Tavira to Santa Luzia and Back

On exiting the train station take an immediate right and walk along the road until you come to the railway crossing. Cross over the line, make a sharp left and walk up a slight hill with blocks of residential flats on each side. You will come to a roundabout and an Aldi’s; keep to the left of the roundabout and you will pass the organic Maria Flaminga Farm on your left. It is well worth popping in there, they have a lovely shop full of freshly picked produce and a team of friendly welcoming people who run the place. After passing the farm you will begin a long straight dirt road part of the walk. There are farms, homes and small businesses all lining this lovely back road; depending on what time of year, it can be full of fruits and flowers making this a magical peaceful part of the walk, full of scents and birdlife. You will cross the railway line again. Keep to the left in doing so and then keep going forward again.

You will finally come to a T-junction, where you will see a stop sign and a blue ecovia sign. Turn left here and you will be walking downhill on a tar road through the lovely old-fashioned holiday village Pedras del Rei. The road veers left at the bottom of the hill. For the purposes of this walk; stay with what has now become a beautiful long Ria Formosa promenade that will now lead you through the picturesque fishing village of Santa Luzia. At this point of the walk, you could enter the natural park, catch a miniature train ride over the Formosa and have lunch on the beautiful Ihla Tavira whilst listening to the wonderful crashing waves of the Atlantic Ocean.

Santa Luzia has a cornucopia of cafés, local-run bars and excellent restaurants specialising in such Algarve cuisine as Polvo (octopus, a speciality of the village) and Caracois (snails, served throughout summer). It’s a good place to choose a lunch spot with a friendly atmosphere and not a branded restaurant in sight, pure Algarve. At the end of the Formosa promenade you will come to a small boatyard with a slipway and a cluster of authentic working fishermen's huts; there is always a busy vibe here early in the morning with fishermen emptying their catch for the local restaurants. Turn left here and walk through a small residential part of town and turn right at the t junction at the end.

You are now on the main road to Tavira; walk along the blue cycle path until you see the Super Sal (Super Salt) sign - this is your entrance to the saltpans. Your first turn will be when you come to a fork in the dirt road; take the left fork and walk on until you come to a T-junction. look to the right and you should see two posts with a chain across; walk through this and continue on a beautiful wending path through the saltpans; the path is bendy, but with no obvious turns. The silence is breathtaking and if you are lucky you might spot some flamingos. The pans are teeming with birdlife, so come prepared. Waymark 10 is your exit from the saltpans, you should be able to see Tavira town in front of you to the left. There is a path marked with boulders on each side; this path becomes a street passing through a residential area. The rest of your walk is residential, you will be walking through a lovely part of Tavira, passing military barracks, the local high school and eventually get back to Tavira train station.

Portugal - South Portugal - Eastern Algarve - Tavira

Walk id: 8513

Walk grade

Easy Walk

Length

6.8 Miles

Height gain

0 Metres

Duration

2 Hours 45 Mins

Average rating

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