Albufeira has 2 main parts, there is the 'Strip' which can be lively, not Kavos lively but still lively with plenty going on and the other part is 'The Old Town' which has lots of bars some with live bands & plenty of restaurants in several streets but reading what you have posted sounds more what you are looking for.

The beaches in the area are fantastic and there are many excursions available including, jeep safari, day trips to somewhere like Lisbon or Seville, day trips on a catamaran or a yacht.
There is also the large Slide and Splash water park which is about 30 minutes outside Albufeira, they operate a shuttle bus from the resort to the park, you do have to pay for the bus though.

I definitely prefer the Old Town. You can walk into 'the Strip' part easily enough for a mooch a out and change of scenery.

Thanks for the responses! Can you still have a late night out in the old town? We enjoy lively pubs with music or live music. We're just not really into the club scene

The bars on the Strip, by law, close at 4am and Old Town is the same.

I live in Albufeira and although the strip is worth a visit, it's old town that has the atmosphere.

The restaurants cater for every taste possible and the bars are very varied with live music, cocktails, happy hours and more.

In the main square (old town) you'll find the Rock Cafe which has live music 7 nights a week and the bands are great - outside seating means you can still talk easily without being drowned out.

There are also many bars in "bar Street" in old town, everything from Karaoke, live music and just your regular sit down and drink bars.

The seafront in old town has a string of restaurants that you can also have a drink in with views of the beach.

On The Strip there are 2 bars with live music, The Ancora at the top of the strip and Wild & Co at the bottom of the strip. Ancora have lots of tribute acts such as Elvis, Rihanna, Beyonce, Abba & Freddie Mercury whilst Wild & Co have more rock based live music.

There are also lots of Karaoke bars & club bars on the strip and the main nightclubs.

We've just come back from our second trip to Albufeira and would entirely endorse all the above comments. We stayed SC and eat out every night and didn't have one bad meal. It's very noticeable (as would be expected) the prices round the Square and down on the seafront at Fishermans beach were the most expensive. Best value meal we had was 2 Pizzas (too big to finish, 2 ice cream sweets and 2 drinks for under 25 Euros.

(I'll post a review on our accomoidation ASAP)

Maradoddsy wrote:

Hi all.

Looking for some advice on the above topic.

My friend and I are looking at holidays for next summer. We're females in our early 20s. This year we went to Santa Ponsa and next year Albufeira is a possibility. We enjoyed SP because there was plenty to do and see during the day in the resort and the surrounding areas, and the nightlife was lively but not wild. Ie, you can go for a late night out but it's not wild like Magaluf, Kavos etc. Based on these preferences, does Albufeira seem like a good fit?

Also, has anyone been to the Oura View Beach Club? Any info/experiences on the apartments would be great too. Importantly, what is the sunbed situation like? I love a good swimming pool on holiday & last year our hotel was lovely but the pool was overcrowded and the sunbeds were a nightmare. If you weren't up at the crack of dawn you were unlikely to get beds. We're keen to avoid that scenario next year.

Any other suggestions of apartments with a good pool are welcome also.

Any help you can give would be appreciated.
Thanks!

I've sent a review of our Apartments - The Cerro Mar Complex - keep an eye open for it. Been there twice now Very nice & well equipped. BUT be warned - It's at the top of a very steep hill

I think that Albuferia would be ideal for you, although we tend to stay in other resorts as we are older we always visit when we are in the Algarve and with the choice of both the Old Town and the Strip it would be great for a group in their early twenties. Plus the Algarve keeps coming up as one of the best value places in the Eurozone to have a holiday.

Oura View is part of the CPO family of resorts currently owned by MGM Hotels. It is undergoing a lot of changes at the moment so there is an element of demoralisation amongst the staff but the service in my view has always been impeccable.

On the subject of nightlife I would agree with the previous poster, in that Strip is lively but civilised by comparison with some of the more infamous resorts.