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Organisers and venues can claim 16th Prova de Mar de Alvor free of charge to manage the listing, add photos and tickets, and host it under their business.
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The Prova de Mar de Alvor is the 8 August stage of the Circuito de Águas Abertas do Algarve, held off Praia da Restinga and organised by O2 Portimão with the Câmara Municipal de Portimão, the Junta de Freguesia de Alvor and the Associação de Natação do Algarve. In past editions the day has run in three parts, a kids' race, a shorter divulgação swim open to all, and the main open water race for federated swimmers, with prize giving on the beach afterwards. Alvor's sheltered estuary mouth makes for calmer water than some of the more exposed Algarve beaches, which is part of why the race has kept coming back here for well over a decade. Timings for the 2026 heats had not been published at the time of writing; check the Circuito de Águas Abertas do Algarve registration page nearer the date.
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A necropolis of 5,000 year old monumental tombs in farmland behind Alvor, with a walk-in burial mound at its heart. Alcalar was the ceremonial centre of a Copper Age community that farmed this corner of the Algarve, and restored Monument 7 is the showpiece: a stone mound with a low passage leading to a corbelled chamber, engineering from around 3000 BC that you can peer into from the entrance corridor. Several more tombs lie around it in various states of excavation, and a small interpretation centre sets the scene. Few people come, so you will likely share the site only with larks and the wind. It is signposted from Mexilhoeira Grande off the N125; combine it with lunch in Alvor or Figueira.
A quiet municipal park at Estômbar where freshwater springs meet the tidal Arade, with a tide mill, boardwalks and a stone amphitheatre. Sítio das Fontes is where Lagoa locals go for Sunday picnics while visitors queue for boat trips a few kilometres downstream. Springs bubble into a pool beside the restored tide mill, boardwalk paths loop through marsh and woodland, and egrets and waders work the estuary flats. A small amphitheatre built into the hillside hosts occasional concerts. It is an easy, level wander rather than a hike, which makes it a good outing with children or grandparents in tow. Follow the signs from Estômbar village; late afternoon brings the best light over the marsh, and picnic tables sit under the trees.
A blue green reservoir folded into the hills north of Lagos, with dam-top views, quiet trails and not a beach bar in sight. Twenty minutes from the coast, the Bravura dam holds a lake that winds between eucalyptus and cork slopes, and almost nobody makes the detour. Cross the dam wall for the classic view down the valley, then pick up the dirt tracks along the shore for an hour of walking with only goat bells for company. Water levels swing with the rains, so the shoreline can look dramatic in dry years. There is no café and no lifeguard, which is precisely why it stays calm. Drive up via Odiáxere, take a picnic, and save the viewpoint by the dam gates for golden hour.
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Weekly Monster giveaways and promotions with house, R'n'B and hip hop every Thursday at Matt's Bar in Albufeira, March to October.
by Matt's Bar
Praia da Galé once again hosts Full Moon, for another night of music, spectacle and entertainment by the sea. The line-up features DJ China b2b Zé Black, Bruno Zarra, Jay Martin, Estela Mota, David S
Gypsy market in Boliqueime.
Centro Ciência Viva de Tavira returns to the old bridge for a free morning of safe Sun viewing on 27 August 2026.