Loulé, Alte and the hills behind Faro: which inland trip is worth it
Updated October 18, 2026 · 6 min read
Most of what Faro sells is on the water. The hills behind it are quieter, and several trips with a lot of reviews are there. The most reviewed of them, a rock-salt mine under Loulé, has more reviews than the Ria Formosa sunset cruises. This is a guide to the inland half of a stay in Faro: what each trip is, what it costs, and where the catch is.
Loulé: a salt mine and a winery
The Loulé rock-salt mine tour is the one with the numbers: €25 for two hours, 4.8 stars from 1,803 reviews. You go down 230 metres in the mine’s old lift, walk an underground route with a helmet, torch and reflective vest, and learn how rock salt was mined and why it mattered to the local economy. Guides speak German, English, Portuguese and French. The temperature stays at 23 to 24 degrees all year, so it is a good wet-weather plan. The operator says the tour is not recommended if you are uncomfortable in dark or closed spaces, and lists the tour as not suitable for children under 6. A reviewer who liked it still said that more warning about the small lift would help anyone prone to claustrophobia.
The Quinta da Tôr winery tour costs €18 for two hours (4.7 stars, 826 reviews). You get a 30-minute walk around the family-run winery and then the tasting: four wines with bread and home-made olive oil. You can choose between an intermediate and a premium tasting. The tour is offered in English only.
The cork factory at São Brás de Alportel
The cork factory tour is the shortest outing here: 50 minutes with an audio guide, €17.50 (4.5 stars, 745 reviews). You see how cork is selected, prepared and packed, then pass through a shop that sells cork-fabric accessories. The operator lists it as wheelchair accessible. Its booking page also warns that the road beside the factory is under construction and suggests arriving from the south on the M517.
Alte, the waterfall and the market in one go
If you want the villages rather than a single stop, there is one tour that combines them. The Loulé, Alte and Queda do Vigário tour leaves from the marina in Olhão, not from Faro, and takes 4.5 hours for €45. The group is limited to eight, and the stops are the cork factory shop, Loulé market and old town, the springs at Fonte Grande with a tasting of regional products, free time in the village of Alte, and the waterfall at Queda do Vigário. It has 5 stars, but from 11 reviews only, so treat the rating as a good sign and nothing more.
It has limits. According to the operator, it is not suitable for children under 5, wheelchair users, anyone under 120 cm or anyone over 130 kg. And there is a Saturday catch: the cork factory shop is closed on Saturdays, while Loulé’s market runs in the morning.
Loulé market, if that is all you want
Loulé’s Saturday market is the busiest of the week. A traditional farmers’ market fills the covered market and the central streets in the morning, and a Roma market sets up on the edge of town. The Loulé market half-day trip is a four-hour coach outing with hotel pickup from selected areas of the Algarve, free time for the market and the castle with its museum, and a price of €34 (4.5 stars, 25 reviews). Check on the booking page whether your hotel in Faro is a pickup area, and which day it runs.
Side by side
| Tour | Duration | Price per person | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Loulé rock-salt mine | 2 hours | €25 | 4.8 (1,803) |
| Quinta da Tôr winery | 2 hours | €18 | 4.7 (826) |
| Cork factory | 50 minutes | €17.50 | 4.5 (745) |
| Loulé, Alte and waterfall | 4.5 hours | €45 | 5.0 (11) |
| Loulé market half day | 4 hours | €34 | 4.5 (25) |
Do you need a car?
For the mine, the winery and the cork factory, the booking pages give you a meeting point and expect you to get there yourself. Alte and the springs are the hard ones: the only tour we found that reaches them is the small-group van trip from Olhão. If you would rather go on your own, you can compare car hire for Faro. Look up the opening days of anything you plan to see on your own before you set off.
Which trip
For most people the salt mine is the answer: it is the most reviewed of these, it works in any weather and there is nothing like it on the coast. Add the winery if you want a slower afternoon. Choose the Olhão tour if you want to see Alte without driving and do not mind that the reviews are few. For something on the water instead, see the Ria Formosa boat trips, and for everything else, things to do in Faro.
