Guide
Eastern vs Western Algarve for Motorhomes: Which to Choose
Écrit par le gestionnaire d'Alentejo Park
·Mis à jour January 2025
The question comes up often on motorhome forums. Someone has two weeks and wants to know: do I head east from Faro, or west? This guide gives an honest answer. We are based in the eastern Algarve, so we will acknowledge that bias — and then explain why we chose to be here.
The case for the western Algarve
The western cliffs — at Cape São Vicente, Sagres, and the Alentejo coast north of Odeceixe — are genuinely dramatic. If you want the famous Algarve scenery that appears in every tourist photograph, it is in the west. The Atlantic beach towns of Lagos and Portimão have good infrastructure and active marina scenes. For surfers, the west coast from Arrifana north to Odeceixe is the destination. The EN125 west of Faro is more crowded but has more to see per kilometre.
The case for the eastern Algarve
The eastern Algarve is quieter, cheaper, and in many ways more genuinely Portuguese. The Ria Formosa — the lagoon system that runs from Tavira to Manta Rota — is one of the best birdwatching sites in Portugal and almost unknown to coastal tourists. Castro Marim has a 13th-century castle and a salt marsh nature reserve. Vila Real de Santo António is a Pombaline grid town (designed by the same urban planner as Lisbon after the 1755 earthquake) and the place to cross into Spain for a day. The roads are wider, less crowded, and the campsites and aires are less full. Prices are 15–20% lower than the tourist triangle of Lagos–Portimão–Albufeira.
What to do if you have two weeks
Arrive from Spain at Vila Real de Santo António, spend three nights in the eastern Algarve (Castro Marim, Tavira, the Ria Formosa), drive the N125 west to Faro, then continue through the centre (Silves, Monchique) to the western coast at Lagos and Sagres. Return east on the A22. Two nights each in east and west is enough to form a genuine view.
Looking for a place to stop in the eastern Algarve?
Alentejo Park is 5 minutes from the A22 junction at Castro Marim. Twelve pitches, full hookup, free dump station for guests. →Source: Ria Formosa Natural Park — ICNF