The Igreja de São Sebastião stands in the heart of Albufeira's old town, its plain whitewashed exterior giving no hint of what's inside. The interior is dominated by a baroque gilded altar — all tortured columns and gilded foliage — behind which stands a 14th-century stone statue of Our Lady of Orada, one of the oldest religious images on the Algarve coast. The contrast between the exterior simplicity and the theatrical interior is characteristic of Portuguese Manueline and baroque church design.
The church is small enough to see in fifteen minutes but worth the stop. Mass is held regularly and the church is often open during the day. The square in front — one of the most pleasant in the old town — has a couple of good café terraces that make a useful orientation point for exploring the cobbled streets around it.