Algar de Benagil

The Algar de Benagil is a vaulted sea cave in the golden limestone cliffs of the Algarve, and its fame rests on a single feature: a round opening in the roof through which sunlight falls onto a small sandy beach hidden inside. The beam lights up the domed chamber, its rock walls and the clear water at its mouth. The scene has become one of the best-known natural images of Portugal.

The word algar describes a natural cavity that develops mainly vertically, and such features are especially common along the western Algarve coast, with their greatest concentration around Caramujeira in the municipality of Lagoa, just next to Benagil. They form in limestone, where rainwater, made slightly acidic by dissolved carbon dioxide, gradually eats into the rock. At Benagil this slow dissolution from above combined with the work of the Atlantic from the side: of the many sea caves between Lagos and Albufeira, this is the one where erosion from both directions has met, opening the skylight above a cavern hollowed by the waves.

The cave takes its name from Benagil, a hamlet of only a few dozen inhabitants in the parish of Lagoa and Carvoeiro, which lived from sea fishing until late in the 20th century and has since turned towards tourism around its small beach, Praia de Benagil. The cave opens in the cliffs a short distance east of the beach. Further along the same stretch of coast lies Praia da Marinha, an internationally famous beach framed by orange limestone cliffs.

Getting there

Benagil is on the coast of the municipality of Lagoa, about 12 km from Portimão. The small Portimão Airport (PRM) is about 16 km away; the nearest airport with regular international flights is Faro Airport (FAO), about 42 km away in a straight line. The cave itself is reached from the sea.