Portimão is one of the largest towns on the Algarve coast and due to its prominent situation, on the estuary of the Arade River, the town’s economy, until the 1980’s, was dependant on the fishing industry.
It was an ancient industry, founded by the Moors in the 11th century who expanded the port, which had previously been used by the Greeks and Phoenicians. Like so much of southern Portugal, the port suffered extensive structural damage in the 1755 earthquake, and today the only surviving structure is the church, built in 1476, but since the 18th century this pre-quake building has been systematically renovated and extended.
The whole town has undergone widespread modernisation, and older town property has been demolished to make way for apartments, restaurants and shops. Portimão offers shopaholics a wide range of goods and is popular with tourists looking for souvenirs.
Portimão suffered greatly in the 1980’s when recession brought about the closure of the sardine processing plants that had provided employment opportunities for this part of the Algarve. The port is still flourishing, and the opening of a marina at Praia de Rocha has rejuvenated Portimão.
The town is one of the biggest centres in the Algarve for game fishing, and in particular, enormous swordfish, which provide the fishing enthusiast with some exciting, sport. Portimão has good facilities for water skiing, scuba diving, sailing and para-sailing so the town is a big draw for water sports devotees.
Portimão has excellent choice of hotels to suit all budgets, and for a Las Vegas experience, the Hotel Casino is the place to go. There are nightly entertainment extravaganzas and of course – a casino.
The world famous Penina Golf Course, set amongst pine trees is situated on the outskirts of town and for motor racing fans Portimão now has a £200 million racing circuit with a 2.915 mile track, five star hotel, sports complex and apartments. The development of the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve is one of the biggest investments to be seen in this region and is a shot in the arm for Portimão tourism.
For the property seeker, Portimão presents good investment opportunities, especially in town properties. With the opening of the Autódromo the area now attracts racing car, and biking fans eager to combine their love of speed with family holidays.
With nearby aqua parks and fine beaches Portimão offers a very wide choice of family entertainment and is sure to attract even more visitors in the next few years.
Sightseeing in the vicinity
The small town of Armação de Pera is close by, and is most notable for its beautiful sandy beach which stretches from the red cliffs on the western side to the sand dunes on the east.
Just across the river from Portimão is Ferragudo, a fishing village which seems to have been caught in a time warp. Despite the development all around it, Ferragudo remains as it was fifty years ago and it’s a delight to stroll around its narrow sunny streets.
Leaving the coastal resorts behind there is much to see further inland, such as the Caves of Estombar, and the dolmen, or burial tombs at Alcalar thought to date from around 3,500 BC. Ongoing archaeological excavations have revealed that there was a large settlement at Alcalar dating from this period.
The town of Figueira has the remains of the mosaic floor of a large Roman villa which are well worth seeing.
Portimão is sometimes dismissed as having been over-run by tourist development but the town has great potential for investment and with the port’s restaurants and lively nightlife, property in town represents a good return for holiday rental investment.
