Surfer Paradise Aljezur

Located some thirty kilometres north of Lagos and about an hour and fifteen minutes' drive from Faro Airport, the charming town of Aljezur lies within a rural idyll of fields and woodland. Praia de Monte Clérigo, the nearest beach, is just 10 kilometres away, but it means that property and plots of land cost slightly less here than at the coast. If you're hoping to buy an Algarve holiday home with excellent surfing nearby, Aljezur is a great place to start looking.

Smaller plots with two-bedroom resale properties just outside of Aljezur can be as little as 175,000 euros, while a plot of land on which to build your own holiday home starts at around 100,000 euros.

The great attraction that brings visitors to this part of the Algarve are the white sandy beaches and great surfing conditions. Flanking the Western Atlantic coast, the Parque Natural da Costa Vicentina offers a refuge to many indigenous species found nowhere else. The Parque spans more than 100 kilometres, starting at Porto Covo in the Alentejo and ending in Burgau in the Algarve. It's a paradise for birds, among them the White Stork. It's also a fantastic place to practice your surfing skills, as the Parque boasts many deserted beaches.

Aljezur itself is a charming place, with an Old Town on one side of the river and a new town on the other. Cobbled streets and white-washed houses, quiet plazas and moderate nightlife make this a wonderful retreat.

There are several surf schools offering tuition for beginners and more advanced surfers. If you are thinking of buying a commercial property that will offer surfers a first glimpse of this up-and-coming area along the Western Atlantic coast, Aljezur or the surrounding villages could be a good place to open a surfers hostel or surf lodge.