Faro

Faro is the capital of the Algarve. The city of Faro is also county seat of the administrative district of the Algarve. The city itself is divided into two municipalities, Sé and São Pedro. It has about 60,000 inhabitants and a harbor protected by a lagoon. The lagoon of Faro is now a nature reserve. The city of Faro itself also offers many attractions, such as its surroundings. The city was almost completely destroyed twice in the past. The first time by British troops in 1596 and in 1755 by the great earthquake. The historic town has otherwise an eventful history in its background, as a port city, determined by Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Visigoths and Crusaders. In the 15th and 16th century, the port was the starting point of many expeditions which led to great wealth. The many historic places of interest found in the beautiful old town are witnesses of this past. The Town Hall and the Cathedral for example, are from the 13th century, many Baroque buildings from the 18th century, so among other things, the Sao Francisco Church with beautiful tiles and paintings as well as a magnificent retable. In the museums, Roman and medieval archaeological finds (Museum Municipal de Faro) as well as traditional hand tools (Museum Regional do Algarve) are to be seen. The downtown district is surrounded by an old city wall and is adjacent to a pedestrian zone with a century-old city park Alameda Joao de Deus.