Travelling along the Algarve: From Faro to Sagres
Stopover in Lagos
After two days in Faro, Charlie had a train and bus connection to Sagres on the Saturday. The train would leave Faro at 12.25 to Lagos. She would have a stopover of about 5 hours in Lagos before taking the coach to Sagres in the evening.
Checkout at Wax Hostel was at 11 and there was a bus to the station at 11.30. Nina, the other solo traveler whom Charlie had met at the hostel, convinced her to give the bus another chance after it had not come the day before.
They still had some time in the morning and Charlie wanted to check out that surf competition that happened on their doorstep that weekend. A surfer dad and his son had arrived at the hostel because the son was competing that weekend. They were living in Portugal, but originally from South Africa and the boy was competing locally, the dad was the coach of the surf club.
Nina knew of a nice place to sit just behind a coffee hut by the beach. There was a small ladder to climb over the wall and reach the beach on the other side. They could sit on that wall and had the perfect view of the surfers. The waves were small that day, but it was enough to have a good session. Charlie captured some photos.
Nina was also on her way to Lagos and had picked the same train as Charlie. There weren’t too many trains in the day, so it was not that big of a coincidence. They took the bus from Praia de Faro at 11.30 and were at the train station by 12. Stations along the Algarve a very small and seem a bit as if they’re from another period in time. They still operate with paper timetables, and you need to do some digging to find information about your train.
Train journey to Lagos
On their journey, they passed through orange groves, saw landscapes covered in red earth and rocks, and just after the stop in Portimão, they saw the sea to their left. They arrived in Lagos at 2 in the afternoon. The train station is a bit outside town and they walked along the marina and crossed a bridge to reach the town. There was also the bus station where Charlie would have to take the bus to Sagres in the evening. She wanted to store her luggage somewhere nearby and had found a place on Google Maps. Unfortunately, it was closed. Charlie could have taken the luggage to Nina’s accommodation, but she preferred storing it closer to the bus station. There was a luxurious hotel where it was worth asking. The receptionist at Lagos Avenida Hotel was very friendly and helped Charlie. She said that they usually don’t allow this, but she made an exception. Charlie didn’t even have to pay anything.
A stroll through Lagos
Their next stop was the guesthouse where Nina had booked a room so that she could drop her luggage off too. It was in the centre of Lagos very close to all the bars and restaurants. Charlie was hungry, she hadn’t had lunch yet. At the same time, Charlie and Nina also wanted to see the beach. Maybe they would find a lunch place near the beach? They kept on walking.
It wasn’t far to the beach, and it was a nice surprise to find a hole in rocks that connected them to yet another beach and another one. Even though the beaches are right by the city, they seem as if they were in a remote location because the cliffs separated them from everything else. They were ready to walk back when they passed through one more cave and reached another little beach and a staircase leading up to a viewpoint with a restaurant. That was convenient. It was the perfect spot to have a light lunch and a beer.
After lunch, they kept on walking further up the hill and re-entered the town centre from above. It suddenly seemed very busy. The siesta must have been over, and people left their houses. Charlie stopped at a small shop to get some chocolates for the receptionist who allowed her to store her luggage. Then it was already time for Charlie to return to the bus station and catch the bus to her next stop, Sagres. She picked up her luggage, said goodbye to Nina and went on to the next place.
