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I don’t dislike taking the same trail again and again,” stated Joana Almeida, bending next to a patch of plants. “Each time, you’ll find fresh discoveries – these hadn’t been in this spot yesterday.”

Standing on shoots at least 2cm in height and adorning the ground with pale blossoms, the fact that these star of Bethlehem flowers sprung up suddenly was a beautiful testament of how quickly life can regenerate in this undulating, interior area of the Algarve, the national forest of Barão de São João.

It was also encouraging to discover that in an zone swept by wildfires in last fall, types such as strawberry trees – which are flame-retardant because of their low resin content – were commencing to regrow, in proximity to highly inflammable eucalyptus, which obstructs other slow-burning trees such as oak. Volunteers were being gathered to participate with rewilding.

Visitor Figures and Interior Attraction

Travel figures to the Algarve are rising, with 2024 showing an increase of 2.6% on the prior year – but the bulk of guests make a beeline for the coast, despite there being so much more to explore.

The beachfront is certainly rugged and breathtaking, but the region is also enthusiastic to highlight the attraction of its inland areas. With the development of throughout the year walking and cycling paths, in addition to the introduction of ecological celebrations, focus is being directed to these equally compelling vistas, featuring hills and dense woodlands.

The Algarve Walking Season hosts a set of several walking festivals with broad topics such as “aquatic elements” and “ancient ruins” between the start of winter and the end of winter. It’s expected they will encourage visitors year round, strengthening the local economy and contributing to reduce the outflow of the youth moving away in search of work.

Culture and Wilderness Combine

Our visit to the national forest coincided with a weekend festival with the theme of “creativity”, based around the pale-colored community to the northwest of Barão de São João.

As well as organized treks, starting at the cultural centre, complimentary activities included mastering how to make organic pigments, to performance sessions, mindful exercise and drawing. There were two photo displays running plus multiple other kid-focused pastimes, such as leaf safaris and making seed dispensers.

Prior to our drop-in daytime screen-printing session at the local venue, our hike into the woods with Joana had the vibe of an creative path. Marked at the outset by upright rocks painted with images of traditional agricultural folk, it was decorated throughout the path with smaller, installed stones showing types of wildlife, including small mammals and feline predators – the wild cat’s community recovering, because of a rehabilitation centre based in the historic town of Silves.

Picturesque Routes and Outdoor Splendor

As the trail wound up to its highest point, the menhir (monolith) on the Pedra do Galo walk, it became more lushly forested with the piney aroma of pine. There was a richness to the air and hard, honey-toned droplets swelled from wood. Chalky rock shone underfoot and tiny frogs perched by pond edges, necks pulsing. In the background, energy generators rotated against the horizon.

Francisco Simões, our guide the next day, was again keen to point out that these inland areas can be explored in every season. Signposted trails, developed in the last decade, are extensions of the Via Algarviana, a trail that extends from the border with Spain for 300 kilometers, continuously to the Atlantic, and several are now linked to an application that makes wayfinding simpler.

Sustainable Travel and Artistic Activities

Francisco set up nature tour operator Algarvian Roots in 2020 and offers experiences from avian observation to full-day guided hikes, all with the similar goals as the AWS: to promote the region by way of immersion, education and traditional knowledge.

The artistic element is here, as well – his family member, potter Margarida Palma Gomes, had guided us to design azulejos, the distinctive cerulean and ivory ceramic tiles found throughout the nation, two days earlier on a festival workshop. Visits to her studio, along with to a regional artist, can further be arranged through Algarvian Roots.

Francisco advised us to contribute for the industry by enjoying generous quantities of good wine capped with cork

Subsequent to an excellent midday meal of meat dish and cabbage in A Charrette in Monchique, a quaint hill settlement bordered by the Algarve’s tallest mountains, the tall Fóia and 774-metre Picota, Francisco led us down steeply cobbled streets and into a narrow path, where an senior duo basked outdoors at the front of their home.

A inclined track took us into the woodland, the ground strewn with oak nuts. In this location, Francisco was eager to introduce us to cork trees, Portugal’s symbolic plant and safeguarded by law since the medieval period. Not only are they intrinsically flame-retardant, but their flexible outer layer is a source of livelihood for inhabitants, who collect it to market to other {industries|sectors