# A Weekend in Lagos, Kayaking and Cliffs Two Hours from Huelva

The western Algarve in two nights: guided kayaking among the caves of Ponta da Piedade, the clifftop boardwalks at sunset and Meia Praia before heading back.

Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/algarve/lagos/itineraries/weekend-with-kayaking · Revisado: 2026-11-12

Dónde: Lagos

Lagos is the Algarve of ochre cliffs. South of the town, Ponta da Piedade closes off the bay with columns, arches and caves that the sea has carved into the golden rock, and you can see them in two ways: from below, paddling among them, and from above, along the wooden boardwalks that follow the edge. From Huelva it is two hours ten of motorway, just right for setting off on Friday afternoon and having dinner there. From Seville, three hours: it fits too, if you leave an hour earlier. This plan makes kayaking the centrepiece of the weekend and leaves the rest on foot.

## How do you get there from Huelva or Seville?

By car, along the motorway to Ayamonte, the Guadiana bridge and the A22, the Algarve motorway, to Lagos. Since 1 January 2025 the A22 has had no toll. When you cross the bridge, the clock goes back an hour. In Lagos, leave the car in a car park on the outskirts of the centre and get around on foot: the old town, the harbour, Ponta da Piedade and Meia Praia are all within walking distance.

## Where to sleep in Lagos

To get around on foot all weekend, sleep in the centre. Casa Mãe is inside the walls, on Rua do Jogo da Bola: several buildings around a garden with a swimming pool and vegetable patch, from suites in the 19th-century manor house to cabins with a patio, and the farm-to-table restaurant Orta. The four-star Lagos Avenida Hotel is opposite the marina, with 47 rooms with a balcony or terrace, a rooftop pool and Avenida on the ground floor; it does not accept pets and has a free electric charger for guests. If you are in a motorhome or with a dog, Turiscampo, 5 km from the centre beside the N125, is open all year, with pitches, bungalows and a heated indoor pool; it can only be booked on its website.

WhereWho it suits

Casa MãeInside the wallsCouple without a car, charming hotel

Lagos Avenida HotelOpposite the marinaCar and rooftop pool, no dog

Turiscampo5 km away, in EspicheMotorhome, family, dog

## Kayak or boat?

Kayaking at Ponta da Piedade is the way to enter the caves at your own pace, with a guide and in a small group. No experience is needed, and you will get wet. If someone in the group does not want to paddle, the Benagil cave, 35 km away, can be seen from larger boats from Portimão, from €35 per adult, about 25 minutes from Lagos. It is another place and another morning: do not squeeze it into the same day as the kayak.

## With children

Kayaking admits children from age 4 with an adult, at €30. Meia Praia has lifeguards and a blue flag in season and flat sand. The boardwalks are safe, but the cliff edge crumbles: do not step off the wood. With a pushchair, the boardwalks have steps; use a baby carrier.

## If you have a day to spare: the Costa Vicentina

West of Lagos begins the Atlantic coast of the Algarve: Cabo de São Vicente, the south-western tip of Europe, with its lighthouse above the cliffs, the Sagres fortress and surf beaches such as Amado and Arrifana. See the Costa Vicentina: from Huelva it is two hours twenty, and from Lagos, half an hour to Sagres. A Sunday with sunset at the cape makes the return much longer: better to add a night.

## El plan

### Friday · 18:30 · Arrival and a walk along the walls
Drop your luggage and walk down to the seafront promenade beside the wall and Praça do Infante.

### Friday · 19:30 · Dinner at Casinha do Petisco
A small home-cooking Portuguese restaurant on Rua da Oliveira, inside the old town, open Monday to Saturday from 17:30 to 23:00. Reservations by phone only, and only until 19:30: ask for that table as you leave home, or you will be on the waiting list afterwards.

### Saturday · 10:00 · Kayak through the caves of Ponta da Piedade
Lagos Adventure sets off from its warehouse on Rua da Docapesca, next to the fish market, on a 2 h 15 guided tour: you paddle past the harbour mouth and the beaches of Batata and Pinhão to the caves and arches. It costs €40 for adults and €30 for children aged 4 to 11. In a heavy swell it does not go out: they change your date or refund your money.

### Saturday · 13:00 · Lunch at Avenida, facing the marina
The restaurant of the Lagos Avenida Hotel, in the Michelin Guide selection, only serves lunch on Friday and Saturday, from 12:30 to 14:30: a starter, main course and dessert menu for €49, plus a 10% service charge. Change beforehand: beachwear is not allowed, and only children aged 12 and over are admitted. Book on its website. Afterwards, rest: if it is a beach day, Batata and Dona Ana are a short walk from the centre.

### Saturday · 16:30 · The clifftop boardwalks until sunset
From Praia do Camilo to the lighthouse and along the wooden boardwalks towards Porto de Mós: about 4 km each way, free. From above you see the same arches you paddled through in the morning. Return the same way or take a taxi in Porto de Mós.

### Saturday · 20:30 · Dinner at D. Sebastião
Open since 1979 on Rua 25 de Abril, the pedestrian street in the centre: fish and shellfish from tanks, seafood rice, cataplanas and the house pork chop with figs, with a cellar of about 240 Portuguese wines. Its website does not publish opening hours: call to book and confirm it is open.

### Sunday · 10:00 · Slave Market
On Praça do Infante, the core of the Lagos Museum, on the Atlantic slave trade that began here in the 15th century, based on an archaeological find in 2009. Open Tuesday to Sunday, from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 14:00 to 18:00; admission costs €3. Between half an hour and three quarters of an hour.

### Sunday · 11:30 · Meia Praia
Cross the pedestrian footbridge at the marina, next to the station: in a quarter of an hour you are on more than 4 km of flat sand. The further east you go, the fewer people.

### Sunday · 15:00 · Heading back
On Sunday Casinha do Petisco is closed and Avenida only serves dinner: if you are sleeping at Casa Mãe, its restaurant Orta serves lunch from 12:00 to 18:00; if not, call D. Sebastião. You reach Huelva around 18:10 Spanish time; Seville, around 19:00.

## Un consejo más

Book the kayak for the first morning and leave Sunday's free in case the sea forces you to change the day.

## Cuándo no ir

Going in August looking for quiet coves. The beaches of Ponta da Piedade fill up and parking near them is difficult. If you go in summer, do the boardwalks first thing.

## Preguntas frecuentes

### How long does it take from Huelva to Lagos?
About two hours ten minutes by car. From Seville, about three hours. In Portugal it is an hour earlier.

### Do you need experience for the kayak?
No. The tour is guided and in a group. Children can go from age 4, with an adult.

### How much does the kayak cost?
€40 for adults and €30 for children aged 4 to 11, in a group. Private, from €480.

### What if the sea is rough?
Lagos Adventure does not go out in a swell: it changes the date or refunds the money. The boardwalks and the Slave Market do not depend on the sea.

### Are there tolls?
Not on the A22: Portugal removed the toll on this motorway on 1 January 2025.

## Dónde dormir if you're driving
- **Lagos Avenida Hotel**: Facing the marina
The Lagos Avenida Hotel is on Avenida dos Descobrimentos, the road that skirts the river and the marina, in the centre of Lagos. It is a four-star hotel with 47 rooms, all with a balcony or terrace, some with views of the marina and the sea and others of the city. They have air conditioning, a TV and a full bathroom. Meia Praia is about seven minutes' walk away, according to the hotel, and the old town about the same.
The rooftop and the restaurant
Upstairs there is a bar with an infinity-edge pool looking over the marina and the sea: it is the place for late afternoon. Breakfast is à la carte, and on the ground floor is Avenida Restaurant, in the Michelin Guide selection.
Rooms
The Marina View Superior rooms, of 22 m², are on the upper floor and look onto the marina and the sea. The Marina View rooms, of 19 m², double or twin, also have a view and a balcony. The City View rooms, of 19 m², face the city, with a balcony or terrace.
Getting here and parking
If you come by car from Huelva, it is about two hours along the A22, toll-free since 2025. Guests have a free electric car charger. Without a car, Lagos train station is on the other side of the marina footbridge. The hotel does not accept pets.
- **Turiscampo Algarve**: A big campsite that never closes
Turiscampo is an 82,000 m² campsite at Espiche, next to the N125, 5 km from Lagos and 2.5 km from Praia da Luz. It is open all year, which makes it useful in winter, when many Algarve campsites close. It appears in the Lagos council's list of campsites, alongside those at Trindade and Valverde.
Pitches and bungalows
The pitches are bordered by shrubs and are gravel, designed for caravans and motorhomes, with or without water and drainage, and some with a private bathroom. There is no communal lawn for tents. Some have shade and some do not: the sunny ones are in demand in winter. Maximum six people per pitch. For sleeping under a roof there are wooden bungalows and mobile homes for three to seven people.
For everyday life
Two pools, one outdoor and one indoor and heated, both with a children's area, plus hot tubs, a spa, a gym, entertainment and a kids' club included in the price. There is a restaurant and bar, free wifi, two laundries, a cash machine in the mid and high season and paid electric car chargers. The bus stop is 50 m away and Lagos train station 7 km. Dogs are accepted for a supplement.

## Dónde dormir without a car
- **Casa Mãe**: Sleeping inside the wall
Casa Mãe is on Rua do Jogo da Bola, on the western edge of the walled old town of Lagos, on a former estate that had been abandoned. Today it is several buildings around a garden with a pool and a vegetable plot, each with its own style. From the door you walk down to the centre and the Slave Market, and in a few minutes by car you are at the Ponta da Piedade boardwalks.
The rooms
The 19th-century manor house, above the vegetable garden, has six suites of 27 to 53 m² for two people, with antique furniture brought from all over Portugal. The three cabins, of 35 m², and the family suites Padaria (two people) and Baluarte (four, 65 m²) have a private patio, hammock and outdoor shower. The Jogo da Bola building, the newest and with contemporary lines, has rooms of 24 to 30 m² with a terrace or balcony. A few metres away, Villa Paiol is a house for six adults with a rooftop pool.
Eating at home
The Orta restaurant cooks farm to table, with produce from its garden and from Algarve suppliers, and eggs from its two hundred hens. It serves lunch and small plates from 12:00 to 18:00 and dinner from 19:00 to 22:00; booking is advisable for dinner. Brunch, from 7:30 to 11:00, is for guests only from June to October.
Getting there
From Huelva it is about two hours on the A22, which has had no toll since 1 January 2025. Without a car, Lagos has a railway station at the end of the Algarve line, on the other side of the marina. Ask about parking when you book, because inside the wall space is scarce.
- **Lagos Avenida Hotel**: Facing the marina
The Lagos Avenida Hotel is on Avenida dos Descobrimentos, the road that skirts the river and the marina, in the centre of Lagos. It is a four-star hotel with 47 rooms, all with a balcony or terrace, some with views of the marina and the sea and others of the city. They have air conditioning, a TV and a full bathroom. Meia Praia is about seven minutes' walk away, according to the hotel, and the old town about the same.
The rooftop and the restaurant
Upstairs there is a bar with an infinity-edge pool looking over the marina and the sea: it is the place for late afternoon. Breakfast is à la carte, and on the ground floor is Avenida Restaurant, in the Michelin Guide selection.
Rooms
The Marina View Superior rooms, of 22 m², are on the upper floor and look onto the marina and the sea. The Marina View rooms, of 19 m², double or twin, also have a view and a balcony. The City View rooms, of 19 m², face the city, with a balcony or terrace.
Getting here and parking
If you come by car from Huelva, it is about two hours along the A22, toll-free since 2025. Guests have a free electric car charger. Without a car, Lagos train station is on the other side of the marina footbridge. The hotel does not accept pets.

## Dónde dormir in style
- **Casa Mãe**: Sleeping inside the wall
Casa Mãe is on Rua do Jogo da Bola, on the western edge of the walled old town of Lagos, on a former estate that had been abandoned. Today it is several buildings around a garden with a pool and a vegetable plot, each with its own style. From the door you walk down to the centre and the Slave Market, and in a few minutes by car you are at the Ponta da Piedade boardwalks.
The rooms
The 19th-century manor house, above the vegetable garden, has six suites of 27 to 53 m² for two people, with antique furniture brought from all over Portugal. The three cabins, of 35 m², and the family suites Padaria (two people) and Baluarte (four, 65 m²) have a private patio, hammock and outdoor shower. The Jogo da Bola building, the newest and with contemporary lines, has rooms of 24 to 30 m² with a terrace or balcony. A few metres away, Villa Paiol is a house for six adults with a rooftop pool.
Eating at home
The Orta restaurant cooks farm to table, with produce from its garden and from Algarve suppliers, and eggs from its two hundred hens. It serves lunch and small plates from 12:00 to 18:00 and dinner from 19:00 to 22:00; booking is advisable for dinner. Brunch, from 7:30 to 11:00, is for guests only from June to October.
Getting there
From Huelva it is about two hours on the A22, which has had no toll since 1 January 2025. Without a car, Lagos has a railway station at the end of the Algarve line, on the other side of the marina. Ask about parking when you book, because inside the wall space is scarce.
- **Lagos Avenida Hotel**: Facing the marina
The Lagos Avenida Hotel is on Avenida dos Descobrimentos, the road that skirts the river and the marina, in the centre of Lagos. It is a four-star hotel with 47 rooms, all with a balcony or terrace, some with views of the marina and the sea and others of the city. They have air conditioning, a TV and a full bathroom. Meia Praia is about seven minutes' walk away, according to the hotel, and the old town about the same.
The rooftop and the restaurant
Upstairs there is a bar with an infinity-edge pool looking over the marina and the sea: it is the place for late afternoon. Breakfast is à la carte, and on the ground floor is Avenida Restaurant, in the Michelin Guide selection.
Rooms
The Marina View Superior rooms, of 22 m², are on the upper floor and look onto the marina and the sea. The Marina View rooms, of 19 m², double or twin, also have a view and a balcony. The City View rooms, of 19 m², face the city, with a balcony or terrace.
Getting here and parking
If you come by car from Huelva, it is about two hours along the A22, toll-free since 2025. Guests have a free electric car charger. Without a car, Lagos train station is on the other side of the marina footbridge. The hotel does not accept pets.

## Dónde dormir if you're flying
- **Casa Mãe**: Sleeping inside the wall
Casa Mãe is on Rua do Jogo da Bola, on the western edge of the walled old town of Lagos, on a former estate that had been abandoned. Today it is several buildings around a garden with a pool and a vegetable plot, each with its own style. From the door you walk down to the centre and the Slave Market, and in a few minutes by car you are at the Ponta da Piedade boardwalks.
The rooms
The 19th-century manor house, above the vegetable garden, has six suites of 27 to 53 m² for two people, with antique furniture brought from all over Portugal. The three cabins, of 35 m², and the family suites Padaria (two people) and Baluarte (four, 65 m²) have a private patio, hammock and outdoor shower. The Jogo da Bola building, the newest and with contemporary lines, has rooms of 24 to 30 m² with a terrace or balcony. A few metres away, Villa Paiol is a house for six adults with a rooftop pool.
Eating at home
The Orta restaurant cooks farm to table, with produce from its garden and from Algarve suppliers, and eggs from its two hundred hens. It serves lunch and small plates from 12:00 to 18:00 and dinner from 19:00 to 22:00; booking is advisable for dinner. Brunch, from 7:30 to 11:00, is for guests only from June to October.
Getting there
From Huelva it is about two hours on the A22, which has had no toll since 1 January 2025. Without a car, Lagos has a railway station at the end of the Algarve line, on the other side of the marina. Ask about parking when you book, because inside the wall space is scarce.
- **Lagos Avenida Hotel**: Facing the marina
The Lagos Avenida Hotel is on Avenida dos Descobrimentos, the road that skirts the river and the marina, in the centre of Lagos. It is a four-star hotel with 47 rooms, all with a balcony or terrace, some with views of the marina and the sea and others of the city. They have air conditioning, a TV and a full bathroom. Meia Praia is about seven minutes' walk away, according to the hotel, and the old town about the same.
The rooftop and the restaurant
Upstairs there is a bar with an infinity-edge pool looking over the marina and the sea: it is the place for late afternoon. Breakfast is à la carte, and on the ground floor is Avenida Restaurant, in the Michelin Guide selection.
Rooms
The Marina View Superior rooms, of 22 m², are on the upper floor and look onto the marina and the sea. The Marina View rooms, of 19 m², double or twin, also have a view and a balcony. The City View rooms, of 19 m², face the city, with a balcony or terrace.
Getting here and parking
If you come by car from Huelva, it is about two hours along the A22, toll-free since 2025. Guests have a free electric car charger. Without a car, Lagos train station is on the other side of the marina footbridge. The hotel does not accept pets.