Picture this. You’re skimming along on the surface of the blue, blue ocean with a cloudless sky above and the sun beating down. To one side are the magnificent limestone cliffs with their caves and blowholes and secret coves. To the other there’s nothing but crystal clear water as far as you can see.
The Algarve looks entirely different from the ocean. It’s so wonderfully hot here you’ll want to cool off in it as often as you can. And the Algarve is also a hot holiday destination for water sports as well, with something for everyone, from adrenaline-firing to peaceful and mellow. Whether you’re into kayaking or stand up paddle boarding, jet skiing or flyboarding, surfing, snorkelling, water skiing or scuba diving, you’re sorted.
Because they’re so popular you’ll probably need to book your Algarve tours on the water, watersports equipment and tuition in advance. So plan ahead, choose the marinas, harbours, resorts and award-winning beaches you most like the look of, and dive right in. You’ll find all this and more on the coast at Albufeira, Vilamoura, Lagos, Portimão and beyond off the beaten track.
Jet ski off Albufeira, stand up paddle into the Benagil caves, parasail, kayak, love the ocean life. Here’s what you need to know about watersports on the Algarve.
Love sailing off the Algarve coast
Sailing in a sailboat is a lovely, leisurely way to while away the sunny hours, bookable from ports and via hotels and resorts as well as online. Use a sailing experience as your core activity then add exciting extra watersports experiences to make a day of it. Or a week. You’ll easily get hooked on the chilled ocean vibe, the wind in the sails, the glittering waves.
Sailboat trips come in all sorts of flavours, from private trips for just you to group trips, party-based voyages, and serene sailing into the sunset for the romantics amongst us. You don’t have to sail – although you can charter a yacht if you know how to handle one. You simply sit back and enjoy every second of the voyage to the full.
Go pedalo, climb on board a banana
They’re not exactly sports but they give you that magical at sea experience with bells on. This is such a fun way to discover the gorgeous little coves and bays of the Algarve, on board a family-sixed pedalo. Hire them more or less anywhere along the coast to see this stunning coast at its best from the sea, including the bits you just can’t reach from the land.
Use your pedalo to take you on adventures into rock pools and caves, along creeks and inlets, all in dazzling sunshine. It’s like a whole different world.
Take things to a wonderfully silly level with a banana boat ride, a firm favourite with kids and teens and a hair-raising experience for the grown-ups. So you get soaked, maybe fall off, scream your throat raw and scare yourself rigid… but it was a laugh, right?
Taking as many as six of you at a time, it’s a crazy rollercoaster ride at sea. Olhão, Faro and Albufeira in particular are loved for their banana boats.
Dive the Algarve coast
The Algarve has so many intriguing reef dive sites along with loads of shipwreck sites to dive, everything from shallow 5m dives to 40m adventures for experienced divers. Albufeira, Portimão, Lagos, Faro and Sagres all offer great diving offshore with lessons for novices, group diving, private dives and family dives.
Because the waters here are some of Europe’s cleanest, the ocean is stuffed with wildlife, ideal for scuba diving. The Algarve is also home to the EU’s biggest artificial reef, making it a top destination for licensed PADI training.
Hire an electric boat in the Algarve
Just like the electric boats you can explore the canals of Amsterdam with, the ones on the Algarve are quiet. They glide along with no engine noise, leaving you to enjoy the sound-scape of lapping waves, sea birds, and the breeze. Closer to the resorts and towns it changes to include happy human sounds: children laughing, people shouting to each other, the clink of cutlery. It’s a splendid way to pootle around the coast.
Hire an electric boat for the day and let it do the hard work for you. There’s a choice of boat sizes and plenty of companies hiring them out. A slow cruise down the River Arade is a popular option, as are the many interesting creeks of Quinta do Lago. Stop off for a picnic or find a cool bar for lunch. Lovely.
Master stand up paddle boarding in the Algarve – AKA SUP
Stand up paddle boarding is a mellow way to potter around the coastline and a bit deeper out to sea for spectacular inland-looking views. It’s your passport to the hidden coves and inlets you can’t see from the landward side, along with exciting perspectives on the time-worn sea stacks, vast cave networks, blowholes and towering rock formations.
Getting up close to the region’s spectacular marine life is another reason people love to SUP here. And it’s one of only two ways to actually walk onto the sandy floor of the majestic Benganil caves, which you’re not allowed to do with a boat. Portimao and João de Arens Beach are particularly popular, too.
Handy tip: You can book lessons first to be more confident on your SUP before you set off.
Explore the Algarve by kayak
Kayaking also opens up the Algarve’s creeks, lagoons and rivers to adventurous visitors. Take a guided tour in a kayak if you prefer to sit back and relax, or get busy with the paddles yourself, hard work but satisfying. You can get into all sorts of nooks and crannies on a kayak, giving you a feel for the landscape and the creatures living there. These protected waterways are home to an abundance of wildlife.
Learn windsurfing on the Algarve
If you already windsurf you’ll love some of the beaches here. So do novices. Sagres is one of the best places to windsurf thanks to the ideal wind conditions and clear weather, huge bay and reliable winds.
Whatever your level, from beginner to expert, it is exhilarating stuff. With lessons for everyone, it’s also a family affair. Great fun for every age, safe to learn with an expert instructor, no engines, just you, a board, and a sail. Nice.
Zoom around on a jet ski
Turning the adrenaline and the noise levels up to eleven, some holidaymakers head directly for the jet ski hire. If that’s you, you’re in for a treat. Hire a jet ski and fly across the ocean at up to 60mph, a thriller of a watersport like no other.
Most popular with young adults upwards, you’ll always be accompanied by a qualified instructor who’ll keep you and the other people using the water safe. Vilamoura is a hot choice thanks to great big stretches of open water and particularly good jet skiing conditions.
Water ski in stunning surroundings
The water skiing is great here. The sea isn’t too choppy, the temperature’s perfect, the views towards the land and out to sea are awesome and there’s all the instruction you could possibly need to get to grips with it. You can also water ski on some of the region’s beautiful rivers, cool lakes and wildlife-rich lagoons.
This is such a thrilling way to enjoy the sun and the sea. The salty, tight feel of your skin. The way your hair goes stiff from being wet and dried, wet and dried. The way your pulse races. You are really going to enjoy a long, tall drink and some fabulous food afterwards! Most people pick it up fairly fast, which means you’ll get to experience the wonderful feeling of zooming along at speed across the waves for yourself.
Dude… let’s surf!
The waves on the Algarve are world-class, which makes watching the surfers a sight you’ll remember. You can join in, see what the buzz is about, with surfing lessons and equipment hire widely available.
The Algarve is one of the best destinations in Europe to learn surfing and it’s open to anyone from older children upwards. Choose Lagos, Sagres or Carrapateira for great waves and excellent conditions for beginners as well as experienced surfers.
A word about sea sense
It’s blue, balmy and sparkling with sunshine but the sea kills. Not to get too boring about it, but some activities take more care than others. Take care paddle boarding when the tide’s coming in unless you’re confident in maybe having to paddle for some time to get back to dry land. It’s a good idea to download a tide times app to your phone so you know what’s what, whatever Algarve watersports you’ll be doing.
Book it, relax, then love it
Take a look at the Algarve tours we have on site, including loads of watersports to try. Booking in advance means you won’t miss out on the fun.
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