A month in the Algarve

A month in a registered Alojamento Local is still an AL stay, and the tourist tax stops at a cap. In Faro, a guest who lives in the hotel or AL pays for 7 nights as long as the stay is not interrupted: EUR 14 from March to October and EUR 7 from November to February. Lagoa and Portimão also cap at 7 nights, so a month costs EUR 14 or EUR 7 per taxable guest by season, and Loulé caps at 5 nights, EUR 10 or EUR 5. Albufeira charges EUR 14 for a month between April and October and nothing from November to March.

A lease is the other route. Under the Civil Code a fixed-term residential lease runs at least a year, but that minimum does not apply to contracts for special transitory purposes such as work, study or tourism, as long as the purpose is written into the contract. Only one transitory lease for tourist purposes may be signed per unit per calendar year.

Lagos works well for a month with a car. The municipal Anel Verde car park sells a monthly pass for EUR 55, and Frente Ribeirinha one for EUR 100 from June to September and EUR 70 from October to May, and no tourist tax was found there. Tavira suits a quiet month in the east, also with no tax found, about 41 km from the airport.

Faro suits a month in a working town with year-round life and the airport about 7 km away. At Praia da Rocha, the Rocha Prime car park sells a 30-day pass for EUR 180 from June to September and EUR 120 from October to May, which suits a month by the beach. This ranking is editorial.

Deposit: on a lease, the deposit may not exceed two months' rent, and rent may be paid in advance for no more than two months, with written agreement. A platform booking is not a lease, so the platform's terms apply instead.

Registration at the lodging: the host or hotel files a registration form for every foreign guest, EU nationals included.

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens staying longer than three months request a Certificado de Registo from the Câmara Municipal where they live, within 30 days after the first three months.

Visitors from outside the EU may stay 90 days in any 180-day period across the Schengen area; longer stays need a national visa. The EU Entry/Exit System, which registers non-EU nationals on short stays in 29 European countries, has been in full operation since 10 April 2026.

Airbnb calls a reservation of 28 nights or more a monthly stay. It charges the first month up front and releases it to the host 24 hours after check-in, then charges each later month 10 days in advance at the price fixed at booking. A long-term cancellation policy applies to these stays, and Airbnb's help page describes a 30-day notice for changes.

The legal status comes from the listing, whatever the platform calls it: an AL number means an AL stay, and a direct contract for a transitory purpose means a lease.

Counting on street parking for a month. Lagos street zones allow 3 to 5 hours, so a month with a car needs a private space or a car park pass.

Missing the rate change. Portimão, Lagoa and Loulé double the nightly tax on 1 April, and Faro changes on 1 March; how a stay that spans the change is charged was not found in the regulations checked.

Moving between towns during the month. Each town's cap starts again with a new stay, and the ages and caps differ.

A listing without an AL number, or a lease that does not state its transitory purpose.

A deposit above two months' rent on a lease, which the Civil Code does not allow.

Assuming utilities are included. No reliable source on typical practice was found, so ask before paying.