Tavira lies on both banks of the Gilão river, just before it flows into the Ria Formosa lagoon, in the eastern Algarve, about 30 kilometres from Faro and some thirty from the Spanish border. With about 28,000 people in its municipality, it is considered by many the region's most beautiful town: it has resisted tourist development better than others and keeps a harmonious old town of white houses, noble palaces, gardens and dozens of bell towers. In front of the town, Ilha de Tavira offers kilometres of beach among the finest in the country.
A little history
Excavations have revealed a Bronze Age settlement and an eighth-century BC Phoenician colony. In Roman times the area was crossed by the coastal road linking Balsa, an important nearby town, with Ossonoba (Faro). Under Arab rule the town, called Tabira, became one of the region's main centres and was fortified. In 1242 it was taken by the knights of the Order of Santiago led by Dom Paio Peres Correia.
In the following centuries Tavira prospered thanks to its port, tuna fishing and trade with North Africa, where Portugal held several strongholds; in 1520 it was granted city status. Decline began with the silting of the river, a plague epidemic and the 1755 earthquake, less destructive here than in Lisbon but damaging to many buildings. Until the 1970s fishing and the tuna industry remained the main activities; today it is tourism, drawn by the beauty of the town and its beaches.
What to see
The highest point of the old town holds the remains of the castle, Arab in origin and rebuilt after the reconquest, with a small garden offering a fine view over the rooftops. From here you can see the distinctive telhados de tesoura, four-sided hipped roofs that cover each room of a house separately, a tradition that makes Tavira's skyline unmistakable.
Next to the castle is the church of Santa Maria do Castelo, built in the thirteenth century on the site of the main mosque and rebuilt after the earthquake: it holds the tombs of Dom Paio Peres Correia and, by tradition, of the seven knights killed by the Moors during a truce. Nearby, the Torre de Tavira, a former water tower, houses a camera obscura that projects live images of the town.
The sixteenth-century Misericórdia church has one of the finest Renaissance portals in the Algarve and an azulejo-lined interior. Among the many other churches, more than twenty in all, those worth visiting include Carmo, with rich gilded woodwork, São Paulo, Santiago and Nossa Senhora das Ondas, the fishermen's church. The Palácio da Galeria, a seventeenth-century palace, houses the municipal museum with temporary exhibitions and the remains of a Phoenician sanctuary.
The river is crossed by the old seven-arched bridge, traditionally called Roman but actually medieval in origin and rebuilt in the seventeenth century: it is now pedestrian. Along the banks are the public garden and the old iron market, turned into a space for shops and restaurants, while Rua da Liberdade and Rua José Pires Padinha are lined with noble houses.
Beaches and the Ria Formosa
Tavira is part of the Ria Formosa Natural Park. Ilha de Tavira, about 11 kilometres long, is a few minutes by ferry from Quatro Águas or, in summer, from the centre. Further west, Praia do Barril is reached by a little train across the lagoon; near the beach is the curious cemitério das âncoras, the anchor cemetery of the old tuna fishery. The village of Santa Luzia, the "octopus capital", is perfect for a fish dinner. To the east are the beach of Cabanas and Cacela Velha, a small white village on a cliff overlooking the lagoon, one of the most evocative places in the Algarve.
Festivals and tips
The main festivities include the feast of the patron saint, Saint John, on 24 June, and the summer popular festivals; fairs and markets take place throughout the year. Tavira is linked to Faro and Spain by the regional Algarve railway and the A22 motorway. Seville is about two hours away by car.