Faro
Built to look like a crab when viewed from above, this remote restaurant rises up on boardwalks from the Ilha da Barreta as its sole building. It's an entirely self-sufficient operation, using 100% solar power and desalinated water. Fresh-as-it-gets seafood dishes span Ria Formosa oysters, cracked crab and lobster to char-grilled prawns and fish, and aromatic stews.
It's owned by Animaris, which operates the ferry service here.
4.75 MILES
The centrepiece of the Cidade Velha, the sé was completed in 1251 but heavily damaged in the 1755 earthquake. What you see now is a variety of Renaissance…
Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Carmo & Capela dos Ossos
5.08 MILES
One of the Algarve's most dazzling churches, this twin-towered baroque masterpiece was completed in 1719 under João V. After the 1755 earthquake, its…
Igreja de São Lourenço de Matos
11 MILES
This baroque masterpiece was built on the site of a ruined chapel after locals, while digging a well, implored Saint Lawrence for help and then struck…
12.91 MILES
Encased in azulejos, this beautifully maintained museum occupies a former cork magnate’s mansion, which retains its original kitchen. It displays an ever…
17.16 MILES
This huge white-sand beach at the island's eastern end, opposite Tavira, has operators for water sports (such as windsurfing and kitesurfing), beach bars…
9.82 MILES
Hour-long tours at this gold medal–winning olive oil producer take you around part of the 20-hectare estate showing you the five different varieties of…
12.17 MILES
On these fascinating behind-the-scenes cork factory tours, you'll learn about the tree's life cycle, harvesting and the manufacturing process, from drying…
27.73 MILES
Fiesa is the world's biggest sand-sculpture contest. Artists are given 45,000 tonnes of sand to sculpt, and their truly amazing creations (up to 12m high…
4.57 MILES
The foundations of this monastery's church were laid in 1679 and it was enlarged during the 18th and 19th centuries. Behind its blinding white facade are…
4.68 MILES
You can leave the Cidade Velha (Old Town) through the medieval Arco de Repouso (Gate of Rest). Apparently Afonso III, after taking Faro from the Moors,…
4.69 MILES
This converted military warehouse displays contemporary art with temporary exhibitions by local and international artists – painters, photographers,…
4.7 MILES
Faro’s domed 16th-century Renaissance Convento de Nossa Senhora da Assunção, in what was once the Jewish quarter, houses the town's local history museum…
4.75 MILES
At the southwestern end of the Largo da Sé is this small 15th-century town gate connecting the old town with the waterfront, where some boats depart.
4.75 MILES
The centrepiece of the Cidade Velha, the sé was completed in 1251 but heavily damaged in the 1755 earthquake. What you see now is a variety of Renaissance…
4.75 MILES
Three of the four halls at this worthwhile museum house exhibitions on rural life in the Algarve, including mock-ups of 19th-century shops and rooms, a…
4.81 MILES
Enter the Cidade Velha (Old Town) through the neoclassical Arco da Vila, built in 1812 by order of Bishop Francisco Gomes do Avelar, who oversaw the city…