Praia da Luz, The Algarve. Portugal.

( "Beach of Light" ) Originally an old fisherman's village that still retains a lot of its old world charm. Protected to the east by Rocha Negra ( "black rock" ) cliff, a product of the Monchique volcano some 150 million years ago. To the west an old fort 16th century fort ( now a smart restaurant ). The lovely, long sandy beach (blue flag) is overlooked by the village itself. A patterned cobbled promenade runs from just below the church along the seafront to the cluster of beach bars. The promenade is full of craft stalls, mainly during high season and also has a few cafes and restaurants. The town is a lot quieter and more peaceful than some of the other coastal resorts, such as nearby Alvor, but a lively time can be had in nearby Lagos, some ten minutes away. As the town has a large population of resident English people quite a lot of its facilities are open all year round, though opening hours may be reduced in the low season.

Luz and the Algarve in general has a history of occupation, from the Carthaginians and the Romans. There are some Roman ruins (fish salting vats) recently excavated and preserved, look for the small entrance in the wall of the promenade (by the entrances to the O'Poco restaurant and Carlos Bar). Then came the Moors, The Crusaders in the 13th century, a brief spell of Portuguese kings, then conquered by Spain. The fort was later built amongst many others on the coast to defend against pirates.

There are good water sports facilities - scuba diving, snorkelling, windsurfing and sailing school, paddleboats and some boat trips. It is a safe beach ideal for children, with lifeguards on duty during the summer months (Blue Flag 2005). Also there is excellent fishing to be had from the extensive rock formations to the west of the beach. There are several championship standard golf courses close by. The already substantial number of restaurants and bars continues to grow each year so there will be no problem finding somewhere different to visit every night if you choose to. There is a good mixture of restaurants from tourist to traditional, eat in or take away. Needless to say you will not have to go far to find a bar. There are plenty of things to do in and around Luz, be it Horse Riding to Slide and Splash to Microlighting. There are a couple of good supermarkets and a mixture of good shops.

There a basically four main roads in Luz, the Rua 1 de Maio ( Rua de Espiche ) running north to south from the E.N.125 Sagres / Lagos road to main square and the church, which is effectively the town centre. The Rua de 25 Abril running West from the church up the hill to the new developments and the road to Burgau, and the Rua Direita running East from the church (the main street) which is the 'old' road out of town. The Av. dos Pescadores runs past the church and the fort for a short distance and leads onto the fairly new promenade running from just below the church, along the sea front to the main beach area. There are extensive villa and apartment developments in progress to the west of the town at the top of the hill on the Rua 25 de Avril, but sufficiently far enough away not to be too intrusive and as of the end of 2005 sufficiently completed to not be that much of an eyesore.

A brief description of some of the towns and villages close to Praia da Luz. More details of facilities, bars and restaurants can be found on the Nearby Places page.
Lagos, a larger historic town is just 10 minutes east of Luz. It has plenty of shopping, a pretty good night life, and a large established marina. It is definitely the place to go if you want a change from the relative peace and quiet of Luz.
Burgau, 10 minutes drive west of Luz, is another old fishing village, overlooking a small bay and sandy beach, with a good beach bar. Relatively unspoilt by tourism ( protected by a conservation order to retain its character ). It has some good restaurants and bars. Built on a hillside,  Burgau's old fishermen's houses line cobbled streets leading to the bay, beautiful sandy beach and the still active fishing fleet.
Espiche, a village on the main N125, with roads that lead south to Praia da Luz, and north to Barão de São João. A typical Portuguese village. The part facing the main road looks fairly modern and the roads are well made but go one row of houses back and the roads revert to old cobble style and are murderously narrow in parts. If you go into the village, rather than  just by-passing it on the main road, you will find a few restaurants and bars, a supermarket and a couple of newsagents.
Salema, approximately 19km west on the main road (N125) from Lagos towards Sagres. This fishing village situated in a broad cove / beach, which has managed to retain it's character despite extensive building at the back of the village and on the cliffs. An active fishing fleet works out of here and a lot of the fish is used by the villages restaurants. A sandy beach on the western side of the village is protected by cliffs. Boca do Rio and Ponta de Almadena beaches nearby
Some Other Beaches nearby, Boca do Rio, Meia Praia, Praia da Almâdena, Praia da Batata, Praia do Burgau, Praia do Canavial, Praia da Dona Ana, Praia da Figueira, Praia de Porto de Mós, Praia da Selema.

The Algarve has two major nature reserves covering most of the area. The Parque Natural da Ria Formosa, extending from Faro to the Guadiana and Spanish border, and the Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e da Costa Vicentina, which begins in the corner of the Alentejo above the Algarve, but extends down its Atlantic coast and turns around the Cabo de São Vicente to Sagres then runs back east towards Lagos.

 

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