Ilha de Tavira (Tavira Island)

Tavira Island, a narrow barrier island about 3 km south of the town, has some of the best beaches on the eastern Algarve coast. The sand is wide, clean, and relatively uncrowded compared to the beaches around Lagos and Albufeira further west. The island is part of the Ria Formosa Natural Park and is undeveloped except for a small number of seasonal restaurants and beach cafes.

Ferries run from the Quatro Águas dock (5 minutes east of central Tavira by taxi or the little road train) or from the town quay during summer. The crossing takes about five minutes. The beach stretches for several kilometres in both directions from the ferry landing; walking fifteen minutes east or west takes you away from the crowds.

things to do sight
A story
The barrier islands of the Ria Formosa were not always uninhabited. Tavira Island had a permanent fishing settlement well into the twentieth century, with families living on the island year-round and bringing fish across to the mainland market. The settlement was gradually abandoned after the 1960s as mainland life became more comfortable and the fishing industry mechanized. The ruins of the old village — known as the Barril — are still visible at the western end of the island, along with an extraordinary graveyard of iron anchors that were left behind when the tuna fishing industry here finally closed.