Praia de Odeceixe-Mar

• In the town ofOdeceixeOdeceixe is the Algarve's last village before the Alentejo: the Ribeira de Seixe curls around it and marks the border, and the village climbs a hillside above the valley in whitewashed lanes topped by a restored windmill. The beach, Praia de Odeceixe, lies three and a half kilometres downstream where the river meets the Atlantic, and it is one of the most distinctive on the west coast: a broad triangle of sand with the ocean on one side and the calm river on the other, so small children paddle in the shallows while surfers work the waves a hundred metres away. All of this sits inside the Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina, and the Rota Vicentina walking trails pass through the village, bringing a steady trickle of walkers in spring and autumn. The village itself has cafés, a few restaurants and a slow rhythm that barely changes with the seasons. Surf schools work the beach in summer, and the road out to the sand, along the river past reed beds, is a pleasure in itself. Odeceixe suits families, surfers and walkers who want the wild coast with a soft edge.

Praia de Odeceixe sits at the Algarve's north-west corner, where the Seixe river curls around the sand and marks the border with the Alentejo. The beach is a tongue of sand between two waters, river on one side and Atlantic on the other, reached by a road that winds down from the clifftop hamlet of Odeceixe-Mar. Children paddle in the calm, shallow river while surfers work the ocean side, and the quieter far stretch of the sand is traditionally used by naturists. The village of Odeceixe proper sits a few kilometres inland. It suits families, surfers and naturists, each with their own corner.