the water and swim with the dolphins on your own. But whether you’re interested in swimming with them or just watching them play, dolphins are always a great attraction.

For more details and for tickets you can go to on the website – here.

Many holidaymakers return to Albufeira city Portugal when they’re looking for a specific type of atmosphere which mixes great climate, lovely beaches and a plethora of eating establishments.

There are some who call Albufeira the St. Tropez of Portugal, while one must maintain the proportions in mind when making such a comparison, one also has to acknowledge that there are some similarities between the two. Our Albufeira city guide won’t talk about all of them however we will focus on a general outlook of the city.

The ex-fishing village is situated in the central part of the Algarve region, at about a thirty minute drive from Faro Airport, thankfully there are many Albufeira transfers from Faro Airport available for those interested in getting there quickly and in safe comfort.

Albufeira city

For those who have visited a bit of North Africa, coming here will offer a very interesting experience seeing as how Albufeira looks quite a bit like a village from that region. The city is home to one of the greatest beach-side tourist developments in the entire country, not only the region, however you don’t have to stay here if you don’t want to, the nearby locations of Quarteira and Almancilalso offer some great accommodation options.

On the other hand you could have a wonderful vacation and never leave the town or its surroundings, in such a case considering some Albufeira car hire services might prove to be a great idea, especially if you’re planning on cooking your own meals and if you wish to have the same flexibility of movement that you have at home.

Being the largest resort in the Algarve, Albufeira didn’t get that reputation for nothing, the wide variety of attractions, sights and activities that the place offers is appealing to a wide range of travellers, of all ages.

The city is split into two entities, the ‘old’ and the ‘new’, the first offering history and tranquillity while the other a constantly humming nightlife. Add to this some of the finest beaches on the continent, and couple it with the great weather, plus the local culture, one can understand why the atmosphere here is much sought after by travellers and holidaymakers of different ages and backgrounds.

Of course, considering the resort’s size and the plethora of offerings it has, one cannot think that it does not cater to those who love to shop while they’re on vacation. For those looking for some ‘retail therapy’ after a few days of lounging on the beach, rest assured that Albufeira’s main shopping street of Rua 5 de Outubro has pretty much anything that you may want or need, from a new outfit that you can wear on a night out in Albufeira to presents for your family and friends back home.

The resort doesn’t only offer great beaches, and wonderful eateries, golfing enthusiasts will also have a chance to play a solid number of holes at the Pine Cliffs or again, can take a ride to one of the top notch courses around Quarteira, like the Vila Sol and Vilamoura Old Course.

Albufeira guide – Albufeira beach Art

As far as the more traditional idea of an attraction goes, Albufeira has a few interesting places that will be ideal for a large percentage of visitors. For instance those who are traveling with their children will surely have to visit the Zoo Marine and the variety of water parks which can be found in and around the city.

More adventurous adults may want to visit Monchique and Foia, which are the highest points in the region, the views from here amaze every time, without fail. While on this trip make sure to check out a few local specialties, such as Medronho – a traditional alcoholic beverage – and Honey Cake, both of which are worth trying.

This has been just a quick look at what Albufeira has to offer its visitors, rest assured that once you’re there, you will surely find many more things to see and do.