Private boat tour · Ria Formosa
Boat tour in Cacela Velha: the inlet
The shortest tour and one of the most beautiful: 30 minutes among the clear-water lagoons and sandbanks of the Cacela Velha inlet, with the village on top of the cliff. It leaves from the Fábrica pier, where our beach boat is based. From Tavira there is a route of about 2 hours that comes all the way here.
- Duration30 min · 2 h
- DepartureFábrica Beach · Tavira
- From€11.25
Updated on · Titus Boat Tours, local skipper since 2010
The route on the map
Choose the route and press "Sail" to follow the boat around the lagoon. Tap a point on the map to see what it is.
Schematic map: real positions, approximate channels.
What you will see, stop by stop
Everything you see from the boat, with the story of each place. The skipper tells you the rest on board.
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Fábrica Beach, opposite Cacela VelhaPhoto: Titus Boat Tours 1Beach
Fábrica pier and beach
The small pier sits at the end of the road down from Cacela Velha, and this is where our beach boat leaves from. Across the channel lies the sand of Fábrica Beach, which you can only reach by boat. At low tide, sandbanks appear and shellfish gatherers dig for clams; at high tide, the water covers everything and turns emerald green.
The story
The name comes from the Cacela ceramics factory (Fábrica de Cerâmica de Cacela), founded in 1889 by the Companhia Algarviense. It worked from 1892 to 1930, making bricks, roof tiles and clay pipes. The factory is gone, but it gave its name to the place and to the beach.
Did you know? From the pier to the beach is just a few minutes by boat: we make this crossing every day, with tickets from €1.50.
Sources: O sítio do Algarve que deve o nome a uma fábrica de cerâmica (Postal do Algarve)
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2Village
Cacela Velha
From the boat you see the white village on top of the cliff: the fortress wall, the church tower and the whitewashed houses, with the lagoon at their feet. The cliff that holds the village is a fossil cliff, about a million years old. In the late afternoon the light turns the houses golden: it is the most photographed view on this side of the Ria Formosa.
The story
In 713 Cacela came under Muslim rule, and the castle dates from the 9th and 10th centuries. The poet Ibn Darraj al-Qastalli, "the one from Cacela", one of the great poets of al-Andalus, was born here in 958. Paio Peres Correia conquered Cacela in 1240 and King Dinis granted it a charter on 17 July 1283. The 1755 earthquake ruined the church, the Misericórdia and the town hall, and brought down the bastions of the fortress: the cannons ended up on the beach. It was the seat of a municipality until 1775.
Did you know? Excavations in 2007 confirmed that the Islamic medina of Qast'alla Daraj stood here. The village has been listed as a Property of Public Interest since 1996.
Sources: Cacela Velha (Wikipédia)
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Sandbanks and clear water at the Cacela inletPhoto: Titus Boat Tours 3Nature
The inlet and the lagoons
The inlet is the lagoon's door to the sea. At the right tide, the water turns crystal clear and shallow pools form between banks of white sand. The waves break on the outside; on the inside the water is calm and warm. Gulls, herons and small waders often rest on the sand.
The story
The Ria Formosa is a coastal lagoon about 60 km long, from the Ancão Peninsula to Manta Rota, sheltered from the sea by five barrier islands and two peninsulas. Cacela is the easternmost. The inlets move with storms and currents: in the autumn of 2010 a storm broke through the Cacela peninsula and opened a new link to the sea.
Did you know? The Ria Formosa has been a Natural Park since 1987 (a Nature Reserve since 1978) and is a wetland of international importance for birds under the Ramsar Convention.
Sources: Parque Natural da Ria Formosa (Wikipédia), Ria Formosa, introdução (CIMA, Universidade do Algarve)
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Tavira and the Gilão river at duskPhoto: Titus Boat Tours Town
Tavira and the Gilão river
We sail up the Gilão river to the town centre. From the water you see the old seven-arch bridge, the riverside gardens, the old Ribeira market, the castle and the church towers: there are more than thirty in town. Look out for the four-sided "scissor" roofs typical of Tavira.
The story
Tavira was born at the end of the Bronze Age and, in the 8th century BC, was one of the first Phoenician settlements in the west of the Iberian Peninsula. The Moors built the castle and the mosques. Paio Peres Correia conquered the town in 1242. The 1755 earthquake destroyed many of the buildings and the town was rebuilt. For centuries, fishing and tuna canning were Tavira's great wealth.
Did you know? The river changes its name at the bridge: upstream it is the Séqua, downstream the Gilão. It is called the "Roman bridge", but the one we see was rebuilt in 1667 on a much older crossing. Tavira represents Portugal in the Mediterranean Diet, UNESCO Intangible Heritage since 2013.
Sources: Tavira (Wikipedia), A ponte que muda o nome a um rio (Postal do Algarve)
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Heritage
The canneries
On the bank of the Gilão, on the way to Quatro Águas, you can still see the tall chimney of the old Tavirense cannery. The Balsense stood on the other side of the river. This is where the tuna from the traps was cooked and canned in olive oil.
The story
The Tavirense started production in mid-June 1917, a month after the Balsense, which opened on 9 May 1917. That year the Algarve had 184 canneries and more than 14,500 workers. Tavira also had the cannery of José Matos Parreira and that of Manuel e João Baptista Calça, which canned tuna and sardines in olive oil. The Balsense closed in 1971. Of the Tavirense, only the ruins and the chimney remain.
Did you know? In 1898 King Carlos studied tuna fishing in the Algarve aboard the yacht Amélia: the traps recorded the time and number of tuna coming in, and the king compared them with the temperature, clarity and currents of the sea. The study is online at the National Library of Portugal.
Sources: Tavirense, a antiga fábrica de conservas (Heritage Navigator), Tavira e a sua indústria (Folium, Universidade de Coimbra, 2024), D. Carlos, rei pioneiro no estudo da pesca do atum (Marinha)
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Heritage
Arraial Ferreira Neto (former tuna fishing village)
A row of white houses along the river, with a chapel, a school and a pier with a hand crane. It was the village of the tuna fishermen. Today it is the Vila Galé Albacora hotel, which keeps a small museum about tuna fishing and the life of the families who lived here.
The story
It was designed in 1943 by the engineer Sena Lino, after the sea destroyed the previous village at Medo das Cascas, on Tavira Island. It had houses for 150 families, a school, a chapel, a medical post and five cisterns of 150,000 litres. Catches began to fall in 1961; in the 1970/71 season a single tuna was caught. It has been a Property of Public Interest since 2002.
Did you know? How a tuna trap worked: out at sea, a long net steered the tuna into a maze of fixed nets, held to the bottom by hundreds of anchors. At the end, the boats lifted the last net chamber and the tuna were hauled aboard by hand and with hooks: this was the "copejo". In spring they caught the tuna "de direito", heading for the Mediterranean; in summer, the tuna "de revés", on the way back.
Sources: Arraial Ferreira Neto (Wikipédia), Percurso «Os segredos e encantos da Ria Formosa», Câmara Municipal de Tavira, A história da pesca do atum no Algarve (Barlavento)
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Pier
Quatro Águas
This is the pier for the ferry to Tavira Island. Here the Gilão river meets the lagoon and the channels to Cabanas and Santa Luzia cross, close to the inlet that opens to the sea. All around are salt pans, salt marsh, fish restaurants and fishing boats.
The story
Along the Quatro Águas road there were salt pans and, from 1917, the tuna canneries. Next to the pier stands the old tuna fishermen's village, the Arraial Ferreira Neto.
Did you know? In spring, the salt pans between Quatro Águas and Luz de Tavira fill with flamingos.
Sources: Percurso «Os segredos e encantos da Ria Formosa», Câmara Municipal de Tavira
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Fortress
Forte do Rato (Santo António)
Near the Tavira inlet, at the water's edge, stand the ruins of a small stone fort, with its gate and walls facing the channel. It was the first defence of the river mouth.
The story
It was built under King Sebastião (1568–1578) to protect the river mouth and the town from North African pirates. In 1573, when the king visited Tavira, it was still under construction. While it was being built, the river mouth moved east and the fort lost part of its purpose. In 1654 it was renamed Fort of Santo António. In 1792 it had nine men and two guns; in 1821, three men and no cannon. It was abandoned in 1840.
Did you know? It has been a Property of Public Interest since 1983. You can also see it from the Quatro Águas walking trail recommended by Tavira Town Council.
Sources: Fort Santo António, Tavira (Wikipedia), Percurso «Os segredos e encantos da Ria Formosa», Câmara Municipal de Tavira
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Beach
Deserta Beach (Forte da Barra)
At the western tip of Cabanas Island, right next to the Tavira inlet, lies a quiet stretch of sand you can only reach by boat. On one side the sea comes in through the inlet; on the other, the lagoon water is calm and clear.
The story
The Tavira inlet, man-made and opened in 1950, separates Tavira Island from Cabanas Island. Deserta Beach is on the Cabanas side, facing the inlet.
Did you know? Deserta Beach is one of the stops of our water taxi: we take you there and pick you up, day and night.
Sources: Ilha de Tavira (Wikipédia)
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Cabanas de Tavira seen from the Ria FormosaPhoto: Titus Boat Tours Village
Cabanas de Tavira and its island
The Cabanas waterfront has fishing boats, café terraces and a long promenade by the water. Opposite lies Cabanas Island, with a long beach and dunes: about 7 km of sand in all. At low tide, the mud of the salt marsh fills with small fiddler crabs: the male has one huge claw, which he waves to attract a female.
The story
Around 1734 a tuna trap, the Armação dos Mares de Tavira, was set up here. The fishermen built huts ("cabanas") on the shore to keep their nets and sleep during the fishing season: hence the name. The first recorded birth is from 1757. Cabanas became a parish in 1997 and a town in 2001. Tourism arrived in 1973, with the first resort, Pedras da Rainha.
Did you know? The documentary "Almadraba Atuneira" (1961) by António Campos was filmed here. The beaches of Cabanas have had a Blue Flag since 1989.
Sources: Cabanas de Tavira (Wikipedia)
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Fortress
Fort of São João da Barra
Just east of Cabanas, on a small hill above the lagoon, stands a star-shaped fortress with four bastions. Today it is a hotel, but the wall, the main gate and the stone plaques at the entrance are still there, facing the water.
The story
It was ordered in 1656, during the Portuguese Restoration War, by Nuno de Mendonça, military governor of the Algarve, to defend the coast of Tavira. It was enlarged between 1670 and 1672. The 1755 earthquake damaged it and it was restored in 1793, under Queen Maria I. In 1808 Captain Sebastião Martins Mestre took it back from the French with the help of the local people. It had a garrison until 1897 and was a customs guard post until 1905.
Did you know? Between 1857 and 1865 the first boys' school of the parish of Conceição worked here. In 1986 it was a setting for the film "À Flor do Mar" by João César Monteiro. It has been a Property of Public Interest since 1960.
Sources: Fort São João da Barra (Wikipedia)
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Beach
Tavira Island
A sand island about 11 km long, between the lagoon and the ocean. From the pier, a path crosses the dunes to the sea, with bars, restaurants and a campsite. From east to west it has four beaches: Ilha de Tavira, Terra Estreita, Barril and Homem Nu.
The story
The island used to be bigger. In 1926 the first Tavira inlet was opened, splitting the old "Great Tavira Island" in two; in 1941 a cyclone closed it and opened another. The present, man-made inlet was opened in 1950 and separates Tavira Island from Cabanas Island. Until 1943 there was a tuna fishing village on the island, at Medo das Cascas, destroyed by the sea.
Did you know? The beach gets a Blue Flag every year. When the last ferry has gone, our water taxi makes the crossing, day and night.
Sources: Ilha de Tavira (Wikipédia), Percurso «Os segredos e encantos da Ria Formosa», Câmara Municipal de Tavira
Choose your route
All with a boat just for you and a local skipper. Prices per person; each boat pays at least the price of 3 adults.
Departs from: Fábrica Beach
Cacela Velha and the sandbar
about 30 minTimes follow the tide
Clear-water lagoons, sandbanks and the view of the village of Cacela Velha. The perfect tour with children.Fábrica → Cacela Velha → sandbar → Fábrica
Adult €15Child (4–11) €5Babies free
Groups: 4+ adults −10% · 8+ adults −20% · 10+ adults −25%
Book this tourDeparts from: Tavira
Cacela Velha and Cabanas
about 2 hTimes follow the tide
From Tavira town centre to Fábrica Beach, opposite Cacela Velha, via Cabanas.Tavira → Cabanas → Fábrica Beach (Cacela Velha) → Quatro Águas and Tavira Island → Tavira
Adult €40Child (4–11) €15Babies free
Groups: 4+ adults −15% · 6+ adults −25% · 9+ adults −30% · 11+ adults −35%
Book this tourLagoon life
Birds, fish, shellfish and plants you can see in the channels, the salt pans, the salt marsh and the dunes. If you have binoculars, bring them.
Greater flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus
Filters the water of the salt pans with its head upside down. Its pink comes from what it eats.
Eurasian spoonbill Platalea leucorodia
Its spoon-shaped bill sweeps the bottom from side to side.
Western swamphen Porphyrio porphyrio
Blue-violet, with a red bill and legs. It is the symbol of the Natural Park.
Little tern Sternula albifrons
The smallest of the terns. The largest colony in Portugal is in the Ria Formosa.
Little egret Egretta garzetta
All white, with a black bill and yellow feet. Seen all year round in the channels.
Grey heron Ardea cinerea
The largest heron in the lagoon: it waits motionless and catches fish in one quick strike.
Purple heron Ardea purpurea
Darker and slimmer than the grey heron, it likes reed beds.
White stork Ciconia ciconia
Nests on poles and chimneys and looks for food in the salt marsh.
Pied avocet Recurvirostra avosetta
Its thin, upturned bill sweeps the water from side to side.
Black-winged stilt Himantopus himantopus
Has some of the longest legs of any bird, for its body size.
Black-tailed godwit Limosa limosa
Arrives in winter from northern Europe to feed in the lagoon mud.
Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus
Its long, curved bill probes the mud for crabs and worms.
Common ringed plover Charadrius hiaticula
Small and quick: it runs on the sand and stops suddenly to pick up food.
Ruddy turnstone Arenaria interpres
Turns over stones, shells and seaweed with its bill, looking for food.
Common shelduck Tadorna tadorna
A large white duck with a dark green head and a red bill.
Great cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo
Dives after fish and then dries its open wings in the sun.
Kingfisher Alcedo atthis
A blue flash low over the water, diving after small fish.
Short-eared owl Asio flammeus
Hunts in low flight over the salt pans and salt marsh, often by day.
Hoopoe Upupa epops
The fan-shaped crest and its "hoo-hoo-hoo" call are unmistakable.
Iberian magpie Cyanopica cooki
Moves in noisy flocks in the pine woods and gardens near the lagoon.
Long-snouted seahorse Hippocampus guttulatus
Holds on to the seagrass with its tail. The male is the one who gets pregnant.
Short-snouted seahorse Hippocampus hippocampus
The rarer of the two in the lagoon. About 150 bred in captivity were released in 2022.
Common cuttlefish Sepia officinalis
Changes colour in an instant to hide. In spring it comes close to the shore to lay its eggs.
Common octopus Octopus vulgaris
Three hearts, blue blood and eight arms full of suckers.
Gilthead seabream Sparus aurata
Has a golden band between its eyes. Young fish grow up in the lagoon.
European seabass Dicentrarchus labrax
Comes into the lagoon to hunt and to grow. One of the most sought-after fish.
White seabream Diplodus sargus
Recognisable by its dark stripes and the black spot near the tail.
Common sole Solea solea
A flatfish that lies on the bottom, half buried in the sand.
Grooved carpet shell clam Ruditapes decussatus
The star of the lagoon's shellfish beds: it lives buried in the sand and filters the water.
Oyster Crassostrea gigas
Farmed in bags and on trestles in the beds, it feeds by filtering the water.
Common cockle Cerastoderma edule
Lives a few centimetres deep in the sand and mud banks.
Razor clam Solen marginatus
A long shell like a razor. It digs itself in vertically, very fast.
Fiddler crab Afruca tangeri
The male has one huge claw, which he waves to attract a female.
Green crab Carcinus maenas
Lives in the channels and salt marsh and scuttles sideways at great speed.
Seagrass Zostera noltei
Forms meadows on the lagoon bed: shelter for seahorses and young fish.
Cymodocea Cymodocea nodosa
One of the three seagrasses of the Ria Formosa, with long, narrow leaves.
Small cordgrass Spartina maritima
Covers the lowest parts of the salt marsh, flooded by the tide every day.
Perennial glasswort Sarcocornia
A succulent, salty plant of the higher parts of the salt marsh.
Limoniastrum Limoniastrum monopetalum
A salt-tolerant shrub with pink flowers, near the salt pans and the dunes.
Sea holly Eryngium maritimum
Silvery blue and very prickly, it grows on the island dunes.
Sea daffodil Pancratium maritimum
A white, fragrant flower that opens on the dunes at the end of summer.
Marram grass Ammophila arenaria
Its long roots hold the sand and help build the dunes.
Thrift Armeria pungens
Tufts of pink flowers on the dunes in spring.
Cistanche Cistanche phelypaea
Has no green leaves: it lives off other plants and grows spikes of yellow flowers.
See the complete Ria Formosa guideAll the birds, fish, plants and places on one page
The Ria Formosa
A coastal lagoon about 60 km long, from the Ancão Peninsula to Manta Rota, sheltered from the sea by five barrier islands and two peninsulas. It is the most important wetland in the Algarve for birds and has been a Natural Park since 1987.
- 60 kmof coast, from Ancão to Manta Rota
- 18,400 haprotected area
- 2 maverage depth
- 1.5 to 3.5 mdifference between high and low tide
- 200+bird species
- 100+fish species
- ½of the shellfish farmed in Portugal
- ½of Portugal's sea salt
How it formed
About 18,000 years ago, at the end of the last Ice Age, the sea was 120 metres lower than today. As the sea rose, the sandbanks were pushed towards the land, and the barrier islands reached their present position about 7,000 years ago. They have never stopped since: the inlets open, close and move east, and the islands grow on one side and lose sand on the other. Six inlets link the lagoon to the sea and, twice a day, the tide fills and empties it: about 90% of the lagoon is uncovered at low tide.
The habitats
- Salt marsh Muddy land flooded by the tide: a nursery for fish, cuttlefish and crabs.
- Salt pans Salt pools where flamingos and waders gather.
- Seagrass meadows Three species of seagrass: home of the seahorses.
- Sand and mud flats At low tide, a feast for the birds and the area of the shellfish beds.
- Dunes Almost fifty plant species, from the islands to the peninsulas.
- Channels The paths of the water, used by boats and fish.
Timeline
- 18,000 years agoThe sea is 120 metres below today's level.
- 7,000 years agoThe barrier islands reach their present position.
- 8th century BCTavira, one of the first Phoenician settlements in the west.
- 1950The man-made Tavira inlet is opened.
- 1978The Ria Formosa becomes a Nature Reserve.
- 1987It becomes a Natural Park.
- 2010A storm breaks through the Cacela peninsula and opens a new inlet.
- 2020Refuge areas are created for the seahorses.
On board, we look after the lagoon We watch the birds from a distance and slowly, without flushing them; we do not feed the animals; we leave no litter; and from the beach we take only photos.
Sources: Parque Natural da Ria Formosa: caracterização (ICNF), Ria Formosa, introdução (CIMA, Universidade do Algarve), Marés e circulação na Ria Formosa (LNEC), Parque Natural da Ria Formosa (Infopédia), Guia de boas práticas na Ria Formosa (CIMA, Universidade do Algarve), Os cavalos-marinhos da Ria Formosa vão ter refúgios (Postal do Algarve, 2019)
How it works
- Book online: choose the route, day, time and number of people. Booking is free.
- Pay when you board: cash, card or MB WAY.
- Be at the pier 10 minutes before departure. Water and snacks on board are on us.
- On tide-dependent routes, the booking page only shows the times when the boat can sail.
- Online booking up to 2 hours before departure. For today, call +351 965 890 566.
On-board extras (optional): order them when you book and pay with the tour.
- Boiled shrimp€18 / portion
- White wine€14 / bottle
- Red wine€14 / bottle
- Sparkling wine€18 / bottle
- Mini beers€7 / pack of 4
- Cured ham and cheese€18 / board
Old photos and further reading
To see old photos and learn more about tuna fishing and the lagoon:
- "A Pesca do Atum no Algarve em 1898", King Carlos's study of tuna fishing, digitised by the National Library of Portugal
- Tuna fishing museum at the old Arraial Ferreira Neto (Quatro Águas)
- Free photos of the Ria Formosa on Wikimedia Commons
The photos are by Titus Boat Tours and from Wikimedia Commons (with the author and licence on each one). The facts come from the sources listed at each stop.
Frequently asked questions
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- Cabanas tourThe village and island of Cabanas, about 1h30
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- Group boat tourShared boat, about 3 hours, €30 per adult.
- Private boat with skipperThe boat just for you, on the route you choose.
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