Quarteira is a coastal city of 22,000 people (2011) in the Algarve region of Portugal.
Get in
By bus
For buses from and to local nearby towns and cities, checkout the timetables of the local transport company Eva Bus.
From Faro Airport interchange at the Faro bus station.
By plane
By taxi
Get in at Faro Airport and its very easy to get a taxi for around €23-€27 to Quarteira and the journey takes around 20 minutes. You can book a taxi before you travel as well. All you have to do is look on the Faro Airport webpage and book from several recommended companies. You can pay when you book or when you arrive at the airport. The driver will have a sign with your name on it in arrivals. There are also some car hire companies at the airport.
Get around
Quarteira is pretty easy to get around. A few hotels are close to all amenities and there is a bus and taxi stop in the centre of town if you want to visit other places. A taxi to neighbouring Vilamoura, a very popular upmarket resort, costs around €4-5. There are also car hire companies in Quarteira if you want to hire a car and drive around the Algarve.
See
There is a wide, clean beach in Quarteira with clean water. There is also a nice promenade, and an aqua show for families nearby.
- 1 Vilamoura (on the west side of the town). One of the largest single tourist complexes in Europe and with about 2,000 hectares of land. Vilamoura has the largest marina in Portugal with 845 berths, two beaches, a Lawn Bowling Club with two grass greens, a Tennis Centre, a Sports Club, a Shooting Club, 5-star and 4-star hotels, tourist apartments, self-catering villas, night clubs, an international casino, and an excellent riding school.
- 2 Roman ruins of Cerro da Vila (Ruínas Romanas do Cerro da Vila, em Vilamoura) (1500 m west of Quarteira). These are the ruins of Roman villa constituted by two residences (the principal along the harbour), baths, necropolis, dams and fish salting stations. Of the two residences and baths, the only remnants are compartmentalized walls, including the impluvium, atrium and tablinum. There are friezes of marble and fragments of painted stucco that decorated the walls, as well as the remains of poly-chromatic mosaic pavements. Two rectangular tanks serve the fish salting "buildings". The necropole includes the remains of mausoleums and burial tombs.
- An area with 271 hectares in the western part of Vilamoura is listed by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area, as it is an important site for Porphyrio porphyrio, and 20 other bird species during reproductive season, as well as an important number of transaharian passerines.
Do
- You can book a cruise for a few hours a day for as little as €15 a person. A travel agent is located near Quarteira Sol Hotel. You can also book them in Vilamoura.
- Play golf at the town's five golf courses.
- Aquashow, Quarteira. One of the best water parks in the Algarve, has something for every member of the family, including the highest freefall slide in Europe! There is an area dedicated to children with small slides, fountains, and shallow waters ideal for young visitors, there are also many tubes and slides to satisfy those who are looking for adrenaline. The water park is located near Quarteira a short drive from the resorts of Albufeira, Loulé, Vilamoura, Vale do Lobo and Quinta do Lago. On your visit make time to experience the water roller coaster - unpredictable for anyone looking for adrenaline and be sure to visit non-water activities including the theme park for all ages and can even swim with the sea lions!.
Buy
There are a lot of shops in Quarteira selling touristy stuff and a lot of traditional Portuguese embroidered stuff. Quarteira is also the place to go for fish as the local fishermen bring in fresh produce everyday. Quarteira is pretty cheap but if you have more exclusive tastes go to Vilamoura for all the designer shops. Quarteira has a weekly gypsy market on Wednesday that is superb. There is also a great local produce market (also on Wednesday) selling fish, fruit, vegetables, etc.
Eat
There are a lot of restaurants and snack bars in Quarteira for all budgets. There are many places selling traditional Portuguese food and a lot of English food can be found in the restaurants along the promenade.
Drink
Lots of English and Portuguese bars around.
Sleep
There are lots of hotels in Quarteira all very near amenities and very close to the beach. They are pretty affordable too.