GNR police issued dozens of fines last weekend in Albufeira’s Oura bar district, where large groups of mostly young Dutch holidaymakers are gathering every day without masks and without respecting social distancing recommendations.
Albufeira Mayor José Carlos Rolo has already threatened to take “more drastic measures” if the rules imposed to prevent the spread of Covid-19 are not respected.
According to a police source, several people and establishments were fined on Sunday (July 5) for drinking alcohol in public or staying open later than they are legally allowed, respectively.
There are believed to be around 2,400 Dutch holidaymakers in Albufeira, most of them youngsters celebrating the end of their school year.
Local GNR police have reinforced awareness campaigns among the local population to stress the importance of wearing masks and keeping a safe distance from each other, ” but people continue to ignore the rules”, a police source told Lusa news agency.
The local council will now also bolster its awareness campaigns to explain to business owners just how important it is to follow the national health authority’s recommendations.
“We will have meetings with business owners and will park a van on the streets to provide information about the measures in place in Portugal”, said Albufeira Mayor José Carlos Rolo.
While the mayor says the situation is “under control”, he doesn’t rule out the possibility of “more drastic measures”.
The Algarve may be desperate to welcome tourists, but those in charge want its visitors to respect the rules in order to prevent any further outbreaks.
The Oura bar district was already known, in the pre-pandemic days, for attracting rowdy behaviour and late-night drinking (click here). Now, many bars in Albufeira have acquired licences to serve food in order to be able to remain open until 11pm. However, few appear to be respecting the opening hours imposed.
