Hello, my wife and I are planning a 3-week trip to Portugal and southern Spain in February. We will end the trip by driving from Seville to the Algarve where we will stay for a week. We would like to have a 'home-base' and not to move around during that week and I am looking for suggestions. We don't mind driving around the Algarve to see the sites but we'd rather stay put if possible. Thanks for your help!

Feb should be quiet. I would tend to use the trains and buses. You will find getting rid of the car is often part of the "pleasure" of having a car.

Faro is a good base. Stay in the old town, great public transport and you are in the middle

Tavira is a good stay, say the old Tuna Factory, easy parking but you are out on the east wing

Portimao is nice, though again I'd stay in the old town, the coast is nice but not the real Portugal

I'd not stay at the western capes, pretty to visit but nothing to do there

Thanks for the great suggestions. I will do some research on Faro We will likely keep the car because I am picking it up in Lisbon and I had intended to drop it off there after our visit to southern Spain and Portugal.

A quick question, someone suggested Lagos might be a good place to stay for a week. How would it compare to Faro? Again, thanks for the help.

Lagos is fine. especially fine in the summer. I prefer my suggestions but you'll do ok there. Again try and stay in the old town not in some beach front monument to concrete.

If you are used to cars then fine. I find the beautiful tiles of the stations and the use of trains so much more attractive compared to the narrow streets and having to find a place to park the car a real pain. But I recognise for some a car is a burden and to others a route to freedom.

If you both are visiting during February it;s quite there, so best options are using metro station or train.

We stayed in a AirBnB overlooking the harbor. It is a modern apartment complex, which might have more efficient heating than a old house.

[url]https://flic.kr/p/2grLvSW

Except for Tavira, the pictures reflect day trips by car from Lagos.

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmENSCvb

thanks for the suggestion regarding a modern apartment. Nice pictures of your day trips! What a beautiful area, thanks for sharing,

I’d pick Lagos as your home base — it’s beautiful, relaxed, and well-located for day trips across the Algarve. Plenty of great food, scenery, and easy drives to places like Sagres, Portimão, and Albufeira without needing to change hotels.