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1.3 mi from the city centre · Loulé · Portugal
The Moorish old town of Loulé
Loulé is known for its Moorish old town, the medina of Al-Ulya, where the alcázar, bathhouse and mosque minaret still shape the streets. Read on for a neo-Moorish market from 1908, a long trade in dried figs with northern Europe and the Roman ruins of Cerro da Vila.
1 brewery · 1 venue
Loulé is a city in the Algarve, seat of a municipality whose story reaches back more than 30,000 years, to Upper Palaeolithic stone tools found in Almancil and Salir. Under the Almoravids the Muslim medina of Al-Ulya was founded here, with a labyrinth of narrow streets and courtyard houses inside its walls. Its main buildings still shape the old town: the alcázar now houses the municipal museum, the bathhouse survives as the Islamic Baths museum space, and the main mosque and its minaret became the Church of São Clemente. King Afonso III took the castle in 1249 and granted a charter in 1266.
After the conquest, Christians, Jews and Muslims took an active part side by side in the town's political and economic life, as the municipal council minutes show; classified as a National Treasure, the oldest of them dates from 1384. From at least the 14th century, dried figs and raisins from Loulé reached the markets of northern Europe, including Flanders. The 1755 earthquake shook the town and its heritage, and the tsunami that followed claimed lives on the beach at Quarteira.
On 27 June 1908 the Municipal Market was inaugurated beside the town hall, a neo-Moorish design by the architect Mota Gomes that was only fully completed in the early 21st century. After 1974 tourism became the engine of the local economy, and Loulé was raised to city status on 1 February 1988. Beyond the town, the Roman ruins of Cerro da Vila, once a maritime settlement with a port, baths and a mausoleum, can still be visited.
Craft beer is a rare find in Loulé, so it is worth keeping an eye out for something local between the old Moorish streets and the market.
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Frequently asked questions
Much of the Almoravid medina of Al-Ulya still shapes the old town of Loulé, with narrow streets and courtyard houses. The alcázar now houses the municipal museum, the bathhouse survives as the Islamic Baths museum space, and the main mosque and its minaret became the Church of São Clemente.
The Municipal Market is a neo-Moorish building by the architect Mota Gomes, inaugurated on 27 June 1908 beside the town hall of Loulé but only fully completed in the early 21st century. It stands in a town raised to city status on 1 February 1988, where tourism has driven the economy since 1974.
Yes, the Roman ruins of Cerro da Vila, outside the town, can still be visited. It was once a maritime settlement with a port, baths and a mausoleum, adding a Roman chapter to a municipality whose story reaches back more than 30,000 years to Palaeolithic stone tools found at Almancil and Salir.
From at least the 14th century, dried figs and raisins from Loulé reached the markets of northern Europe, including Flanders. Council minutes, the oldest dating from 1384 and classified as a National Treasure, show Christians, Jews and Muslims taking part side by side in the town's economic and political life.