Sagres
Cingularite | BY-SA
Praia da Mareta is the closest beach to Sages town itself, and unsurprisingly, as such, tends to be one of the busiest beaches in the area. However, it isn't just convenience that makes Mareta such a popular beach; with a sweep of golden sand stretching for nearly 800 metres and rocky headlands providing shelter from the notorious Sagres winds this is a great choice.
Set in a south-facing bay Mareta benefits from the sunshine all day whilst being much more sheltered from the waves...
Sagres
Freebird | BY-SA
Praia do Martinhal is a wide sandy beach just outside Sagres. It is around 2km from the town and takes about 25 minutes to walk here meaning it is usually relatively quiet.
The beach at Martinhal is set in the shallow and relatively sheltered east-facing Bay of Baleeira which is also home to the town's harbour. This means the water here is nearly always calmer than the Atlantic-facing beaches around Sagres' mighty headland. With a lifeguard service running during the summer months...
Sagres
Alex Schröder | BY-SA
Praia do Beliche sits just to the south of the towering, and curiously level, cliffs of Cabo Sao Vicente. This provides not only a spectacular backdrop but also a little protection from the powerful Atlantic swells that pummel the coast further north. This does not mean there aren't waves here - on the contrary. It is one of Sagres' best surf beaches with the waves often a little more manageable than at the other beaches around the headland. The 40 metre high cliffs also...
Just north of Sagres is the headland and lighthouse of Cabo de São Vicente. The sheer cliffs here mark the southwestern-most point in mainland Portugal and overlook some of the busiest shipping lanes in Europe. As a result the lighthouse's lamp is one of the most powerful in Portugal.
Cape Saint Vincent is part of the Costa Vicentina (Vincentine Coast) and the cliffs are home to a range of birds including peregrine falcons.
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Sagres
Carn Burton
Castelejo beach is located on the quieter, more exposed Atlantic coast of the Algarve. Being part of the Vicentine Coast natural park it feels a million miles away from the beaches of the south coast.
The beach is dominated by the huge black schist cliffs that rise out of the golden sand. On some days this can feel like a very remote location, in the summer though it is quite a popular...
Looking along the sheer cliffs that form this part of the Vicentine Coast near Sagres.
The South East Alentejo and Vicentine Coast Natural Park is around 100km of protected coast stretching from Burgau, in the Algarve up to Porto Covo in the Alentejo.
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Sagres
Sheila Thomson | BY-SA
Sagres
Dronepicr | BY-SA
Praia do Tonel sits alongside the jutting Ponta de Sagres on the very southwesterly tip of Portugal. This dramatic location is exposed to the full force of the Atlantic Ocean and as such is a popular spot with surfers. If there isn't a wave here then there probably isn't one anywhere.
The beach at Tonel is a generous sweep of golden sand backed by steep cliffs that vary from soft, red sandstone to the hard, sheer rock of the headland. But this is the beginning of the Algarve's west...
Also known as the Promontorium Sacrum (sacred promontory), Sagres Point is both geographically and historically significant. Once considered the end of the known world by many it is in fact neither the most westerly or southerly point of Portugal (and therefore continental Europe). However, it can be considered the most southwestern-most point and it certainly maintains a feel of being the end of the world.
It is the site of Henry the Navigator's 15th century fortress and also the...
Looking across Tonel beach from Ponta de Sagres in the direction of the town.
Tonel is a popular surfing beach and the waves here can get huge as it faces the full force of the Atlantic