Last day of 2024, last day of our self titled ‘Trans-Algarvian Bike Expedition, last day in Portugal and last chance for a swim in the sea this year!

It turns out, that Faro has quite a lot of beach, very close to the city. For €3.90 a ferry took us out to one of the island beaches, where we spent the day before our evening flight.

It’s worth it just for the scenic half hour journey.

But getting deposited on a fairly deserted, enormous beach of golden sands was even better!

A great place to while away a few hours while waiting for a flight.

On arrival, a thin layer of cloud dropped the temperatures and for a while we thought that it might not be a swim day after all, but just in time, the warmth came back and we jumped straight in!

The ferry returned at 16:10 and got us back to the city in time to get dinner. We’d left our gear at the hotel, so after a huge feed, we walked back, got our bags and moments later a taxi arrived to take us the 15 mins out of town to the airport.

It all felt like a very smooth operation!

We’re on the last flight out of Portugal tonight and should be back in the UK just before midnight! A suitably whacky way to see in the new year after a fantastic adventure….