ESSENTIAL INFORMATION
Algarve is a year round destination. Water temperature is almost the same all year long. Wear a 3/2 or 4/3 in the winter. Usually no booties needed.
West facing coast + south facing coast make it very versatile regarding wind orientation. Also, on a bigger swell, the south coast offers smaller waves unless you get a south swell.
Some freestyle flat water spots on the south coast too.
There are plenty of bed and breakfasts, very affordable as long as you go off season (outside of July / August). There are plenty of touristic sites to discover and coast to explore. If the wind is not there, you always can find a SUP spot and if it is flat and sunny, there are many areas where you can do SUP touring to discover the beauty of the coast. If camping, mosquitoes are ready for you right after sunset but they usually calm down at night.
The spot of Carapateira is one of the best for windsurfing, but you might find other jewels depending on the wind’s orientation. On westerly winds head to the south coast. If south or north wind, you might find nice side offshore spots on the west coast.
Rain can occur but as Algarve is a point, the weather can change very fast and you can have rain on the west coast while fully sunny on the south…and vice versa 🙂
Most of the time Windguru is spot on but better to talk with the locals for specific advice on conditions 🙂