Faro Old Town (Cidade Velha)

Faro's Cidade Velha, the medieval walled old town at the heart of the Algarve's capital, is entered through the Arco da Vila, a neoclassical gateway built over an earlier Moorish arch and marked by a resident stork's nest that has become something of a local landmark. Inside the walls, narrow cobbled streets lead past whitewashed townhouses to the Sé de Faro, a 13th-century cathedral that blends Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque elements after successive rebuildings, including reconstruction following the 1755 earthquake. Visitors who climb the cathedral's bell tower are rewarded with panoramic views across the old town's terracotta rooftops toward the Ria Formosa lagoon and its barrier islands. Nearby, the Faro Municipal Museum occupies a former convent and displays archaeological finds from the Roman and Moorish periods of the city's history. A full circuit of the old town, including the cathedral and its tower, takes about two to three hours at a relaxed pace, and mornings are quietest, when the narrow streets are free of the cruise-ship and coach groups that tend to arrive later in the day. Just outside the old town walls, the Carmo Church houses the striking Capela dos Ossos, an ossuary chapel lined with human bones, a curiosity that draws steady visitor numbers year-round. From the southern edge of the old town, a walk through the marina leads directly onto the Ria Formosa boardwalk, connecting the historic centre to the lagoon's walking trails.