As flights descend into Faro, the landscape breaks into layers of colour that feel painted. Soft pink salt pans sit beside pale turquoise water. Deep green orange groves give way to dry golden fields, and winding channels from the Ria Formosa cut through it all like veins.


It is one of the few places in Europe where the geography creates a strong contrast in such a small space. The changing colours are often shaped by the region’s light, which has long attracted photographers and filmmakers, but also by the mix of wetlands, salt production, farmland and coastline sitting side by side.


At certain times of day, especially in the early morning or late afternoon, the colours become even more intense from the air.


For many people arriving into Faro, it is the first reminder that the Algarve is not just beaches and resorts. It is a landscape with texture and layers that look completely different depending on the season, the tide and the light.