Is Faro Safe for Solo Female Travelers?

Solo travel

Faro is a small city but it had a number of activities and things to see. The food was great, as a vegan I found many options, both in restaurants and supermarkets. I would definitely recommend going to the beach to watch the sunset, taking the boat for a little trip around the islands and going on a bike ride on Ria Formosa. I would avoid taking a ticket for one island at a time, you should just get the hop on hop off, I think it saves some money. I stayed in Faro for a month volunteering at Tilia Hostel. It's a very nice and clean hostel with a really homey vibe and I would definitely recommend it. Faro is a small city, you won't need transportation in Faro but you definitely do for going to the beach and to the national park(the bus 16 for the airport) The bus ticket is 2,70€. For the airport I paid 8€ at 3:30 with bolt, so the airport is very close too. For safety, there was a lot of catcalling and men staring, I think a little more than I've experienced at other cities. When you can, especially if it's Friday or Saturday, avoid walking the streets where the bars are alone because there's a lot of drunk men. I would not go out alone at night but I would and I did went out with people from the hostel and it was great, very fun nights.

Couple travel

Faro is a small but very cozy town. It's nice that you get to know the way around after a while. If you feel like you've seen everything in the town, you can easily take the bus to another city. The atmosphere in Faro is very good. It's very fun to explore the nature reserve with a boat (book via Get Your Guide).

Solo travel

Faro was beautiful for a quick recharge. The beaches are lovely, the people were so kind and I felt incredibly safe there even late at night. I was fine getting around on public transport. Although benagil caves were advertised as a must do I found it far too crowded to enjoy. There was an island hopping tour that was perfect, definitely look into that!

Solo travel

Let’s first start with the fact I felt super safe. As every place on the planet there were some sketchy places, I recommend you to ask locals for them, they are super helpful but keep in mind that most people in Portugal don’t speak really good English. They have really good bars that weren’t too expensive. I didn’t use public transportation or something because everything is basically 15-20 minutes away. Overall, I loved it there and I would give it 7/10 because i like more cold countries and it was too hot for me 😆.

Solo travel

Especially around the airport it is quite a man's world. Since occupations around the airport are mainly male orriented (taxi, car rental e.d.), it is crowded with men. You almost see no women. It is not necessarily unsafe tho, but something to keep in mind traveling late. (I landed in the late morning, I don't know what it is like in the evening or at night).

Solo travel

Faro is a safe and cute town, I stayed at a guesthouse in the city center which was very nice and well equipped. There is also a a beach nearby. There are many restaurants, cafes and bars to explore and there are a couple of cute spots to see. I highly recommend that you visit “Capela dos Ossos de Faro (Bone Chapel)” if you’re in the area. The description on the maps states that “it’s a compact chapel built from the bones of Carmelite monks, featuring more than 1,000 skulls.” The ticket was only 2 Euros and it was very interesting! The town is small and you don’t need to stay for long and I got some insect bites during my first day in Faro so I recommend that you plan it as a short trip or a part of a trip and keep a bug repellent with you. :)

Solo travel

People are not very tourist friendly. It was too cold in the hostel and it's so difficult to go on foot with a baggage, causes roads are built in stones. I only liked a marine biologist who works in a "Alive" museum who was very nice explaining me everything over there, had interest and patience.

Couple travel

I had a really good time in Faro, but this was because of the people I met, besides that there aren’t much things to do in the city, you can go to bars and dance clubs if you like that stuff, but If you are a curious person, is not so much for you, maybe go to the beach in a ferry but if you want to do something fun you have to pay for some excursion

Solo travel

The Old Town was wonderful, definitely suitable for walks and had several excellent restaurants. I took a ferry to the island and went to the beach, it was beautiful. I also dedicated one day to go to Marinha beach and took part in a tour of the caves and dolphins on speedboats. It was very fun, and the caves were beautiful.

Solo travel

Things to do: - Walk the trail of the Seven Hanging Valleys - Visit the Benagil caves and Praia da Marinha by kayak - Spend a day at the Ria Formosa Nature Park - Explore the streets of Lagos city and Faro's old town - Get lost in the villages of Ferragudo and Carvoeiro - Explore the Castle in Silves Safety: I felt incredibly safe. Recommendations: Faro is a fairly small town, but the coastline is beautiful. It's also a great place for surfing.

Like most women, I have heard inappropriate comments and harassment towards me both during the day and night time. I have heard stories of being mugged and have lived through one where we (group of 4) were mugged by 2 guys at around 3am in the downtown area. The vibe of the city has changed in the past few years and I don’t feel as safe as before. Faro is the only city with university in Algarve so the bars are just full with college students. Depends on your vibe and what you’re looking for. The bar street can be problematic in terms of violence. I have heard an increase of stalking in the bars area.

Enough to travel alone, good for students and young people. You can walk on the streets freely without being robbed or mugged or even scared to get a picked pocket. Faro is a university city so will be always a "better" option in terms of security