Loulé: The Ultimate Guide to Loulé, Portugal [2024]

Loulé is a traditional market town located approximately 18km north of Faro in the Algarve. It’s a small town that even in the summer manages to avoid much of the hustle and bustle of the Algarve.

Well, except for one day of the week. Each Saturday morning its traditional fish market merges with a local farmers market. Fresh fruit and veg vendors line the streets outside of the market while the inside is equally busy. It creates a hectic working atmosphere that can be a tourist activity in itself.  The rest of the town is small, historical and makes a wonderful day trip. Especially if you’re looking for a trip and some culture away from the busy beaches of the Algarve during the summer season.

When to Visit Loulé?

Our advice would be to visit on a Saturday morning. You’ll catch all the excitement of the farmers market, fish market, and nearby gypsy market. For those that appreciate a less hurried visit, then any other day during the week will be a good option. Just remember that many of Portugal’s government run museums and attractions close on Monday’s so you may not find everything open if you choose to visit on this day.

Farmers Market Loulé Portugal
The Farmers Market Outside of Loulé’s Historic Market Building

How to Get to Loulé?

Loulé is a well-located town with several transport options nearby. With good road access and both frequent buses and trains but as always, a few things to think about. The bus station is located very centrally, but the train station might surprise you. Despite being called Loule Train Station, it’s 6km away so factor in a taxi or a local bus if you’re coming by train. Buses are available and operated by EVA. Albufeira to Loulé costs €9.00 for a return trip, Faro to Loulé costs €6.80 for a return trip. If you’re driving, car parking is abundant.

The small historic streets are free but they’re typically Portuguese; cobbled, cramp, and often occupied with the locals parked all over the place. A large free car park is available at either end of the town at both Continenté supermarkets.

Loule Town Centre

How to Get Around Loulé?

Loulé is a small town and almost everything is within easy walking distance. If you are venturing further to some local sites or a small hike, then a car, taxi or bus will be needed. Uber is reliable in the centre of Loulé and there is a selection of local taxis available.

Where to Start Your Visit to Loulé

During the morning, most people choose to start their visit at the Mercado Municipal de Loulé in the centre of town and that’s where our guide to Loulé starts. The distinctive domed building is hard to miss. We recently wrote about an ‘Algarve e Schweppes’ sign, so look out for a great example of this on the wall of Café Havaneza if you’re coming from the bus station. If you’re arriving in the morning head inside to see a variety of local goods and the famous fish market.

Market – Mercado Municipal de Loulé

It’s perhaps Loulé’s most impressive piece of architectural heritage, the art-nouveau Mercado Municipal. It’s a 1908 revivalist neo-Arab construction with four domes at each of its four corners and four gates on each of its four sides. With its striking raspberry-red roof, domes, and Arabic features contrasting against cream-coloured walls it certainly stands out. Inside you’ll not only find the famous fish market, but also stalls selling a wide variety of goods. If you’re looking for local gifts to take back home, you’ll find plenty of options here, honey, spices, jams and even local wines to name a few.

Loulé Municipal Mercado
Inside Mercado Municipal de Loulé

Camara Municipal de Loulé

After exiting the main entrance of the Mercado Municipal head down Praça da República. It’s a wide street filled with bars, coffee shops, restaurants and local boutiques. If you’re still looking for a souvenir there’s several of the more high-end variety souvenir shops selling typical Portuguese pottery and tiles. As you walk down the street, you’ll soon come across the Camara Municipal de Loulé. It’s an 18th century building that dates to the golden era of Portugal’s history. The stately building dates to 1842, but only became the town hall when it was purchased by the municipality in 1884. To the right of the town hall you can see a large section of the old city walls. To the far right of the Camara is also an old city archway that leads into the cobbled old town. Keep a look out for Loulé’s distinctive purple and white flag too!

Camara municipal loule

Antigo Convento do Espírito Santo

Not far from the town hall is an opening that leads to a large public square. The distinctive pink building is the old Convent of Espírito Santo, the convent also houses the municipal art gallery in its neoclassical cloister. Towering over the convent and located right in the centre of it is a single 45m tall Pine tree (a Norfolk Island pine to be precise). This tree is the tallest landmark in Loulé and can actually be seen from almost everywhere.

Coffee in Loulé

The main high street of Praça da República has a great variety of coffee shops and local boutiques. If you need a pick up following the market than anywhere a long this road is worthy of a coffee break and to people watch. Our two favourites in this part of town though, are Café Calcinha and Atelier dos Mimos. Although there are plenty of other coffee shops and pastelarias around if these are too busy.

Café Calcinha

Café Calcinha dates to 1929 and is the oldest coffee shop in Loulé, it’s modelled on a Brazilian coffee shop of the same era. In 2017 it underwent a considerable restoration when the art-deco interior and Brazilian wood features were restored to their original glory. Sitting outside is a bronze statue of António Alexio, an early 20th century poet and former customer.

Cafe Calcinha Loule

The café itself is steeped in both local politics and history, originally a place for the rich local bureaucrats and businessmen to escape. Alexio’s poetry transcended class barriers and he was tolerated inside the café. The café would eventually allow the poor to enter, but would keep the class barrier by splitting the seating area in half! Only during the 1960s would women be allowed to enter. It might not serve our favourite coffee in Loulé, but its local history and atmosphere is second to none. Also of note, it’s also one of the few cafés open on a Sunday if you’re visiting on this day.

Castle of Loulé – Castelo de Loulé

Turning left at the end of Praça da Republica and heading along Rua da Barbacã will lead you to Loulé’s famous castle. As with most castles in the Algarve, this one dates back over 700 years to the reconquest period. The castle was built on the remains of a previous Muslim fortress under the instructions of King Afonso III in 1249. Only three defensive towers and the connecting walls remain but they provide a great focal point. Both how they impose on the old town, and as a reminder of past more violent times. The rest of the castle and its walls have reportedly been used in many of the nearby buildings – as was often the case, the recycling of bricks and material was common throughout the ages.

Castelo de Loulé
Castelo de Loulé

Municipal Archaeological Museum of Loulé

Within the walls of the castle is the Municipal Archaeological Museum of Loule. It’s a small but well curated museum with some interesting exhibits on Moorish and Roman life in Loule, and the medieval kitchen of the castle, well worth its small entry price of €1.62.

Directly opposite the castle is a pair of artisanal shops and is our first mention of some traditional industry in Loulé. Casa Brava makes artisanal cosmetics and is widely known for their olive oil soaps made in their own workshop. Next door is a traditional coppersmith, walking past this on a week day will give you a front row seat in coppersmithing. You’ll see some traditional copper goods like light fittings and cataplanas being hand made and many items are available to purchase.

Historic Streets and Medieval Old Town

Between the castle and the Igreja Matriz is the medieval old town. It’s a small area of many cobbled streets that head in seemingly random directions. Small workshops, artisan studios and as always in Portugal, many many coffee shops fill these narrow streets. During the week you’ll find many of the old wooden doors open and be able to see lots of traditional working industry. Cobblers, woodworkers, potters, tile painters and woodworking make up the beating heart of the old town. It’s easy to get lost in this corner of Loulé, but that’s also the best way to explore it. Hidden on Rua Vice Almirante Cândido dos Reis is the back entrance to the convent if you missed or skipped its entrance on the high street.

Historic Streets of Loulé

Banhos Islâmicos de Loulé – Loulé’s Islamic Baths

Continuing to explore Loulés historic old town, you’ll soon find Banhos Islâmicos de Loulé’s a historic bathing complex that dates to the Moorish period. The baths date to when Loulé was under Moorish rule in the 12th century. Loulé was originally called al-‘Ulyà. Amazingly these are the first Islamic baths to have been uncovered on the Iberian peninsular. They were only discovered around 16 years ago, during renovation work on a historic house.

The baths now form a small part of a museum that’s open from 10am to 6pm everyday except Mondays, and is free to enter. It’s well worth stopping by!

Loule Islamic Baths

Church of St. Clemente

Watching over the historic centre of Loulé is Igreja Matriz de Loulé ou Igreja de São Clemente. The Church of São Clemente is the oldest church in Loulé and again dates from the 13th century reconquest period. The church’s most notable feature is its bell tower which was a minaret of the former Mosque that the church was built on top of! It’s 22.7m tall and 4.2m across and is an imposing feature on the local landscape. It’s been used as a bell tower for the church since the 13th century.

Church of São Clemente
Church of São Clemente

Adjacent to the Church is the beautiful park garden Jardim dos Amuados. In the heat of the summer the tall trees and palms offer some shade and a place to cool down. At the far end of the garden at the lookout, you can look down and see the garden is actually built on top of a section of the historic stone walls of Loulé. After leaving the church and its garden it’s a short walk back to your starting point of Loulé Muncipal Market.

Mina de Loulé – Loulé’s Undergound Salt Mine

One of Loulé’s most unique attractions is the ability to visit an underground salt mine. One of the amazing things is that this is both a tourist site, and a fully operation mine that’s 230m below ground.

You’ll cover an underground route of around 1.3 km, where you’ll be introduced to the geology of the region, engineering, and simply marvel at the array of mine’s galleries, all made up of 230-million-year-old rock salt. There’s also a fascinating insight into Saint Barbara, the patron saint of miners and several of other arts, in an exhibition by a local artist. You can book directly on TechSalt’s website, or with our partner Get Your Guide.

Wine Tasting in Loulé

The Algarve is one of the newest wine regions in Portugal, and has been producing wines since the Roman times! Just 6km from Loulé is one of our favourite Algarvean wine producers – Quinta da Tôr. Wine has been produced at Quinta da Tôr since the 15th century. You can explore the vineyard, taste several of its wines, and even relax by their pool! You can book wine tastings and visits to the estate through their website, or on Get Your Guide

Folhado de Loulé

Like many towns and regions in Portugal, Loulé has its very own pastry, Folhado de Loulé. It is a delicious combination of flakey pastry and a sweet but light egg custard. We know what you’re thinking, and no, this is nothing like a pastel de nata. It’s quite different and a deliciously light and crispy alternative. If you can really call a layered pastry filled with an egg cream “light”. It’s perfect for an afternoon snack with a coffee, or a even a light lunch on the go!

You’ll find them in lots of pastelerias in Loulé, but the original and the best can be found at LouléDoce. They’re a local bakery that are credited with the revival and preservation of the unique pastry, following its original and historic recipe from the early 1900s.

Folhado de Loule
Folhado de Loulé

Best Restaurants in Loulé

Restaurante Churrasqueira Jolibela – Rua Camilo Castelo Branco 17, 8100-610

Traditional Portuguese Churrasqueira serving Piri Piri Chicken. It’s a no-frills restaurant that delivers great food at competitive prices. It’s usually very busy with a good mix of locals, expats and tourists. It’s worth a stop especially if you haven’t had traditional Piri Piri Chicken yet! The menu starts at around €5 for basic Piri Piri chicken and goes up from there with lots of other meat dishes available.

O Pescador –  Rua Jose Fernandes Guerreiro 54, 8100-598

Right next to the fish market is a great place to try some of the fresh fish you saw while visiting the market. O Pescador is a local’s favourite with a simple interior, reasonable prices and simply great grilled fish.

Café Q – Rua Vice Almirante Candido Reis, 8100-606

Nestled into the historic old town is this little paradise. Its Instagram worthy courtyard is enough of a reason to stop by, but head inside for some fantastic food. It serves both traditional Portuguese and Afro-Luso (áfro-portuguese) fusion food with a very simple menu. On the menu when we visited was a fantastic Mozambique curry.

Brooklyn Burger – Rua a Voz de Loulé, 8100-522

For a small town Loulé has more than its fair share of burger restaurants. Our favourite one has to Brooklyn Burger or Brooklyn – Hamburgueria Artesanal to give its full name. It’s a little out the way of the main tourist areas, but its burger is definitely worth the walk! Starting at €8 for a burger and fries its reasonably priced too.

Events in Loulé

For a small town, Loulé has its fair share of world-famous events. During these events the population tends to swell well above what the local area can handle so it’s best to book accommodation way in advance or stay slightly further away and travel into Loulé. 

Carnival de Loulé

Ending on Shrove Tuesday every February, Loulé Carnival is one of the biggest annual events in the Algarve region. It’s locally known as one of the oldest carnivals and has been held for over 100 years. The town shuts down around noon each day and the carnival starts at 3pm. With the streets closed the party starts and continues well into the early hours of each morning. In recent years the carnival has featured satirical floats as well as the traditional and it’s all in good humour.

Carnival de Loulé

MED Festival

Around the 21st June of each year is Med Festival. During this festival Loulé’s historic old town is closed off and stages for live music pop up in many of the vacated car parks and open spaces. Arts, craft and food stands spill into the historic streets, even many of the houses and workshops are turned into temporary bars and clubs. World music, food and culture are celebrated in Algarve’s biggest summer festival. You have to buy a ticket for Thursday, Friday and Saturday, but on the Sunday its closing night it’s free entry for everyone.

Noite Branca (White Night)

On the last weekend of August another event takes place. Noite Branca or The Festival of the White Night. It’s a festival to celebrate the end of the summer months and a return to normality for the region. On the 31st August thousands of people both young and old take to the streets dressed in white in this free event hosted by Loule Municipality. The streets are again closed off to vehicles and live music, stages, food and, arts and craft can be found everywhere. This is one of the nights you can’t miss if you’re in the Algarve on this date.

Loule White Night

Somewhere to Stay in Loulé?

Although Loulé is less of a resort town than some of the nearby towns, you’ll still find it has several good options for somewhere to stay. Our personal favourite is Loulé Jardim Hotel. A wonderful hotel a short walk from the main avenue. You can take a look at the full range of options with this list here!

Should you Visit Loulé?

Loulé is a great town to visit, or even base yourself in to explore the Algarve. It might not have the beaches within walking distance, but it has plenty of authentic culture and history to make up for it! If there’s something you think we’ve missed, get in contact with us or leave a comment below.


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Written by

Ana Veiga is the co-founder of We Travel Portugal. Ana’s a travel writer currently studying Language and Literature at the University of Lisbon. When not writing or studying she’s steadily on her way to visiting, photographing, and writing about every town and village in Portugal.

You can contact Ana by email, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

2 thoughts on “Loulé: The Ultimate Guide to Loulé, Portugal [2024]”

  1. Good morning.
    Loule has to be our favourite short break destination. Having visited many times on a Saturday as a tourist by coach we’ve subsequently chosen it as an off peak (low season) venue for quiet three day holidays.
    We would recommend restaurant Bocage amongst others as our particular favourite, family owned and run serving excellent local dishes and for accommodation the Loule Jardim Hotel which is situated in a quiet square five or so minutes walk away from the bustling town centre.

    Having successfully mastered your recipe for Pastel de Natas and Bifana can you suggest a good way to produce Black pork (barbecued in long strips cut from belly pork)? If you do have a suggestion we’d be most grateful.

    Thank you.
    Regards from Somerset, England.

    Reply
    • Hi Jeanette,

      Yes, Loulé is perfect for a long weekend. We’ll be adding an accommodation section soon and we’ll check out your recommendation!

      Glad to hear you mastered the pastel de natas, it’s a tricky one! We’re working on adding a few more recipes to the blog, and we do have a black pork one in progress, so stay tuned as we’ll be adding them soon!

      Annie

      Reply

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