Algarve in February 2024

Curious, which advisory are you looking at for Portugal 3/5?

Edit: I found it
https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/ ( Australia)

While there have been no recent terrorist attacks in Portugal, they can still happen.

The national terrorism alert for Portugal has been raised from 'moderate' to 'significant' (level 3 out of 5) as a precaution due to the situation in the Middle East and several security incidents in other European countries.

So if I read this correctly, it was raised but not due to anything that is happening in Portugal, but because of incidents in other European countries. I'm going to Spain in February and right now I don't plan on canceling. And I think Portugal is probably safer than Spain.

The US still has Portugal as a level 1 and just a general worldwide warning for all countries due to the conflict.

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/portugal-travel-advisory.html

The weather can be pretty awful in February but, there is also a chance of nice weather with lovely clear skies. No way to predict. Stay in a larger town as some of the small ones pretty much close down at that time of the year.

I also feel more safe in Portugal than many other countries as Portugal stays a bit off the radar. But, only you can make that decision regarding travel.

Thanks to both of you. I guess since Covid and being a few years older travelling since then, I am feeling more vulnerable. Things are a bit more complicated.
We would just be an addon to this already planned trip so do not even know the details.

side question…..is it true that many rentals, hotels dont have gas heating? That it is by air con vents?

Also..Spain…they will be in Tarifa first…how is the weather there Jan to Feb? How is Tarifa for a two week base?

If you are from the USA, the heating is very different - for those places that have heating. A lot of places do not. Older places that have heat will likely be radiator type in each room. Mini splits are popular in newer places. I’ve never seen forced air heat through vents like in the States. A lot will just have portable heaters that work with varying amounts of success.
Tavira is a nice area but at the eastern end of the Algarve nearer Spain. For a more central town, I like Lagos.

I would recommend Algarve in February. We may have gotten lucky in terms of weather, but it was perfect for us. We spent a lot of time exploring and hanging out on the beaches (there are so many, and so varied). Lagos, where we stayed, was perfectly situated for day trips. The town has a relaxed and down-to-earth vibe. It was very quiet at the beginning of February (which we loved), and as the month went on, it got busier and more lively. If you have a car, there are endless towns to explore. Sagres is great for watching sunsets and surfers. Seville is less than 3 hours away, and you gain an hour coming back ;) We spent an unforgettable weekend in Seville. I wrote a whole travel blog about our trip that you can check out www.mytravelshoes.com. Enjoy!

We were in the Algarve mid/late February in 2020 for a week. The weather was nice, mostly sunny. We did get time sitting on the beach in a couple spots, were able to do about all we wanted, crowds were minimal (though this was about 3-4 weeks before everything shut down due to covid). We might have had rain one day, and the wind did pick up from time to time. There is also a nice Carnival celebration in Loule, a parade with floats, many politically satirical.

We visited Tavira, nice town, nice enough that we will be spending 3 nights there in April on our way to Spain. It seemed to have a bit more charm than some of the other towns, though maybe a bit sedate in February.

thanks everyone. I kind of jumped the gun to asking about Tarifa, Spain but it now looks like we will be heading to the Algarve with them mid February for about ten days max. since she is the planner and is making the decisions she has chosen Carvoeira(?) as a base but has not chosen lodging. If she happens to ask me for my opinion feel free to send along your recommendations. We would want something 4 or 5 star whether it be hotel or a facility with two or three bedrooms(with a good heating system :-)) If i were planning I would not choose February but my husband wants to spend time with his brother and we have not flown anywhere since Covid started. I have done a lot of googling but subjectivity is so very helpful.