Praia da Falesia (Albufeira) – The Complete Guide
Located in the heart of Algarve, la Praia da Falesia (Falesia Beach) is usually named in the most beautiful beaches of Portugal. What makes Praia da Falesia so different from other beaches?
Praia da Falesia is a top beach to go to if you visit Algarve. Indeed, its red cliffs, its soft sand, and its clear water will please you. Getting there is not the easiest thing to do, and this is where I will help you.
In this article, I will give you all the tips you need to know before visiting Praia da Falesia. Since I was there back in September 2020, I know pretty well what you should and should not do in order to make your experience in the area unforgettable.
How to get to Praia da Falesia (Falesia Beach)?
Getting to Praia da Falesia is not the easiest thing to do. Indeed, this beach is not directly inside a city. In fact, it is in between two cities. Praia da Falesia is located between Albufeira and Vilamoura.
The easiest way to access Praia da Falesia is by car, either from Albufeira or Vilamoura. In both cases, it will take around 20 minutes to drive from the city to the car park.
Parking around Praia da Falesia
Once you arrive, the best thing to do is to park your car in one of the numerous “parque de estacionamento” (car parks) just before the beach. Indeed, Falesia beach is named this way because there are cliffs before the sand. This means that you must park your car a bit further away from the beach and then walk down the beach thanks to the stairs.
Be careful, the parques de estacionamento fill quickly, so make sure to arrive early at the beach.
There are other ways to access the beach. When I was there, we took an Uber, because this service is relatively cheap in Portugal. Indeed, you can travel easily to Algarve thanks to buses and Ubers. This solution is useful because you do not need to worry about parking.
The Itinerary to get to Praia da Falesia
As mentioned before the easiest way to access Falesia Beach is either from Albufeira or Vilamoura (if you are coming from further away, you can directly use Google Maps). I will show you two Google Maps screenshots to see how long it takes to get to Falesia Beach from the two cities mentioned earlier.
From Albufeira
From Vilamoura
Where to eat close to Praia da Falesia? Praia da Falesia Restaurants
There are lots of restaurants close to the beach. When I was there, I did not see any restaurant directly on the beach. However, there are snacks right before the stairs to access the beach. The prices are normal.
What I would recommend is to enjoy the beach in the morning. Then, at lunch, you can stop at one of the snacks on the way to your car. Afterward, during the afternoon, you can choose to either go back to the beach or head somewhere else.
But as I told you, you won’t have any difficulty to find a restaurant around Falesia beach.
Praia da Falesia Aparments
Sleeping around Falesia beach is not the same thing as eating around it. Indeed, even if there are lots of snacks in the area, there are no hotels. There are no hotels around Falesia beach. However, there are some places to sleep 10 minutes away.
Indeed, in the closest village to Falesia beach, you can find some places to sleep. This village is called Olhos de Agua. It is the best place to stay if you want an apartment around Praia da Falesia.
I would recommend Hotel Riu Guarana, which is perfect for a one-night stay. If you want more information about it, you can directly visit the Hotel Riu website. Note that this is not part of an affiliate program.
2 Things to know before you go to Praia da Falesia
The stairs, an unique access method
Maybe you did not pay attention, but when I talked about the restaurants, I mentioned stairs to access the beach. Indeed, since the beach is down cliffs, you need to use stairs to access the beach. This is a typical thing in Algarve.
Falesia beach is not the only beach with stairs to access it. For instance, Praia do Camilo, close to Lagos, uses the same method. Praia do Camilo is a beach located near Lagos, 1 hour West of Albufeira. It is also one of the most beautiful beaches in Algarve, so you should definitely visit it.
However, there are no stairs on every beach in Algarve. For example, the closest beach to Faro does not use stairs to access it. It uses another unique way: a bridge! If you want to know more about Faro nearest beach, I recommend that you read the article I wrote about it.
Temperature agua and tempo (water temperature and weather)
Just like everywhere in Algarve, the water temperature is relatively cold! However, don’t hesitate to swim for a bit, because the sun hits hard. You won’t regret it.
La temperature de agua is really low because of a phenomenon called upwelling, which makes the water colder. So, when someone asks you “Why is the water so cold in Algarve?”, you can answer him that “Upwelling is an oceanographic phenomenon that involves wind-driven motion of dense, cooler, and usually nutrient-rich water towards the ocean surface, replacing the warmer, usually nutrient-depleted surface water.“
Basically, the wind creates a motion which prevents the water to warm up. Because of this phenomenon, the temperatures of the water regularly fall below 20°C.
The weather is pretty good throughout the year. You can expect sun during the summer season.
Algarve is a beautiful region to visit during the summer season. It offers among the best beaches in Portugal and even Europe! And the best thing is that you can visit Algarve in a relatively short period of time. I was there back in September 2020, and I was able to visit the best spots of Algarve in only 3 full days! One day on Ilha doFarol, one day in Praia da Falesia and Faro beach, and one day hiking around Benagil in the morning and Lagos in the afternoon.
It did feel a bit rushy at some times, so I would recommend that you stay at least 4 full days in the area. But staying more than a week may feel “too much” if you are used to quick travel!
If you want to include this hike in a 3-days guide around Faro, you can check the ultimate travel guide I wrote about Algarve by clicking the link attached.
See you somewhere in the world!
