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Bright, loud and unashamedly extrovert, Albufeira buzzes with vitality in summer. Wide sweeping beaches, first-class water sport facilities and dozens of bars, bistros, restaurants and nightclubs lend the resort its non-stop party atmosphere, though the old quarter still manages to convey a mellow charm. See Albufeira

Known for its gruesome bone chapel, with the skeletal remains of 1,500 former parishioners completely covering the ceilings and walls.

The town’s 14th-century castle keeps one timeworn eye on its townsfolk and the other on the old adversary, Sanlúcar, Alcoutim’s mirror image on the Spanish side of the River Guadiana. The silence here is palpable, interrupted only by the chiming hour and the rattle of stork bills as they chatter to one another from church towers and chimney stacks.

The ramparts of a 14th-century castle still stand vigil over this delightful riverside hamlet nestling on the upper reaches of the River Guadiana. On the Spanish side, the equally slumbering village of Sanlúcar amounts to a mirror image of Alcoutim. Once upon a time these two neigbours were at war with each other and it was in the castle that Dom Fernando I of Portugal and his Spanish counterpart, Henrique II of Castile, signed a short-lived peace treaty in 1371. Boats regularly shuttle between the two villages.

Alcoutim

The humble ruins of a 10th-century Moorish castle stand sentinel-like over a higgledy-piggeldy collection of whitewashed houses and café-restaurants that constitute the village of Aljezur. A steep, cobbled path leads up to the timeworn but sturdy castle walls and the splendid view beyond. This riverine area was once a breeding ground for malaria-carrying mosquitoes, and in the 18th century some of the villagers were persuaded to relocate to Igreja Nova, Aljezur’s “modern” counterpart to the east.

One of the most resplendent of all the Algarve’s treasures is the 18th-century Igreja Matriz de São Lourenço, just outside the unexceptional village of Almansil. Outstandingazulejos panels in the church depict episodes in the life of St Lawrence, while the highly ornate cupola is a breathtaking exercise in trompe-l’oeil – some say the best example of its kind outside Rome.

Church, Almancil

The town’s cobbled streets, colourful window frames and cheerful chimney pots invoke an unhurried air that is quite disarming. Alte’s church retains a fine portal and is situated near a leafy square. The spring running along its flank tumbles under an old mill, providing a favourite picnic spot.