Praia da rocha beach in the Algarve is a firm Portugal beach favourite with both tourists and locals. Often when you see photographs of Portuguese beaches Praia da rocha in Portimao will always get a mention.
We also love the location of praia da rocha and recommend you have it on your to do list when you visit the Algarve.
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Praia Da Rocha
If you have not heard of praia da rocha before, then it is a beautiful beach with great facilities in the Portimao region of The Algarve in Southern Portugal.
It is very close to praia da rocha marina and you can see the marina from the beach in the distance and vice versa.
Because it’s one of the more popular praias I tend to avoid it in July and August because it can be crazy busy.
Its more my out of season beach and we often would go in June and September when less crowded, or our favourite time for the beach was in November when you still got some warmer days.
If you are looking for the Algarve beach that has it all, then read on.
Entering Praia Da Rocha Beach
Unlike a day trip to Alvor Beach which is out of the way and has its own parking area, you will not have the same look when it comes to praia da rocha.
That is because praia da rocha beach is accessed from a promenade and then you have a lot of steps or a hill down, depending on how you prefer to access the beach.
There is some parking on the hill down to the beach, but we have NEVER got a parking space on here in high season just during the winter months. Your PLAN B is the side streets behind the main strip of restaurants and bars. Or the road just before you get to the front of praia da rocha.
We have used both and prefer the street that is one row back from the main promenade and this is also very useful for on your way back if visiting a restaurant whilst you are there.
Then once parked you can make your way onto the beach and choose your area to sit for the day and have some Portuguese beach fun.
How Safe Is Praia Da Rocha?
I have been to praia da rocha beach, praia da rocha town and the marina, more times than I can remember, and I have ALWAYS FELT SAFE. Though of course, we are cautious naturally and don’t leave things out on sunbeds or attract the attention of thieves.
But I have never felt that safe on the strip at Albufeira in comparison and we only ever went there once and hated it.
We also find that Albufeira, is one of those places where you have people in the street wanting you to come in their bar, or their restaurants, yet you are not bothered in praia da rocha.
Probably also because praia da rocha because has a lot of Portuguese locals and is not just made up of tourists.
Praia Da Rocha Restaurants On The Beach
Just like the beautiful praia da alvor, there are lots of restaurants dotted on the broadwalk that you can eat at whilst on the beach.
I do find them expensive though and just buy drinks and ice cream from them.
But because Praia Da Rocha is surrounded by its town and its promenade you do have plenty of choice and we recommend venturing a little further.
Our all time favourite place is a restaurant called Dolce Vita and its almost across the road from where the casino hotel is.
But go just passed it to the other entrance and they have an all you can eat pizza buffet. They have a salad bar, another buffet area with lots of delicious Italian food and then they bring slices of pizza to your dinner table as you wait.
Those homemade pizzas are out of this world AMAZING and then you could eat here for lunch and then burn some calories with a walk on the beach afterwards. We never ate next door at their restaurant because there was just so much more choices at the buffet and the buffet was much cheaper.
What Is Praia Da Rocha Known For?
Praia da rocha Algarve is known for being the everything. Having everything you could possibly want for a beach and its surroundings.
You have the gorgeous beach itself that is outstanding and also has many water sports you can do such as the banana boats and the pedalos or you can just lay all day on the beach.
Then you have the promenade with its bars and restaurants and gift shops and then you have the marina as the backdrop with its beautiful boats and yachts.
Does Praia Da Rocha Beach Have Sunbeds?
Yes, praia da rocha beach does have sunbeds, and you can hire them for your stay on the beach. Though note, we often don’t hire the sunbeds like we do at Alvor beach.
This is because praia da rocha is much busier and we get a better position on the sand with our own little umbrella up and can then be closer to the waters edge.
Praia Da Rocha Playground
There is also a really good playground for the kids at this beach. Its on the broadwalk and easy to access on your way down to the beach or on the way back up.
Though its on the sand and the sand gets very hot in the summer months so do send your kids to play in here with the shoes on, or with water shoes.
We will usually take a trip to the playground on our way home, after we have done the beach and then me & Dom can sit on the side and watch them have a good time.
Things To Do In Praia Da Rocha?
Our itinerary for a day out usually includes a mix of the beach, lunch, watersports and the playground.
We will get to praia da rocha for about 9.30am as it is about a 35 minute drive from where we lived. Then fingers crossed we can get parking down one of the side streets and then add the sun guard to the car, so we won’t melt when we get back to the car!
Then we would walk down to the beach, choose our spot and get out our towels, umbrellas etc and then upset Sofia by telling her she needed suntan cream on before she plays in the sand! That bit was always the hardest part of the day lol.
We would then watch the kids build sandcastles, play in the sea and praia da rocha was always very calm so its very rare that a red flag was ever up. Compare this to when we visited Cancun in Mexico and the red flag was up every day!
We lunch time hit and we were all starving hungry, it would either be a picnic that we had brought to the beach with us, or we would grab anything of value and head to our favourite Italian buffet for an hour or so.
Then back to the beach for some more fun, before packing our things and doing the playground on the way back to the car.
That praia da rocha things to do list was very much for the warmer months and was typical for a trip to the beach in June.
In the winter months it wasn’t a sunbath on the beach all day, it was more a beach walk with a football kind of day.
On those days, we would arrive about 11am visit praia da rocha marina first as it was so beautiful and glance at the boats in the distance.
Then do lunch at the Italian buffet, followed by a walk on the promenade, and then down to the beach for a walk and to kick about a ball with Jorge and Sofia and Kyle.
This would then be followed by the playground where Kyle would be on pushing duty on the swings.
Then back on the promenade with an ice cream, before heading home.
Top Tips For Your Portugal Beach Day!
The biggest and most important thing is to stay beach safe. You are not on a hotel beach and there are a lot of people coming on the beach trying to sell you things.
Avoid the people selling the sunglasses and the other holiday stuff as it is cheap rubbish, and they are likely to see you as tourists and want to charge you a lot MORE compared to what the items are worth.
Though I would recommend heading over to where they do the watersports as there are plenty to choose from and it can make your day out a lot more fun.
Kyle has done the banana boat from here and we have all hired pedalos and gone out into the water in them many, many times.
Praia Da Rocha Portugal Visitor Information
- Getting to Praia Da Rocha beach. It is so easy to get to the beach. Simply follow the signs for Portimao and then when you are approaching the town, follow the signs for the praia.
- Does Praia Da Rocha beach have toilets? Yes, it does. Though position yourself on the beach near to the toilets to make it easy for going to and from the beach to the toilets.
- Do the beaches in Praia Da Rocha have food available? Yes, there is several restaurants by the beach as well as a guy on the beach selling doughnuts and water.
- Are there sunbeds on the beach? Yes, there are sunbeds by the beach. But if you want a front row sunbed in high season we recommend arriving before 9.30am.
- Does Praia Da Rocha have parking? There is no specific parking for the beach. But there are a few streets off the main promenade where you can park instead.
Pin Praia Da Rocha Review For Later!
Well, that’s a wrap, do you have any questions then do ask below and if you want to refer back, to this later for planning your praia da rocha beach day visit then don’t forget to pin it to your travel board or days out board on Pinterest.
