Certain things stand out on a walk down the strip of Albufeira, a party town west of Faro in Portugal: the heavy police presence; club reps trying to encourage punters to enter venues; thumping dance music and an abundance of sunburned “big Irish heads”.
It is easy to spot those here from Ireland, with a sea of GAA jerseys making their way from one bar to another. Speaking on the strip, 18-year-old Oisín Reynolds, from Wicklow, says: “I think O’Neill’s sponsor Albufeira at this stage.”
Though temperatures have cooled down slightly from the height of the heatwave experienced by the west of Europe in recent days, the sun continues to beat down on the eager post-Leaving Certificate students with highs of 30, 31 and 32 the week we visit.
“It’s well too hot for the Irish,” says Matthew Dowd (18), who is here with Reynolds and a large group from Coláiste Chraobh Abhann in Kilcoole. As we are speaking, more former schoolmates arrive.
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Reynolds, Dowd and their gang have been here for six days and, though there was a bumpy start to the holiday with delayed flights, they have been enjoying being together in the sun.
“We tried our best to drink water but it actually just disappears when you’re with a big group of people,” Dowd says.
Thankfully, the teenagers have been waking up too late to be affected by the peak heat.
For most here, it is their first big trip abroad without the watchful eye of their parents and, with a stressful year behind them, it’s time to let off some steam.
Albufeira is an ideal location for this, with the beach to lounge around by day and a lively pub and club scene by night. Not to mention the boozy boat trips, illuminated venue signs and plenty of places in which to drink.
Each day follows a similar routine – out of bed late and head to the beach or pool; lounge around or frolic on inflatables in the water until about 6pm; back to the accommodation for a shower before heading out for dinner at 8pm or 9pm.
And, this year, there is the added giddiness of World Cup fever taking over the town – with matches on in every pub, young men playing keepie-uppies in the street (with more than a few pint glasses getting caught in the crossfire) and club reps cleverly using a whistle and a red card to try to pull punters into the bar they are promoting.
Albufeira has long been a popular destination for young Irish people and this year is no different, with Reynolds saying: “There is a lot of Irish. You’re seeing Irish people and you’re chatting to them. It’s gas the way the Irish connect when we’re abroad. It’s just good fun on a night out.
“You see English [people] and a lot of them are nice but, from what I’ve been seeing, they’re the ones causing the trouble over here.” Later on the day we speak (Wednesday), England are due to play DR Congo and they’re anticipating a bit of rowdiness from the fans for the evening.
Questioned about the “trouble” they’ve seen, they say they’ve “seen a bit of everything, really” but mostly everything is calm.
Reynolds strikes a poignant note when reflecting on the importance of the holiday to his friend group. “We’ll have the next day or two together and that will be fun but it probably will be the last time we’re all together because who knows where everyone’s going to go,” he says.
Following the stress of the Leaving Cert exams, “I well deserve this holiday,” says Dowd.
New measures have been introduced in Albufeira in a bid to balance tourism and the quality of life of those who live in the town by mayor Rui Cristina, who took office late last year.
The restrictions came into place on June 1st and saw bars, nightclubs and convenience stores having to reduce their opening times by one hour. Just last week, on June 26th, further measures were introduced to limit noise pollution. Establishments now have to use council-approved sound limiters, with Cristina pledging zero tolerance for those who do not comply.
Emma Buckley, who relocated from Tipperary to Albufeira in 2015, has been working here for over a decade and considers the town home. Regarding the new restrictions, she is not sure they will dampen the spirits of party-goers.
“The bars are going to notice a difference take-in wise but I don’t think customers are going to notice much of a difference. We’ll notice it in the bars because that’s what we’re used to,” she says.
“I think [in] Albufeira, changes did need to happen but I don’t know if reducing the bars’ times … I do understand it, I totally understand it. But I don’t know how much of a difference it’s going to make.”
The post-Leaving Cert holidaymakers agree it will not make a huge difference to them. “We don’t need to be out til 6am,” Dowd says.
“You nearly would just be staying out for the craic of staying out. In the long run, you’re spending more money,” Reynolds says.
Having been on this exact trip in 2018, one thing really stood out to this reporter: how easy it seemed to be to access drugs in 2026. The Irish Times found a number of Instagram and TikTok accounts advertising their “services”, often describing themselves as having the “best” drugs in town, in the comment sections under posts about Albufeira.
Eight years prior in the town, it felt the only way to secure anything illegal would be to watch carefully for the dodgy characters dotted around the strip who would offer cocaine, pills or weed to people they thought would buy.
What might have been an impulse buy for a teenager in 2018 could now be decided well in advance and purchased with just one text.
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When The Irish Times contacted one of these TikTok pages, they were sent a WhatsApp number to message. Here, the dealer sent a full menu of drugs and their prices – one gram of cocaine for €80; one tablet of ecstasy for €10; a gram of ketamine for €35; 10 grams of “weed” for €70, with a “premium” option of five grams for €50; and “hashish”, five grams for €40 and five grams for €60 of the “premium strain”.
When asked if they dealt to many Irish people, the dealer refused to comment.
The “old school” way of dealing on the streets is still visible around the party areas too, with Reynolds and Dowd noticing dealers openly offering drugs.
“You just have to be careful,” Dowd says, “and, you know, 18-year-old Irish lads, they’re not all careful. As an 18-year-old, you’re vulnerable to that.”
They say they’ve seen the exact same kind of posts from dealers on their social feeds too. Reynolds says: “You’re just scrolling and they’re taking videos of the strip, looking like they’re just a tourist account. But then you actually look into it …”
They’ve found most places to be offering drinks “at Irish prices”, Dowd says. “You’d think it would be cheap. You have to find the right places. It’s so easy – especially for lads – to get your money taken from these places. It’s so easy for them to manipulate you.”
As well as that, they warn others to be cautious of club and brand reps offering wristbands to certain events, with the promise of free drinks or entry. In some instances, it might work out cheaper – with some companies offering a number of events with one band.
Reynolds jokes that his friend Dowd has already spent a lot of money.
Defending himself, Dowd replies: “All this stuff, like. Big bright colours and they take your money in. It’s so impossible. I am broke.”
They’re just here to do to their bit, to have a bit of a party, relax
— Emma Buckley
A group of girls from Mount Sackville secondary school in Dublin said that the main thing for them was to stick together while they’re away.
“We have a good time in the day, we stay by the pool, we get our tan. We come out at nighttime. We stick together and we have fun,” says Katie, who only wanted to give her first name.
When asked why they came to Albufeira, the girls said it was “cheaper than Zante”, the Greek island, and that it seemed to be the hotspot for this year.
Meanwhile, Buckley, who has spent 10 years in Albufeira, says: “The bars have definitely gotten more expensive but isn’t that everywhere? Isn’t that the cost of living everywhere, not just Albufeira.”
She and her colleagues watch as a wave of Leaving Cert students come to the town every year as soon as their exams end.
“I’ve had chats with them. They’re great. They’re just here to do to their bit, to have a bit of a party, relax. They do go out, get up in the day, go out to the beach and that. They’ve a lot to think about come September so it’s only fair they get to come and relax,” she says.
“Come have a drink but be respectful of the neighbourhood they’re in as well.”
Buckley says Albufeira has lots to offer. “There is so much more to Albufeira than the strip. I don’t think people even realise that when they are coming over. They just see the strip and the old town and see it as a party town, but there is so much more to it.”
Looking back: Post-Leaving Cert holidays are not new. In 2001, The Irish Times reported on “growing numbers of Irish students heading abroad for a post-Leaving Cert bash”.
Back then the holidays cost, on average, around IR£400 or IR£500, with teenagers recommended to bring roughly the same amount for spending money.
Some of the somewhat dated comments in the 25-year-old article reflect the social mores of the time.
One travel agent said: “Irish girls tend to stick with the same lad if they meet a nice one early on. They wouldn’t want a reputation for going off with different guys all the time.”
A young Irishman who had returned from a Leaving Cert holiday expressed surprise at the way his female counterparts behaved when away from home. His tongue-in-cheek advice to them was to “relax on the drink and cover up a bit more ... but I wish I could find some of them over here!”
Advice to parents from a family counsellor still rings true, however. One said that parents should bear in mind that all young people go through a period of experimentation during which they, like their parents, will make mistakes. “All you can do now is sit back, hold on to the arms of the chair and hope for the best,” she said. – Mary Minihan
