Albufeira, Faro, Portugal, June 23, 2026 (Lusa) - The code of conduct in Portugal's southern city of Albufeira came into force a year ago, leading to “less misconduct” on the part of tourists, but it needs to be revised and more closely enforced on the ground, argued the mayor.
As the first anniversary of the code’s entry into force is marked – a code which prohibits nudity outside beaches and imposes fines for misconduct by visitors – the Lusa news agency also spoke to the Albufeira Trade Association (ACALB), which lamented that the regulation had been introduced in an “inappropriate” and “excessively punitive” manner, without prioritising educational measures.
The mayor told Lusa that the Municipal Police “are out on the streets enforcing” the code of conduct that has been implemented, and that an “awareness campaign” had been carried out in hotels and commercial establishments to pass on the information to tourists visiting Albufeira, but he acknowledged that “it is necessary to continue the work” of raising visitors’ awareness.
When asked whether fines had already been issued under the new code – which provides for fines for nudity and walking around in a bikini or swimming costume in public areas – the mayor noted that there had already been cases of people being fined, but was unable to give specific figures.
According to Rui Cristina, Albufeira has a “small” municipal police force, with “nine officers on the beat”, but plans are in place to have a further five or six officers by the end of this year who will “boost the ranks to enforce the rules and raise awareness” amongst tourists.
“I think that this year […] tourists are behaving better, with less misconduct, and what we want is to make it clear to our visitors that this sort of behaviour is not acceptable,” he said.
The local authority is also conducting a legal review of the code of conduct “to make some short-term amendments”, which could come into force before the end of the summer and help to “iron out a few rough edges”, the mayor revealed.
ACALB reiterated its disagreement with “the way in which this document was drafted and approved” and the warnings it had issued regarding regulations that are “excessively punitive and impose restrictions on individual behaviour”, which “could be seen as an infringement of individual freedoms, jeopardising the destination’s image and community harmony”.
“We are fully in favour of the quality of life of those who live here, but there must be common sense and balance. The day Albufeira loses its tourism, the district will lose its residents too,” the association warned.
The association criticised the approval of the code “without complying with Article 99 of the Code of Administrative Procedure (CPA), which requires a cost-benefit impact assessment to demonstrate the genuine need for and proportionality of the regulations”, and the “highly subjective rules on sporting activities, clothing (partial or total nudity away from beaches) or noisy gatherings”, which “clash with fundamental rights and make fair enforcement difficult”.
“We need these measures and others that have recently come into force to be reassessed, such as noise limits set at levels that are impossible to enforce. For example, a refuse lorry passing in the street makes more noise than bars are permitted to make,” he proposed, also calling for a review of “opening hours that restrict tourism-related economic activities”
The association argues that an “urgent” review is needed of the measures to be taken so that “tourism and residents can live in harmony” and warned that “the solution to the problems cannot be imposed by decree”.
“It’s like banning car traffic to put an end to road accidents; this is not the way forward. We must take measures that alter and correct certain excessive behaviour, which is often only occasional; we cannot generalise from the exception”, it argued.
The code of conduct for Albufeira, which accounts for around half of the hotel accommodation in the region of Faro, came into force on 24 June 2025.
MHC/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
