Holiday rentals and lettings in Lagos

Table of Contents

• At a glance: What should you know about renting a holiday rental in Lagos?
• Holiday rentals and lettings in Lagos: find your perfect retreat
• Exploring Lagos: our top recommendations
• Activities: What are the top things to do and see in Lagos?

• Rentals for every group: Studios near the marina, family apartments by Meia Praia and villas with private pools inland, most with air conditioning, a terrace and parking.
• Where to base yourself: The walled old town suits sightseeing and evenings out, while Meia Praia and Praia Dona Ana put you closest to the sand.
• What guests praise: Reviews highlight sea views, walkable centres and hosts who share tips on the Ponta da Piedade boat trips.
• Best time to go: May, June and September bring warm water and calmer streets; winter is mild, green and much cheaper.
• Things to do: Kayak the Ponta da Piedade sea caves, walk the clifftop trail to Praia do Camilo and eat cataplana in the centre.

Lagos spreads from a walled old town to a long sandy bay, and the accommodation follows suit. You will find compact studios a few streets from the marina, roomy apartments in Lagos overlooking Meia Praia, townhouses with roof terraces, and detached villas in Lagos set among the orange groves inland. If you would rather compare the whole coastline first, browse holiday lettings in the Algarve. Most properties come well equipped for a self-catering stay.

• Private or shared pools, including villas with a pool in Lagos
• Air conditioning for the hot Algarve summer
• Terraces and balconies with sea or old-town views
• Full kitchens for cooking market fish and shellfish
• Off-street parking, useful for cliff-top beach trips

Book early for July and August, when the best-rated addresses go quickly.

What are the best areas to stay in Lagos?

For a first visit, stay inside or just behind the old town walls, where the beaches, marina and restaurants are all within a short walk. The table below details regions for specific interests:

What do our guests say?

Guests staying in Lagos consistently rate location above everything else: being able to walk home from dinner, park the car for a week, and reach the cliffs in ten minutes. Sea views, spotless kitchens and quick, helpful hosts come up again and again, and several of our top addresses sit above 9.9+ across the past year.

Here are our top-rated holiday lettings from the past year:

1. A35 - Maritime Discovery Apartment - 10.0: A balcony with a beach view in Santa Maria, praised for its central position and easy walk to the marina.
2. My Friendly House - 9.9+: A seven-guest house in São Sebastião with a sea view, air conditioning and parking, run by a Star Host.
3. 3 Marias Room - 9.9+: A simple double room near the old town, valued for its warm welcome, kitchen access and quiet street.

Lagos sits on the western Algarve coast in the district of Faro, where golden cliffs, a working marina and a walled historic centre meet the Atlantic.

✈️What is the best way to get to Lagos?

Most visitors fly into Faro and drive west along the A22. Here are the most common ways to get to the town:

• Plane and car: Faro Airport is the only international airport in the Algarve, roughly 90 kilometres east of Lagos. Hire cars are collected at the terminal and the drive takes about an hour on the A22 Via do Infante motorway, leaving at junction 1 for Lagos. A car is genuinely useful here, because the best beaches sit along cliff roads with their own car parks.
• Train and coach: The regional Linha do Algarve railway runs from Faro through Portimão to the terminus at Lagos, a scenic ride of about an hour and three quarters with a short walk or taxi over the bridge into the centre. Long-distance coaches connect Lisbon with Lagos in roughly four hours, arriving at the bus terminal beside the marina.

🥗Where to eat in Lagos?

According to Google Maps data and reviews, Casinha do Petisco is the best rated restaurant in Lagos. Below is a table showing the top 5 highly-rated restaurants hand-picked by our travel experts.

⭐Our guests' recommendation: Our guest traveller Emma recommends Don Sebastião in Lagos: a family-run dining room on the pedestrian Rua 25 de Abril, going since 1979, where she orders the cataplana and a jug of house white after a day on the cliffs.

☀️When is the best time to visit?

The sweet spot is May to early June and September, when the sea has warmed, the cliffs are walkable in comfort and the old town is busy without being crowded. July and August deliver the liveliest atmosphere and the highest prices, while winter stays mild enough for hiking and golf.

Spring

• Best for: Walkers, golfers and couples wanting quiet beaches.
• Weather: Sunny days around 20 to 24 degrees, with wildflowers on the headlands.
• Atmosphere: Relaxed, with terraces reopening and easy restaurant tables.

Summer

• Best for: Families, beach lovers and anyone after nightlife.
• Weather: Hot and dry, often near 30 degrees, with warm Atlantic water.
• Atmosphere: Full marina, busy grottoes and boat trips booked days ahead.

Autumn and winter

• Best for: Long stays, surfers and budget-minded travellers.
• Weather: Mild, often 16 to 22 degrees, with occasional Atlantic rain.
• Atmosphere: Calm and local, with lower rental prices and empty sands.

⭐Our Hosts' recommendation: Our Lagos local expert, the host team of My Friendly House, recommends coming to visit the clifftop path from Praia Dona Ana to Ponta da Piedade an hour before sunset, when the tour boats have gone and the sandstone stacks turn deep orange. Take the steps down to Praia do Camilo afterwards, and finish with grilled fish near the fort. You can read more about local tips on the host team's regional tourism page.

1. Kayak the Ponta da Piedade caves
2. Walk the golden cliff trail
3. Wander the walled old town
4. Surf the western beaches
5. Feast on cataplana and petiscos

1. Kayak the Ponta da Piedade caves

   The headland south of town is the reason many people come to Lagos. Ponta da Piedade is a maze of ochre stacks, arches and grottoes that can only be seen properly from the water. Small boats leave from the marina all day, but a guided kayak or stand-up paddleboard tour lets you slip inside the narrow caves and land on hidden pocket beaches. Go early, before the swell and the crowds build, and bring a dry bag for your camera.

2. Walk the golden cliff trail

   A clear footpath runs along the clifftop from Praia Dona Ana past Praia do Camilo to the lighthouse at Ponta da Piedade, with staircases down to the sand at each stop. It takes under an hour at a gentle pace and rewards you with a new view at every turn. Keep going west and the coast opens out towards Porto de Mós and eventually Praia da Luz, a longer half-day walk with a café at the far end.

3. Wander the walled old town

   Inside the 16th-century walls, black and white calçada paving links small squares, tiled facades and independent shops. Look for the gilded interior of the Igreja de Santo António, the seafront Forte da Ponta da Bandeira and the sobering former slave market on Praça do Infante, now a museum. The centre is compact and entirely walkable, which is why so many guests choose a rental here rather than out along the coast.

4. Surf the western beaches

   Lagos is the gateway to the wilder Atlantic coast. Schools run daily minibus trips to Praia do Amado and Arrifana for beginners, while experienced surfers head towards Sagres for bigger, colder swell. Back in the bay, Meia Praia stays sheltered enough for windsurfing, kitesurfing and sailing lessons. Wetsuits are worth having year-round here, as the Atlantic runs noticeably cooler than the eastern Algarve.

5. Feast on cataplana and petiscos

   The signature dish is cataplana, a copper clam-shaped pan of fish, shellfish, peppers and coriander steamed at the table and easily shared by two. Add grilled sardines in summer, percebes from the western rocks and a glass of Algarve white. For a change of scene, the fish restaurants around the harbour at Portimão and the busier strip at Albufeira are both an easy drive along the A22.