The local area: the village, the cliffs, the beaches
Carvoeiro is an old fishing village that has grown into one of the prettiest corners of the Algarve: ochre cliffs, coves, restaurants by the water. The village is 2 km from the house — dozens of restaurants, bars, shops, beaches — and five restaurants are within walking distance, less than a kilometre away.
The cliffs begin 1 km from the house, with one of the Algarve's most beautiful walks running high above the sea. For swimming, the beaches are 3 km away. Faro airport is 60 km, about 50 minutes. Parking on the street is easy.
And when you feel like going somewhere, almost everything is twenty minutes away.
- Ferragudo · 10 minutes — a fishing village that is still itself.
- Praia da Marinha · 16 minutes — its limestone arches.
- Benagil · 18 minutes — the sea cave, which you visit by boat or kayak.
- Silves · 20 minutes — the old Moorish capital with its red sandstone castle — a quiet inland town bypassed by mass tourism, with a market on Saturday mornings.
And the Sete Vales Suspensos trail — the Seven Hanging Valleys, one of the finest coastal walks in Europe — runs along the cliffs above this stretch of coast and starts a few minutes from the house.
And if it's bustle you want, Praia da Rocha at Portimão is 20 minutes away: the largest and liveliest beach on this coast, with its promenade and terraces below the cliffs. It gets busy — worth knowing before you go.
For a half-day: Lagos and its walled old town, 35 minutes away, and Albufeira, 40 minutes away — a fine old town, very lively after dark.
For a full day: Faro, an hour away, and, at the far western end, Sagres and Cape St Vincent, an hour away — the south-western corner of Europe, where people go for the sunset.
For naturism outside the house, three beaches — and they do not have the same status.
In Portugal, nudity is only permitted on officially naturist beaches; elsewhere it is tolerated in places. We would rather be clear about it.
Praia Grande
naturism tolerated
The nearest is Praia Grande at Armação de Pêra, 30 minutes away by car, where naturism is tolerated.
Zavial
naturism tolerated
To the west, in the Costa Vicentina nature park, Zavial — an hour away by car — is the finest beach in the area: a wide horseshoe where naturism is tolerated at the eastern end, below the rocks.
Praia do Homem Nu
officially naturist
The one officially naturist beach is Praia do Homem Nu, at Tavira: official since 1996, the oldest in Portugal, three kilometres of sand on the island, reached by ferry. The drive there takes an hour and a quarter — a full day out, and worth it.
