Hiking Trails on the Algarve Coast: Routes, City Guide and Best Times to Visit august 24, 2024 – Posted in: Portugal, Travel – Tags: Algarve, Fuseta, Hiking, Hiking Trails, History, Holiday, Portugal, Tavira, Vacation, Vila Real de Santo Antonio

Hiking on the Algarve Coast in Portugal

The Algarve Coast is a fantastic area for hiking, suitable for both experienced hikers and beginners. Along the coast, the flat landscape makes it easy for everyone to join, and just a few kilometers inland, the Algarve’s more hilly and mountainous terrain begins, offering trails of higher difficulty.

Many visit Portugal to hike the Fishermen’s Trail, but if you don’t want to trudge along with all the other hikers or just want to try hiking somewhere else in Portugal, here are some tips for great hikes on the Algarve Coast.

When to Hike on the Algarve Coast?

The best times, as with other Mediterranean locations, are either spring or fall. There is plenty of sunshine while the temperatures are still bearable, and the weather is relatively dry and stable. Winter months can also be recommended, but a longer holiday is needed, as there will be days when rain and wind make long mountain hikes not advisable.

However, if you are in the Algarve for an extended period, it is not a problem since there are plenty of sunny and mild days in the winter months. If you choose to go hiking during the summer months, you don’t need to worry about rain. However, be aware that it can become unbearably hot, especially in the middle of the day. If you are not a fan of extremely high temperatures, opt for one of the other seasons.

These hikes are from our long-term holiday during the first three months of 2024, and the timing was absolutely perfect for us. We prefer hikes at temperatures between 17 and 23 degrees Celsius, and during our workation, there were long periods of dry and stable weather where we could hike in our free time.

Cheap Hiking in Portugal

A significant reason to hike on the Algarve Coast is that it is relatively inexpensive. Ryanair flies directly from Copenhagen and Aarhus to Faro, and if you travel outside the high season, it can often be done for a few hundred kroner.

From Faro, a small train runs about once an hour all the way towards the Spanish border. Along the way, you pass charming small towns, with Tavira being perhaps the most well-known. If you search on Booking.com, you will find that a standard hotel room outside the high season costs around 75 € for two people, often including breakfast.

You can also do as we did and stay across the border in the small Spanish town of Ayamonte. We were here in 2024 on a long-term holiday, which you can read more about below. From Ayamonte, a small ferry takes you to Portugal, and on the other side in Vila Real de Santo Antonio, you can catch the same train that goes to Faro. Therefore, these hikes also show how far you can actually explore Portugal from a base in Spain.

Anyway, enough about the practicalities—let’s lace up our hiking boots and hit the trails!

Beautiful Hikes on the Algarve Coast

Ecovia Litoral

Ecovia Litoral is a beautiful hiking route along the Algarve coast. The route runs all the way from Vila Real de Santo Antonio in the southeastern part of Portugal to Sagres, located on the southwestern tip of Portugal. This makes the route interesting because, regardless of where you stay along the coast, you can board one of Algarve’s regional trains and travel the entire coast from east to west, with just one transfer in Faro.

It’s easy and cheap to take the train to and from these locations, and for example, it costs 6 euros (2024) to travel from Faro to Vila Real de Santo Antonio. You can plan your own hike in one or more towns based on the train schedules: View the schedule – click here!

Ecovia Litoral – from Fuseta to Olhão

We hiked a short section of the route from Fuseta to Olhão. We started by taking the train from Vila Real de Santo Antonio to Fuseta. The train runs 10 times a day, with the most departures at times that align with typical working hours in the morning and afternoon. The ticket cost around 5 euros, and tickets can be purchased on the train or at the station. If you buy tickets on the train, you can only pay with cash.

The hiking route between Fuseta and Olhão is easy, but a thoroughly delightful walk along the coast on newly constructed elevated walkways across the area’s wetlands, salt pans, and old fish ponds. The many wooden bridges (see the picture above) are easily navigable with strollers, wheelchairs, and walkers. This trail is particularly popular because it is relatively flat, and we encountered many cyclists along the way.

The last few kilometers into Olhão are (for now) along a busy main road and are not particularly pleasant. During our visit in January 2024, however, we noticed that they are actively working on extending the hiking trail along the water all the way to Olhão. We look forward to returning and hiking the entire route again—this time without the noise of traffic.

The hike is approximately 12 km, and we walked at a leisurely pace with a lunch break by the water, taking about 3.5 hours.

GR-15 – Grande Rota do Guadiana

The GR-15 hiking route runs from Vila Real de Santo Antonio in the south to Alcoutim in the north. The trail meanders along the Rio Guadiana, the border river between Portugal and Spain. The total route is about 65 km long and consists of 4 stages.

The first stage between Vila Real de Santo Antonio and Junqueira is the flattest and classified as easy. The other 3 stages have a few more inclines and are categorized as moderate. We walked 1/3 of stage 2 and the entire stage 1, from Azinhal back to Vila Real de Santo Antonio.

We took the bus from Santo Antonio to Azinhal. We bought tickets at the ticket office at the bus station, but they can also be purchased on the bus. The tickets cost 4.10 euros each (2024), and the bus ride took about 25 minutes.

If you’re a beginner hiker, the last part of GR15 is perfect. The trail runs along the main road between Vila Real de Santo Antonio and Castro Marim. The route follows a sidewalk and cycling path with plenty of space for walking. Along the way between the two towns, you’ll see large wetlands with flamingos and salt pans. When you reach Castro Marim, you can enjoy your packed lunch on the wall of the old fort with views of the Guadiana River and the Spanish town of Ayamonte across the river.

Round Trip from Vila Real de Santo Antonio

Another lovely hike starts in Vila Real de Santo Antonio. Begin at the town’s harbor and follow the beautiful mosaic-paved harbor promenade south to the lovely natural area of Mata Nacional das Dunas Litorais. Continue all the way to the southern tip to the viewpoint at Foz do Guadiana.

Along the way, there are several excellent restaurants, and you can either eat now or make a loop and return here later. If you head out to Foz do Guadiana, you will be at the southeastern tip of Portugal. Near the end of the pier, we spotted spoonbills in the shallow water.

From here, you can turn onto the wide sandy beach that stretches out endlessly. You can choose to walk all the way to the beach at Monte Gordo and take the train back. Alternatively, you can turn inland halfway and take a walk in the forest on the Caminho dos Três Pauzinhos e do Tosga trail. If you’re lucky, you might spot one of the area’s many chameleons as you pass through the forest. They are naturally hard to spot but come down to the ground in September to lay eggs in the sand.

We first walked along the beach and then turned into the large forest area and walked back towards the town. The round trip is about 10 km long and without inclines. The route brought us right back to all the delightful restaurants, and we ended up dining at Dom Petisco. Lunch consisted of the Portuguese specialty frango, a well-seasoned and grilled chicken, grilled fish, as well as cheese fondue and green wine.

Where to Stay on the Algarve Coast?

During our long-term holiday in the small Spanish town of Ayamonte, we frequently took the small ferry over to Portugal. Here, we became well-acquainted with the part of the Algarve coast between Faro and Vila Real de Santo Antonio. We would therefore be happy to offer some recommendations on the best places to stay.

City Break

If you’re into a bit of city atmosphere with plenty of restaurants and sun-drenched bars to choose from, you should definitely stay in Faro. The old Portuguese coastal town offers plenty of city life and history, and it’s easy to hop on a train and head out to all the hiking trails.

Beach Holiday

If you want to combine your hiking holiday with a lovely beach vacation, you can instead choose to stay at the other end of the train line in Vila Real de Santo Antonio. However, many tourists choose to stay near the beautiful beaches, especially in Monte Gordo, which is within walking distance from Santo Antonio. There are plenty of great beach hotels here, and you can see them by clicking on this link: Beach Hotels in Monte Gordo. It is also in Santo Antonio where you can take the small ferry over to Spain; see the picture.

Beautiful Tavira

We have, however, fallen head over heels for Tavira, which is located in between the two cities. On some autumn day when we’re freezing our toes back home in Denmark, we have promised each other that we will have a holiday in this lovely town that has a bit of everything. This time we only managed a day trip, but our enthusiasm for the town definitely shines through in the article we have already written about it. You can find our best tips for Tavira here: Guide to a Day Trip in Tavira, Portugal: Top Sights and Dining Spots

Or maybe in Spain?

We ourselves stayed just across the ferry from Santo Antonio. Here lies the small Spanish coastal town of Ayamonte, where we had the most wonderful long vacation. We frequently visited the Portuguese side to enjoy some great food and hike in the unique nature. We stayed in the small blue and white town house, Flor de Sal, which is situated right at the top of the town, with views over the Guadiana River and across to Portugal. Click on the link to read more about renting the house: Flor de Sal.

You can also make your own search for hotels on the Algarve Coast right here:

Booking.com