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GUIDED TOUR: Trans-Algarve Coast Tour 3.11a

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GUIDED TOUR: Trans-Algarve Coast Tour 3.11a

Experience the beauty of the Portuguese coast: A delightful cycling tour along the Atlantic from the Spanish border to Cabo de São Vicente.

8 days / 7 nights / 6 days cycling Level: Easy Price From: 1080€ Category: Leisure Cycle Tours, Group Tours

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Overview

The routes are flat to slightly hilly on the first half of the tour. On the last three stages, there are some steep but very short climbs and descents. Cycling is mostly on good natural roads asphalted side roads or newly constructed cycle paths.
There is very little traffic on the entire tour.

Description

Experience the beauty of the Algarve on an unforgettable cycling journey along one of the most breathtaking coastlines in Europe! Enjoy almost 280 km of pure cycling fun in 6 stages, starting at the Spanish border in the east and ending at the southwesternmost point of Europe, the lighthouse "Cabo de São Vicente". Let yourself be enchanted by a varied landscape along the blue Atlantic - from long, dreamy sandy beaches to the famous nature reserve "Ria Formosa" and the picturesque cliffs and small sandy coves of the "Costa d'Oiro". Immerse yourself in the eventful history of Portugal and discover the traces of the age of exploration and the former Muslim presence. Look forward to an unforgettable journey full of experiences and discoveries!

Itinerary

Day 1

Arrival

Individual arrival and check-in at the hotel in Faro. Personal welcome, travel briefing, handover, and adjustment of the bikes according to your wishes by Algarve Cycling.

Day 2

Bike tour 1 Vila Real Sto. António - Tavira 34km/ 260hm

By train (included) to Vila Real de Santo António. Then on the bike, along the river Guadiana to the sea. Through pine forests, citrus, and vine plantations past the historic town of Cacela Velha. Here begins the beautiful nature park called "Ria Formosa", a lagoon area with many sandbanks, islands, and waterways. Large mussel fields and salt basins, from which the famous "Flor de Sal" comes, alternate with each other. You cycle through this area on beautifully laid-out cycle paths to Tavira. Tavira is a historic town that has retained its character over the centuries and whose buildings are a good example of its eventful history and economic development.

Day 3

Bike tour 2 Tavira - Faro 46km/ 270hm

With the sea breeze from the nearby Atlantic in your face, you cycle along beautiful cycle paths through the fishing villages of Santa Luzia and Pedras del Rei to Fuseta. During a break at the harbour promenade, you can watch the fishermen working on their colourfully painted boats. The fishermen here specialise in catching octopus. Then we go to Olhão, the largest, still active fishing harbour. Right at the entrance to the town, there is a large information park about the region. It is worth exploring the old town, with its many restaurants offering seafood specialies and the busy harbour. The next stop is the capital of the Algarve, Faro. Well-marked cycle paths lead to the historic old town, which is surrounded by an old city wall. Here you will find many beau?fully renovated buildings from the 16th and 18th centuries. After a few turns of the pedals at the marina, you reach the hotel.

Day 4

Bike tour 3 Faro - Olhos de Água 42km/ 320hm

Shortly after the start, we cycle into the "Ria Formosa" nature park again. Through picturesque lagoons with many water birds, groups of flamingos, and storks, you cycle on narrow paths along the sea, past sophisticated villas, parks, and beau?fully designed golf courses. Via the promenade of Quarteira, you then reach one of Portugal's largest marinas, Vilamoura, with its many restaurants inviting you to take a break. Crossing a small bridge, you reach the wide, long, white sandy beach of Falesia and roll leisurely along it to Olhos de Água, where you will find your next accommodation.

Day 5

Bike tour 4 Olhos de Água - Portimão 57km/ 700hm

We cycle through Albufeira, a former fishing village, now a vibrant tourist resort in the Algarve, to Galé. Continue over a long wooden footbridge through the protected dune area of "Salgados" to the village of Armação de Pêra. The small chapel "A Nossa Srª da Rocha", situated on a cliff jutting far out into the sea, is worth seeing. From here on, the coastline changes. Steep reddish cliffs with small sandy bays sloping down to the sea now dominate the picture. Close to the cliffs and the deep blue Atlan?c, you cycle to the wide delta of the Rio Arade. Very good cycle paths lead along the delta to Por?mão to the beautiful beach of "Praia da Rocha", situated directly below high cliffs.

Day 6

Bike tour 5 Portimão - Luz 48km/ 520hm

Today we start with a ride to the small fishing village of Alvor. Winding alleys lead through the village and up to the wide estuary delta of the Rio Alvor, a huge marshland with channels and a mudflat-like lagoon landscape, a refuge for many water birds. Down to the sea, to the largest oyster farm in the Algarve, which is visible at low tide. Along the wide beach "Meia Praia" you reach Lagos. Cross a bridge to the marina and continue into the historic town. Along the palm-lined promenade, you reach the former slave market. Passing the "Bandeira" fort, we reach the "Costa d'Oro", the most beautiful stretch of coastline in the Algarve, with golden-yellow, uniquely shaped rocks and rock spires
rising steeply out of the sea. Passing the "Ponte de Piedade" lighthouse, you cycle to Praia da Luz, today's stage destination, a tranquil seaside town with an old church and fortress.

Day 7

Bike tour 6 Luz - Sagres 44km/ 590hm

Right after the start, the route continues over Burgau and a chain of hills, close to the steeply sloping cliffs. A fantastic view, of the deep blue Atlantic and the distant coast of Sagres, inspires. Crossing a lonely bay, we climb up to a hilltop from where we can see the small fishing village of Salema, which lies on a sandy beach beautifully framed by high cliffs. The route then climbs up to the small village of Figueiras and continues across a barren steppe landscape, where megaliths can be seen in isolated places, testifying to a settlement several thousand years ago. Passing a small bay with a nice restaurant, we reach the village of Raposeira. Famous for the home of Henry, the Navigator, and a chapel built by him. The route continues across a plateau where you can already feel the salty sea breeze from the nearby west coast and see the lighthouse of Cabo de São Vicente, the most south-westerly point in Europe, from afar. With a few pleasurable pedal strokes, you reach this place, which lies on high cliffs tossed by the surf. From here we continue on a beautiful coastal road to Sagres, the legendary place where the seafaring school was located, where Portugal's best seafarers were trained, who later discovered the world's oceans.

Day 8

Departure

Individual return journey or extension.