Water and Beach Safety

One of the main reasons for visiting Portugal, is the quality of it beaches and sea. This page provides some tips on how to enjoy your visit in safety.

Beach and Sea quality

Portugal has an abundance of beaches from the north to the south of the country. The Algarve has a coastline of about 200 kilometres, which contains more than 150 beaches. From long sandy beaches on the islands and some parts of the mainland of eastern Algarve to a combination of beaches formed by sand and rock formations.

The beaches in the Algarve have a fine, golden or white sand, which determines the aesthetic outlook of the beaches. The sand is very comfortable for walking alongside the beaches. The combination of sandy beaches, rock formations and one of the best climates in Europe have turned the Algarve primarily into a summer and sea destination for families.

Top Tips for beach safety

In order to minimize the number of accidents and ensure beach safety during the current bathing season, the National Maritime Authority and the General Directorate of Health reinforce the importance of complying with the recommendations, so that we can have a safer bathing season. 

Advices:

  • Avoid the hours of greatest exposure to the sun (11am-4pm);
  • Apply sunscreen (SP>30) every two hours;
  • Visit the guarded beaches;
  • Check the occupancy rate of the beaches in the InfoPraia application and opt for supervised beaches with a low occupancy rate;
  • Respect the beach signs and choose beaches with a lower occupancy rate;
  • Follow the directions of the lifeguards and law enforcement officers;
  • Always be on the lookout for children, especially in or near water;
  • Protect yourself and avoid unstable cliffs;
  • Take care when diving. Pay attention to the depth of the place/zone in which you dive;
  • Choose light meals and allow digestion periods;
  • Don’t leave trash on the beach;
  • In an emergency, do not enter the water. Call the lifeguard or call 112.

Swim safely

Avoid swimming in areas where there are no lifeguards. You should also exercise caution when swimming at beaches that connect to rivers as the streams and currents can be more hazardous.

On the beaches where there are lifeguards, there are typically flags placed to indicate the level of danger to swimmers. It’s important to know what these warning flags mean and to adhere to them.

Green Flag – Safe to swim
Yellow Flag – You may remain at the water’s edge or paddle, but no swimming
Red Flag – Danger, no swimming
Checkered Flag – Beach is temporarily unmanned
Blue & Purple Flags – Dangerous marine life has been spotted e.g jellyfish, stingrays, sea snakes, sharks

Keep in mind that if you ignore any of the warning flags there are consequences (besides the obvious safety ones) – the Maritime Police frequently issue fines to those not adhering to a lifeguard’s warnings.

It’s also important to note that after September, the swimming season in Portugal is considered closed, so although the weather may still be mild and beaches inviting, there are no lifeguards on duty and no safety flags will be displayed, regardless of conditions.

Check with the locals about when and where it is safe to swim or surf, and be extra vigilant when in the water.
https://www.safecommunitiesportugal.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/beachflags.j-Red-yellow-600x400-1.jpg
New yellow and red beach flags, placed in pairs at Portuguese beaches, are being used to mark areas that are patrolled by lifeguards and are considered the safest places to swim. The flags are now obligatory on Portuguese beaches and can easily be moved around by lifeguards to indicate the safest areas to swim on any particular day.

They can also be used to avoid some common dangers on Portuguese beaches like rocky areas, breakwaters, sunken ships and rip currents. This new system had already been implemented at some Algarve beaches in 2017 but became mandatory in summer 2018.

Swimming is one of the most popular and enjoyable activities to do while on holiday, whether that’s going for a dip in the hotel pool, in the sea, or in a local river or lake.

But swimming is not without risks and each year there are incidents where people get into difficulty in the water. So, we have put together some handy tips and advice to help you and your loved ones have a safe and enjoyable time.

 

Get ready for the water 

  • Before your holiday, why not test and refresh your swimming ability at your local pool, particularly if it’s been a while since you last went swimming.
  • If you’re going on holiday with children, consider if they would benefit from (refresher) swimming lessons to improve their ability.
  • Be aware that most overseas destinations are not required to employ lifeguards, so take responsibility for your safety and those in your care by following the rules at the pool and look out for warning flags and signs at the beach. 
  • Check how to contact the local emergency services in the country you are visiting, so if you see someone in difficulty you know how to raise the alarm.
  • Don’t swim at night, after a meal, under the influence of alcohol or if you have an upset stomach.

 

At the pool 

  • Remember, most holiday accommodations don’t employ lifeguards. 
  • You should always supervise your children, even if a lifeguard is present.
  • Always follow pool rules and pool safety signs. 
  • Check the pool layout to know where the deep and shallow ends are.
  • Only dive or jump in where you’re allowed to do so.
  • Follow any advice or instructions when participating in water related activities such as pool games, water slides, flumes and water sports.

 

At the beach or in open water 

  • Always check for warning flags and follow safety signage. 
  • Never swim where a sign says not to e.g. in zoned areas for jet boats or jet skis.
  • Be mindful of underwater hazards, such as reefs, rocks, sudden changes in depth and marine life, and only dive where it is permitted to do so.
  • Even if you regularly swim in a pool, don’t forget that open water swimming can be much more challenging. 
  • Get advice from your holiday provider about the best local beaches to go to and if there’s anything that you need to be aware of, especially dangerous currents or rip tides.

 

Extra advice for families

  • If you’re holidaying with children, make sure you talk to them about water safety at the start of the holiday, so they’re aware of the potential dangers. 
  • Accidents can happen at any time on holiday, but they’re more likely to happen on the first or last day, so be extra vigilant. 
  • Children in or near water should always be supervised by an adult and never left unattended, even if a lifeguard is present. 
  • Armbands can be a good training swimming aid for children but are not a substitute for supervision.
  • A great way to keep a watchful eye is to get in the water with them – and it’s good fun!

 

Rip currents

A rip current is a narrow, fast-moving channel of water that starts near the beach and extends offshore through the line of breaking waves.

Spotting a rip current can be difficult, and really needs some practice. But when you go to the beach, start off by staying back from the water. Rip currents are easier to see at an elevated position, like a dune line or beach access, and then look for places where waves aren’t breaking, so flat spots in the line of breaking waves. And then also where there’s maybe foam or sediment in the water being transported away from the beach offshore.

Rip currents can occur anywhere you have breaking waves, like large sandy beaches on the open ocean. But they can also occur where you have hard structures, like jetties, or piers, or even rocks jutting out into the ocean.

If you do get caught in a rip current, the best thing you can do is stay calm. It’s not going to pull you underwater, it’s just going to pull you away from shore. Call and wave for help. You want to float, and you don’t want to swim back to shore against the rip current because it will just tire you out. You want to swim out of the rip, parallel to shore, along the beach and then follow breaking waves back to shore at an angle.
https://www.safecommunitiesportugal.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Rip-currents-768x390-1.png
The Algarve’s west coast tends to be more hazardous due to the powerful Atlantic Ocean. Surfers and wind-surfers like this coast for its conditions and near-perfect waves, but obviously the wilder water presents a greater risk. Extra caution should be used if you plan on swimming or participating in water sports on the west coast. It is important to monitor weather warnings in these areas.

 

Algarve’s Benagil caves with new access rules

The Benagil Caves, in the municipality of Lagoa, in the Algarve, have new access rules as of 13th August 2024, which include the prohibition of disembarking and swimming access to their interior.

The new measures, which aim to regulate the traffic of maritime-tourist vessels, private individuals and beach users, both in the water and in the vicinity of the Benagil cave and sinkhole, were published in an official notice on July 30.

It is now forbidden for individuals and companies to disembark or use the sand inside the Benagil cave, access to the caves by swimming or with flotation devices, and the rental of kayaks without a guide in the cave area. There are also limits on the number of boats and kayaks inside the cave, maximum times for visits and a ratio of one guide kayak for every six kayaks with visitors for kayak tours in the area.

There are also provisions for administrative offences (fines), which in the most serious cases can reach up to 216,000 euros, for operators of maritime-tourist vessels who do not comply with the rules set out in the notice.

Located off Benagil beach, the caves are considered to be a relevant natural heritage site and one of the main tourist attractions in the Algarve, which, in the summer, has attracted the interest of more and more visitors, especially by sea.

The notice, which comes into force 10 working days after its publication, resulted from the work developed by the Benagil Caves Working Group, formed in August 2023.

 

Safe Diving

Why is it so important to pay attention to dives?

Accidents caused by head diving are one of the main causes of spinal cord injuries, especially in places with a depth of less than 150 centimetres.

These accidents can result in head trauma and spinal cord injuries, in particular situations of loss of control and sensitivity of the legs (paraplegia) and loss of movement of the trunk, legs and arms (tetraplegia). In more serious cases, the victim may even die.

Wen is there a higher accident rate?  Diving accidents show some seasonality and mostly happen between May and September (85%).

Should diving be avoided? No. It is not necessary to prohibit diving at all. If you want to dive, you must confirm that the safety conditions are in place and take some essential precautions. For example: do not dive into water: unknown depth, low depth (less than twice the diving height); cloudy or with rock; in unlit areas (at night). Always dive with your arms straight out in front of you to protect your head and neck. In unfamiliar places, dive with your “feet” (enter the water with your feet first and not your head) and do not consume alcohol or drugs before diving.

How do injuries occur? Most accidents happen because the water depth at the dive sites was not calculated. Diving injuries generally occur when the head hits the ground, as after the impact the neck receives the weight of the body and produces flexion or extension, which can lead to a fracture or displacement of a cervical vertebra (usually the C5 or C6), and result in spinal cord trauma.

The type of damage caused varies according to the weight, speed and, mainly, the position of the head and spine during the impact. The worst consequence is paralysis and the impossibility of moving the limbs. In other words, the degree of spinal cord injury can end up in a condition of quadriplegia, in which there is paralysis of the arms and legs, or paraplegia, in which the paralysis is only of the legs.

Where do these accidents occur? Diving accidents can happen on beaches, swimming pools or other bathing areas, coastal or river, but they are more common in swimming pools than at sea, with the majority of accidents occurring during leisure activities and not during sports.

What are the recommendations for safe diving?

A poorly calculated dive can have lifelong consequences, so you should bear in mind :

  • existence of obstacles around you that you could collide with, namely rocks, boards, people, etc.
  • pay attention to existing signage , always stay in a supervised area
  • consider the depth , do not dive in shallow water (less than twice your height)
  • do not dive into waters you are unfamiliar with or have poor visibility
  • do not dive from very high places
  • do not dive after consuming alcohol or any other substance that alters cognitive or motor function
  • you must dive with your hands in front , so that your head is protected during the dive
  • avoid diving backwards or running – the more momentum you give, the deeper the dive

Cliff erosion

Beaches in the Algarve are generally safe although in some areas due to sea erosion cliffs can be unstable. Where this is the case there are signs in place advising people not to walk too close to the cliff edge. They also indicate areas on beaches close to the foot of cliffs that are best to avoid.

First aid

During July and August the Regional Health Administration (ARS) of the Algarve and the Portuguese Red Cross operate Postas de Saude (Beach Health Clinics) along the Algarve coast to treat minor injuries, and offer health care advice to beach goers.