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A campsite which is “open to all” and in which “turnover will be guaranteed”. These are two of the characteristics of the new campsite project in Praia de Faro.
The renovations, estimated at a steep cost of 430,000 euros, consists of the reconstruction of the space where the Praia de Faro campsite has operated for decades, and which in recent years was being managed and occupied exclusively by the members of the Association of Users and Friends of the Faro Beach Campsite (AUAPCPF).
The project includes the creation of 200 tent lots and 21 motorhome lots, as well as the addition of green spaces to create shaded areas. “Most are tents, because the goal is for people to be there for a few weeks at most. We don’t want it to be occupied by fixed structures,” explained Rogério Bacalhau, mayor of Faro.
The choice to create many tent lots was aimed at ensuring turnover and accessibility for all. “It is relatively affordable to buy a tent. Buying a campervan to use two weeks a year is not for anyone”, explained the mayor.
The new campsite will also have “all the amenities for those who want to spend a few weeks there”, namely “a medical station, a reception, a laundry room, a playground, a multipurpose space, toilets and showers”.
This is excellent news, and comes at a time when many caravan owners in the Algarve are begging for more paid campsite locations. Many deem more of the facilities to be instrumental in tackling the issue of “wild camping” in the region, which authorities targeted with fines only a few weeks ago.
The works were set to start tomorrow, October 1st, but it seems that this will not happen, given that the current occupants, who about a year ago were ordered to be evicted by the court, are attempting to win over the Administrative Court in Loulé, who have suspended the Council from taking possession of the space.
In September 2018, the Faro City Council decided to terminate its lending agreement with the AUAPCPF to move forward with the renovation of the space, which had long since lost its status as a campsite due to lack of decent conditions.
The users were given a year to leave the site, a deadline well above that required by the contract and the law, until September 15th, 2019. Still, the Faro municipality granted another 15 days after that date to the clingy space users, after they complained that they would not be able to leave the site “before the end of 2020”.