Currently, Portimao is one of the main tourist destinations of Algarve, a municipality that has grown substantially in the past few decades thanks to tourism. Here there are many accomodations to provide for the tousist demand each year, such as hotels, apartments, houses, etc. Though tourism has thrived in the past few decades, the history of this place reaches much further back to a period of time in which Alvor and its fishing activity acted as the main source of income for this land.

The necropolis of Acalar de Mnte Canela is its biggest patrimony and gives evidence to the life which presided here thousands of years ago, all the way back to the Neolithic Age. Through this region passed many civilizations, that of the Phoenicians, Greeks, and Romans. Later came the Arabs, who left an important legacy all throughout Portugal.

After the Arabs, came the Christians. Alfonso V named this place " Vila Nova de Portimao." Later in the 18th Century, this town suffered a terrible earthquake that destroyed the town, but even so, fishing continued bringing in income in the surrounding areas.

during the 20th Century, Portimao began turning into a tourist destination, and hotels and restaurants cropped up, followed by discoteques, bars, shops, etc. Mainly, these new establishments focused their intent around Alvor Beach and Rocha Beach, the most frequented destinations in the entire municipality.