Faro is the biggest city of the Algarve (about 44,100 inhabitants), its capital and a community in the same-named county. 

Coordinates: 37° 1′ N, 7° 56′ W

Faro is well signposted on the N125, on the A22 as well as in many places in the Algarve. 

Already the Phoenicians and the Greeks settled in today’s urban area and used the rich fisheries in front of the coast. The Romans called the fortified place Ossonoba and traded with wine, olives and meat products. In 418 p. Chr. n. the Visigoths conquered the town and named it Santa Maria. Starting from the year 713 today’s approximately area of Faro was reined by the Moors and obtained the name Hárune. King Afonso III. and the crusaders reclaimed the town from the Moors in the year 1249. In the 15th century the first books of Portugal were printed in the jewish community of Faro. In the year 1577 the seat of the bishop was transferred from Silves to Faro. After the heavy earthquake of 1755 the seat of the government was translated from Lagos to Faro, which had been less destroyed. 


Today, Faro is a modern administrative, shopping and university town with a large pedestrian street that starts just north of the marina. Very many restaurants, snack bars, bistros and cafes offer everywhere the opportunity for refreshment.

Narrow streets and spacious places alternate. Many restaurant services have seats in the alleys or in the sometimes spacious backyards


In the southern part of the city you can see and hear the arriving and departing planes of the nearby airport.


The Obelisco A Ferreira D’Almeida (between pedestrian area and marina) was built in 1920 and is 20 meters high. It was built in honor of Jose Bento Ferreira de Almeida (1847-1902), who was captain of the navy as well as governor (1878-1880) of Mocamedes (southern Angola) and in 1895 Minister of the Navy. Almeida wanted to be one of the first politicians to return the colonies their (at least partial) independence. He was also known and feared for his temperament. Thus, it happened that on May 7, 1887, he hit the then Minister of the Navy and was therefore put in prison for four months.


University 

The university was founded in 1979. In the mid-1980s, the Polytechnic Institute Faro (Instituto Politécnico de Faro) was incorporated. However, it has maintained its complete autonomy to this day. About 10,000 students are enrolled.

The University of  the Algarve has two main sites in Faro.  

Campus da Penna

Address: Campus da Penha · 8000-139 Faro

Coordinates: 37°01’42.3″N 7°55’23.7″W

Courses of studies:

  • Hotelaria e Turismo (Hotel Business and Tourism)
  • Medicina (Medicine)
  • Educação (Education)
  • Tecnologia (Sciences)
  • Tecnologia de Informática (Information Technology)

 

Address: Rua dos Malmequeres 101 · 8005-139 Faro

Coordinates: 37°02’35.4″N 7°58’15.7″W

Courses of studies: 

  • Mar e Ambiente (Ocean and Environmental Sciences)
  • Humanas e Sociais (Human and Social Sciences)
  • Economia (Economic Sciences)
  • Recursos Naturais (Environmental Protection)

The university is well known internationally for its basic courses in marine biology, fisheries and oceanography.