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Lagos

Lagos is about an hour away from Faro, in the western Algarve, and is home to some of the best beaches in the Algarve. Surfing, boating, and swimming are popular in this ancient maritime town. In the 18th century, many explorers set sail from Lagos hoping to reach Africa.

Ponta de Piedade is a mysterious seaside rock formation hollowed out by the pounding waves, and is surrounded by grottos and caves.

The Forte da Ponta da Bandeira is an old waterfront fort that now houses a museum. The fort, built in the late 17th century, helped defend Portugal against the British while it was still under Spanish rule.

Europe’s first slave markets were held in Lagos, in the Mercado de Escravos, which is now a historic tourist attraction.

The Church of St. Anthony was built in 1715, and its plain façade provides a stark contrast with its richly decorated interior. The interior contains Baroque paintings, polychrome statues of saints and cherubs, vaulting painted in trompe-l’oeil style, gilded wooden carvings that fill the entire nave, and traditional Portuguese azulejos, blue-and-white painted ceramic tiles.