Travel review: Lagos - a beautiful introduction to the Algarve

We flew into the Algarve on a warm, sunny evening in early September 2019. Blue sky, beautiful warm air, and the beach beckoned. Read this travel review: Lagos for our amazing time in this coastal town.

Arriving via TAP Portugal into Faro, we had prebooked a transfer to Lagos to get us to our rental. TAP was well organized, clean, efficient. And the transfer with Yellowfish Transfers was excellent – very quick, and good information on the area.

Upon arrival, the driver helped us to figure out the location, and ring the owner to arrange meet-up. By far the absolute best rental we have ever had! A wonderfully clean, well-equipped 1-bedroom, with all the appliances and add-ons (local soap, coffee pods, local recommendations) that really make a stay special. The view on the deck of the inner marina and pedestrian walkway was beautiful – and, we settled in for a glorious week of fun in the sun.

Our recommendations

Eat:

We enjoyed our breakfasts at the apartment, one of the main perks of a rental! The local grocery store was a block away, so easily met our needs. Tasca do Kiko was a fabulous restaurant towards the beach (from the marina side – so good, we went twice :); Tasca Jota was our first stop on our foodie tour on day two, and had excellent seafood; another great option for drinks by the yacht club is to pick one of the many touristy restaurants along the quay – some have great lunch options, and are quite reasonable – however, keep in mind much of the food in the marina is not really local food! Fun for a drink or two, and some easy snacks on the beach, “Linda” – The Beach Bar on Meia Praia is an smart choice.

Accommodation:

For this first stay in the Algarve, we went with HomeAway and as I note above – phenomenal apartment. The Almeida’s did a great job and run a very smooth establishment – thank you!

travel review: lagos — Beautiful sunset from our deck in Lagos

Activities:

Everything was new, so we did it all – we walked all over the town and checked out the museums/galleries in and around Old Lagos; went for a great grotto tour by boat – just find the company you prefer and book along the marina – they all have stands/kiosks ready for you; spent an afternoon soaking up the sun at Meia Praia; enjoyed some pool time at the private club at the Marina accommodations; took a foodie tour with Eat.Drink.Discover (highly recommend!!); and soaked up tons of vitamin D!