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Portimão, Algarve
Those who enjoy shopping will be more than pleased to hear that Portimão is the second largest town for shopping. When visiting why not take the opportunity to stock up on traditional leather, cork and pottery products which Portugal is so famously renowned for. When you feel like you are ready to drop there are many open-air cafes in the square near the front (known to locals as Sardine Square) named after Manuel Teixera Gomes, Portugal's most famous citizen who served 13 years in London before being elected Portuguese President in 1923.
One of the main attractions in Portimao, which is always very pleasing to the palette, is the daily sight of local fisherman returning to deliver their catch. The famous freshly grilled Sardines can be enjoyed straight from the ocean whilst relaxing in the peaceful surroundings of the Portimão harbour.
Portimão is one of the busiest towns in the Algarve. Situated 3km from the popular tourist resort of Praia da Rocha. There are frequent buses and fun trains from the resort of Praia da Rocha to Portimão. The Marina in between Portimao and Praia da Rocha is a very colourful place and has many bars and restaurants where you can enjoy watching both the boats and the tide go in and out. There are also many water sports on offer here including jet skiing and windsurfing.
This major fishing port lies on the west side of the large estuary of the River Arade. The originally Gothic Church, the ‘Ingreja Matriz’ was rebuilt after the massive earthquake, the azulejo decoration in the centre gardens of the town on date back to the 17th to 18th century. (azulejo is the word for tiles, traditionally Portuguese tiles were blue, the word ‘azul’ is the Portuguese word for blue, hence the name azulejos.) It rose to its prominence after the 1755 earthquake that tragically destroyed a large part of Portimão and the vestiges of it's past. With the fish canning industry of the 19th century, the town flourished as one of the main Portuguese fishing ports and was raised to civil level in 1924.