Our Opinion

Faro is a small but pleasant town which is easy and safe to walk round. It is possible to see all the sights of Faro in a single day.
We started our days walk at the marina and strolled up past the castle walls through the old town and the cathedral, returning through the more modern shopping centre.
It would be hard to go either hungry or thirsty in Faro as there seems to be a restaurant or bar everywhere. Sardines feature heavily on the menus of most restaurants but there are also many other dishes both Portuguese and International. Strangely enough, we found nowhere in 2007 that sold Piri Piri Chicken!
Most bars and restaurants serve Portuguese beers (Super Bock & Sagres) only and we found these quite palatable. We also tried the local wine both red and white and also the slightly sparkling Vinho Verde.

Further Details

Travel
Blackpool - Faro with Jet2.com
Much improved departure facilities at Blackpool Airport although we chose to spend some time in the Air Balloon pub opposite the terminal prior to going to the departure lounge. Flights were smooth and reasonably comfortable although service on board was a little slow. Check in at Faro airport was very slow mainly due to the number of people checking in with golf clubs. Both flights arrived on time although we were delayed leaving Faro due to Air Traffic Control restrictions.
Faro - Lisbon with Portuguese Railways
We travelled by Portuguese Railways flagship Alfa Pendular direct service which was great value for money at just €48 for a first class return ticket. The trains were clean and arrived on time although our departure from Lisbon was delayed by about 20 minutes. We chose to have a meal on both journeys and were pleasantly surprised by both the quality and price of the food although we later found out that booking and paying for the meals at the same time as we bought the tickets would have been even cheaper.
Whilst we didn't actually use any local public transport in Faro there did appear to be a good bus service to many of the villages and resorts along the Algarve coast.

Accommodation
Hotel Eva
A great hotel situated right next to the marina in Faro giving superb views from the rooms that overlook it. The hotel has 2 bars and a restaurant. We didn't eat in the restaurant at night although the menu looked fine and wasn't overpriced but we did have breakfast.which we found very acceptable.