Is the water warm in the Algarve in May?
 

Hi...my husband and I are planning a trip to Portugal at the end of May and will be spending several days in the Algarve. I can't seem to get any straightforward answers about the weather. Will we be able to go to the beach and enjoy the water or will it be too cold to do so in May?

Christina, <BR>I am pretty sure the water will be too cold to swim. I was there in July and it was brisk and I am used to swimming <BR>in the Pacific in Southern California (never really warm).

Christina, <BR> <BR>I've never been to the Algarve in May but I was there a few years back in July and the water was really warm. It gets the warm current from the Mediterranean. I would expect that it is warm. I have spent my summers in Portugal since I was about 7 or 8 years old and the water everywhere else is cold, we usually go the beach at Nazare, it is my favorite. If you get a chance to go a little further north you really should visit this fishing village. It's really the only touristy place we visit when we go there. Most of my family is from Portugal the Fatima area. Hope you have fun, it's a eautiful country!

I was there in May years ago, and although the weather was beautiful, the ocean was cold!

My experience is that it will probably be cold. But the beaches are sooo beautiful. My favourite corner is Praia dos Tres Irmaos next to Praia do Alvor( rocky chaos, white sand and emerald water. )

The weather should be nice in the Algarve in May, perhaps around 70 degrees farenheit. You will be able to sit on the beach and sunbathe, although there is sometimes a stiff breeze - you may need to find a sheltered spot. <BR> <BR>However, the water will probably be a bit chilly. Not too cold to swim, but not mediterranean warmth either.

Expect 22...23 centigrades ou 71...74F. <BR>Cold or warm? A eskimo would boil, and a sub-saharian African would freeze.

Bracing, but swimmable in, with big Atlantic waves.I don't think you'd want to stay in for long.If you go to the sandspits along the eastern Algarve, the coast-facing side of the spits are more sheltered and warmer. <BR>Depends on your standards!I'm Scottish so we reckon if you don't get ice scars diving in it's OK.