Albufeira, Portugal: Part 4, The Old Town & Olhos de Água

It was the morning of my departure day from Portugal. I wasn’t being picked up till 2 p.m., so I checked out of my hotel at around 8.50 a.m. and was on a mission to do some more exploring and make the most of my 4 hours and get back in time to freshen up before my flight. The holiday isn’t over until it’s over, right?

My plan was to have a walk into the old town since I hadn’t really visited yet and to use my still valid lucky hop on hop off bus ticket, which I told you about in my last blog, to visit a place called Olhos de Água.

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Albufeira old town

I arrived at the old town just after 9 a.m. I’m not sure how busy it is here in the summer, but on this November day at this time of the morning it was perfect. There was hardly anything open, which meant there was hardly anyone around, which suited me perfectly because I was able to freely wonder around and enjoy the place almost to myself.

There are many interestingly decorated buildings and attractive whitewashed structures around the old town. When wondering around the streets, you may notice some influences from its interesting past, which included periods of occupation by the Romans and Arabs.

To be honest, I didn’t really see anything of great significance here; I just enjoyed walking around the residential areas and seeing all the decor and cats.

Before travelling to Portugal, I watched a video of Portas Da Villa Antiquity Bar . On my stroll through the old town, I happened to come across it; it was one of the spots I had intended to visit but never got around to, which was a bit of a shame as it looked like a great place to experience.

I grabbed a coffee at one of the many quirky little cafes while appreciating the surroundings and thought about what a fantastic morning it had already been before boarding the following hop on hop off bus to Olhos de Água, which was scheduled to depart at 10.30am.

Olhos de Água

Olhos de Água is a gorgeous little resort town that used to be a minor fishing village and has a population of just 3,221. The town has since become a major tourist attraction and has various hotels and holiday apartments, as well as shops, cafes, and restaurants that cater to tourists, but it has still kept its Portuguese character. You can still see the old fishermen here at work, who have their little huts along the beachfront.

Olhos de Água is centred around a sandy cove and is well known for its most beautiful coastal lines. It has Praia da Falésia beach to the east of the cove and Praia de Santa Eulália and Praia Maria Lusa on the west.

I only had time to visit Praia da Falésia, which was perfectly fine with me as my intention for this morning was to enjoy a nice, quiet beach and take a walk along the stunning red cliffs and soak up the amazing coastal views.

And that pretty much brought an end to my vacation here in the Algarve. As I left this stunning pocket of paradise, I couldn’t help but feel incredibly fortunate and appreciative; it was the ideal way to spend my final hours here, and I’m even smiling as I text this.

Thank you for reading and taking time to visit my blog today.

Until next time, stay blessed. 🙏🏾

Natalie ❤️