ALGARVE WEST – CARVOEIRO

We are spending a week in the Algarve and choose the lovely small town of Caveiro as our home base, located to the east of Faro. We opt to rent a car from Lisbon and drive down. Very easy drive on main highway. I found this small apartment on Airbnb that has a beautiful rooftop terrace facing west and overlooking the small beach.

On our first day, with the weather on our side, we book a boat tour of the coats right on the beach. We explore the coast from the water between Carvoeiro and Miranda – a must: caves, caves and more caves.

The Seven hanging Valley trail – 11km hike up and down cliffs and along the coast – tested Chuck’s fear of heights. Spectacular cliffs, so many stairs and dirt trails. From Miranda to Celiantes and back.

Silves: With the high winds and rain on and off, we decided to drive 20 minutes north to the city of Silves to visit the moorish castle ruins. It is a lovely town to stroll through with many narrow cobblestone street and cafe. First we visited the museum of archeology which did a great job at demonstrating the evolution of the area and reproducing some of the architecture from fragments they found. 

Next we walked to the castle. The structure was very impressive and we could still walk along the higher palissades. Too high and narrow for Chuck’s liking 🙂

There was great views of the surrounding area. 

We also visited the chapel which we built over a mosque. It was particular in the fact that there were very little gold adornments, which is unusual compared to all the churches we visited in Europe. The ceiling was very high but made of wood. The “chemin de la croix” was special in that each station was made of a ceramic display. Very lovely. 

We had a lemonade at the Cafe Rosa at the main square, opposite a cute fountain and a building with rose tiles covering the walls. 

The next day we finally hike the Carvoeiro boardwalk which is right out of our front door – more cliffs and beautiful rock formations.

Another day, another hike! We hiked the Ponte De deidade boardwalk in Lagos : spectacular views, cliffs and rock formations. Another 6.5km.

We experience many very windy days during our stay which precluded us using that beautiful terrace but we still enjoyed the weather.

Grand Beach Finale: Praia Felasia – absolutely spectacular! The combination of cliffs/beach/sea is really special. The cliffs are unlike the other ones we have seen, like sculptures. We can hike the top and down the long stairs and up at the other end. Just wow!!

I go on my own exploring the city which is very hilly.

Carvoeiro beach, view from our terrace and the wind!!

Final day, we drive back to Lisbon to spend a day there. It is one of my favorite city, beautiful city to stroll up and down staircases in the street and listening to outdoor singers.

A lovely lunch at Taberna which is reknowned for local food. No reservation and no coming inside until they have a table for you.