The Ultimate Guide to Visiting Benagil Cave, Portugal in 2020

The highlight of my recent trip to Portugal was without a doubt my visit to the stunning Benagil Cave. It was a truly magical experience and one that I’d recommend to anyone visiting the Algarve. So today I’ve put together an ultimate guide to visiting Benagil Cave, with absolutely everything you need to know to have the perfect time! From when to visit, to how to get there, to what to bring – I’m giving you all the top tips I have for this beautiful Algarve spot!

What is it?

The Benagil Cave, or Gruta de Benagil as it’s known by the locals, is a large sea cave in the southernmost region of Portugal – the Algarve. The expansive dome hosts a hidden sandy beach, where you’ll find softly lapping waves and fossilised sea creatures. It’s often cited as one of the best sea caves in the world and is the no.1 thing to do when visiting the Algarve. If you’re hoping to explore this beautiful natural wonder, read on to find everything you need to know for the perfect trip!

Is it Worth Visiting?

Absolutely! Visiting the Benagil Cave was the highlight of my trip and I can’t recommend it highly enough. It’s truly breathtaking and definitely worth the visit. Often when visiting a tourist site, I find myself thinking, whilst I’m glad I did, I probably wouldn’t bother a second time. This wasn’t the case at all here! I would happily come back to Benagil Cave time and time again – it really is that special!

Where Is It?

Situated by Benagil Beach, the major closest town to the cave is Lagoa. The village of Benagil is actually very small, with only one main road and a handful of cafes and eateries, so I wouldn’t recommend staying in the area. Instead pick one of the bigger towns nearby and make the trip over to Benagil for the day. Lagoa is only a 10-15 minute drive away, whilst the popular town of Lagos is about 35 minutes. I stayed in the latter during my time in the Algarve and used Uber to get to and from Benagil Beach, where the tours depart.

How To Get There

There’s no way of entering the cave by land. It’s accessible only by sea, so you’ll have to make your way to Benagil Beach and either join a tour group there or go it alone! There are 4 ways of getting to the cave (via swimming, kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding, or boat) but more on that later!

When to Visit

Just like all major tourist attractions, Benagil is busiest during the peak summer season (July-August). It gets incredibly busy in the caves during these months and any photos you take will certainly feature lots of other tourists! That being said, it’s still certainly worth visiting and is beautiful no matter how busy! If you’re able to visit in the shoulder-season (May-June or September-October) however, I’d highly recommend it, as you’re likely to have the cave more to yourself!

Another way to avoid the crowds is to carefully plan the time you visit. Those who visit earlier in the morning are likely to find the cave quieter. Whereas those seeing it at midday are more likely to experience crowds.

Want to know more about the best time to visit the Algarve? Check out this post!

Why You Shouldn’t Take a Boat Tour

I was surprised to see a number of blogposts recommend their readers take a boat tour to visit the Benagil Cave. Here’s why I’d suggest you don’t!

Visitors arriving by boat are prohibited from stepping foot on the land within the cave, which is a massive shame for 3 reasons. Firstly, it’s difficult to fully appreciate the vastness and beauty of the place without standing within it. If you’re travelling (and paying) to see it, you might as well really experience it, right? Secondly, you’ll really struggle to get a good photo from the boat, so if you’re an avid photographer or instagram obsessive, it’s likely not the best option for you. And last but not least, it’s a whole lot less fun than some of the other options available!

The boats also only tend to stay at the cave for a few minutes, as a queue forms to get a glimpse. It’s much more pleasant to spend a little longer there and really take it all in.

What You Should Do Instead

I’d definitely recommend booking onto either a kayaking or stand up paddle boarding tour. Unlike the boat tours, both of these methods allow you to park up in the cave and have a little explore. I went for the latter option and loved it! It was a super fun way to explore the area and really appealed to my more adventurous side – I wanted to be in the action, not sitting in a boat! There were also plenty of kayak groups however, who’s experience I’m sure was quite similar to my own. I’d definitely recommend booking any tours in advance to avoid disappointment as they’re highly popular!

I personally used BlueXperiences and I couldn’t recommend them highly enough. Our guide Bruno was friendly, knowledgeable, and very conscious of the group’s safety. Don’t worry too much if you’ve never tried stand-up paddle boarding before – I hadn’t either! In fact, I spent much of my time kneeling on the board, as did most of my group. There’s no pressure to be fantastic, just to be willing to get out there and have fun!

I also really appreciated how much time we were given inside the cave to walk around and take photographs on our own. The tour guide does take photos throughout the trip however, which you’ll get for free! So if you’d prefer to just spend your time living in the moment rather than behind a camera lens, you’ll still have something to remember the tour by!

Can You Go it Alone?

You absolutely can! Upon arriving to the cave, I was surprised by just how close it is to Benagil Beach – it’s literally just around the corner! You could either kayak, stand-up paddle board, or swim there (although the last option isn’t recommended as the sea can be choppy and dangerous). I’d only really recommend going it alone if you feel highly competent in either kayaking or paddle boarding to avoid getting into any scrapes. If you already have a lot of experience with either of these options however, you shouldn’t find it too difficult and can simply hire the equipment at the beach.