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Algarve Tourist Information Centres
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About Algarve - show infohide info
The Algarve is the name of the southern coast of Portugal, incorporating the cities of Faro, Lagos, and Portimo amongst others. The region's administrative centre is Faro, which has its own international airport and public university. The Algarve is one of five Regions of Portugal. The Algarve area contains hills and valleys, and holds around 410,000 inhabitants which increases to more than a million in the height of summer. Tourists flock to the Algarve's beaches, Mediterranean climate, safety and relatively low costs. The coastline is notable for picturesque limestone caves and grottoes, particularly around Lagos, which are accessible by powerboat. Praia da Marinha, Lagoa was classified as one of the 100 most beautiful and well preserved beaches of the world. The Region is divided into 16 municipalities. Due to the Moorish occupation of much of Spain, the region was called 'Al-Gharb' which means 'the country of the West'. In the 12th century, the Moorish occupation ended: the 'Al-Gharb' has been since then the Algarve. It was not until the 13th century that the Portuguese finally secured the region against subsequent Moorish attempts to recapture the area. In 1808, the Algarve became the first part of Portugal to liberate itself from Spanish occupation.
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