Faro to Malaga

As you have already surmised, there are no direct links by train, rail or air between Faro and Malaga - or for that matter between Faro and any Spanish Mainland city.

Viamichelin.com quotes as follows for the drive by car from Faro to Malaga:

Distance: 414km including 397km on motorways
Estimated drive time:04h18

You should note that it is very expensive to do inter-country drop-offs with hire cars between Spain and Portugal and vice versa.

Air is not really feasible as you would have to travel to Lisbon, get a low cost to Madrid and then another low-cost to Malaga.

Rail is essentially the same.

There is a bus service operated by www.alsa.es with a bus change in Seville at Plaza das Armas Bus Station as follows:

Town Dept
FARO 02:00
VILA REAL ST ANTONIO 02:45
AYAMONTE 04:00
HUELVA 04:30
SEVILLA 05:45
MALAGA 08:45

This would be the most direct.

You might also be able to catch one of the two daily buses operated by DAMAS/EVA from Faro to Seville (weekdays only in winter.)

Have a look at this page on Cubsur's site for more info:

http://thomasallen.home.sapo.pt/travel/001.htm


From Seville there will be several daily services to Malaga from either Plaza das Armas or Prado Bus Stations including these services operated by ALSINA GRAELLS SUR, S.A.

02:50 03:30 TODA LA SEMANA
11:00 03:30 TODA LA SEMANA
12:00 03:30 TODA LA SEMANA
14:00 03:30 DE LUNES A SABADOS
16:00 03:30 TODA LA SEMANA
17:40 03:30 TODA LA SEMANA
19:00 03:30 VIERNES Y DOMINGO
20:15 03:30 TODA LA SEMANA
20:30 03:30 TODA LA SEMANA
22:00 03:30 TODA LA SEMANA
23:58 03:30 A VIERNES DOMINGOS Y FESTIVO

Alternatively, you could get a cab from Seville Plaza das Armas to Estacion Stª. Justa Train Station and get the AVE high speed train to Malaga changing at Cordoba.

This will probably be very expensive and probably not save much time.

For more info check out the spanish railways site

www.renfe.es.

Hope this helps

One Way Car Hire - Spain / Algarve, Portugal

*****URGENT NEW COMMENT - 11th July 2009 *****

http://www.iberiacarhire.com has been the first site for which I have taken banners on this blog.

However, since starting a few weeks ago. it has become clear that the provider of the vehicles in Spain have no vehicles available for, at least, summer 2009 rental from Spain to Portugal.

The web site operator, who I have know for a long time is most annoyed as well. The issue is being taken up by the aforementioned car rental provider involved.

However, for the present, I will be changing the banner and apologise to all those who have been frustrated through this link and post.

Should the situation improve and/or resolve itself, I will announce it here.

Again my apologies.

*****URGENT NEW COMMENT - 11th July 2009 *****


Since my original post, in April 2009, a new website (www.iberiacarhire.com) has now been set to offer potential clients a one-stop shop for making bookings for one way car rental with economic drop-off prices between Spain and Portugal. At present this service is available via Faro Airport in the Algarve Region of Portugal.

For someone coming from Spain, they can pick up a vehicle at any of relevant depots in Spain and for a fee, drop it off at Faro Airport. They can then, if they wish, then pick up a vehicle from from another reputable agent at Faro Airport to continue the Portuguese side of their trip.

Equally, for someone starting their trip in Portugal, the system works the other way round as well.

The one-way drop off rates vary dependent on where the vehicle is picked up/ dropped off. If a vehicle is picked up at Gerona, its something like € 90 to drop-off at Faro, while a pick up in Seville and drop-off in Faro its something like € 30.00 This is still well below the drop-off fees quoted by the majors.

It is important to note that at present the vehicle drop-off/change-over can only be done at Faro Airport in the Algarve, Portugal. Nonetheless, this is a great improvement in car hire services for those wanting to do one way trips between Spain and Portugal.

www.iberiacarhire.com
Pick-up / Drop-off Points in Spain and Algarve, Portugal.(Faro Airport)

Alicante Airport	Almeria Airport	Faro Airport
Gerona Airport	Granada Airport	Jerez Airport
Malaga Airport	Murcia Airport	Reus Airport
Sevilla Airport	Valencia Airport	Chiclana De La Frontera
Fuengirola	Granada	Islantilla
La Linea	Malaga Central	Malaga Renfe
Marbella	Rota	Sevilla
Torremolinos

www.iberiacarhire.com
Pick-up / Drop-off Points in Portugal.(incl. Faro Airport)

Lisbon Airport	Porto Airport	Albufeira
Armação de Pera	Aveiro	Braga
Carvoeiro	Cascais	Coimbra
Faro Office	Figueira da Foz	Lagos office
Lisbon City office	Monte Gordo	Portimao
Porto City	Quarteira	Sesimbra
Viana do Castelo	Vilamoura

This service finally offers the promise of being able to reasonably priced car hire rentals with reasonable one-way drop-off fees between Spain and Portugal, albeit only via Faro Airport in the Algarve, Southern Portugal, at present.

Faro to Malaga

There are no direct flights between Faro and Malaga or between Faro and airports in mainland Spain. To fly you would have to route via Lisbon and Madrid as the TAP/Air Portugal direct flights are expensive.

The only public transport route between Faro and Malaga is by bus.

Alsa.es have a daily departure as follows:

FARO dept: 01:45
MALAGA arr: 08:45
Current Price: €40.00

It is also possible to take the twice daily DAMAS/EVA buses from Faro to Seville and then get another bus to Malaga.

For more information see Cubsur's very useful website here:

http://thomasallen.home.sapo.pt/travel/001.htm

Alvor/Faro to Malaga

Essentially there are no cheap easy routes!

1)Bus/train Alvor/Portimão to Faro.

2) Bus - Faro to Seville

3) Bus - Seville to Malaga

Anoth possibility is:

1)Bus/train Alvor/Portimão to Faro.

2) Bus - Faro - Faro Airport

3) Air by Ryanair - Faro - Madrid

4) Air by one of the lowcost operators - Madrid - Malaga.

AIR EUROPA
SPANAIR
VUELING AIRLINES

For the Portuguese segment see this site:

http://www.solpraiaferias.com/index.php?content=cheg_en

For flights Madrid - Malaga see:

http://www.aena.es/csee/Satellite?cid=1049727006261&pagename=Estandar%2FPage%2FAeropuerto&SMO=7&SiteName=MAD&c=Page&MO=1

Hiring a car in faro(portugal) and dropping it off at Malaga airport

Unfortunately there is no cheap way to do this.

The only companies with which you will be able to do this are the big global car hire firms such as Avis, Hertz, Europcar. The one way drop of fee will be substantial as this will be classed as inter-country drop-off.

I would suggest that you best bet would be to take public transport From Faro to somewhere like Ayamonte just over th border in Spain and then pick up a hire car there.

Auriga Crown Car Hire have offices in Islantilla near Ayamonte and Malaga.

Contact Details are:

Islantilla
Address: Calle Islantilla Local B-4
Post code: 21410
City: Huelva
Province: Huelva
Country: Spain
Telephone number: 959 646 075
Mobil: 619 038 947
Fax: 959 646 049
E-mail address: huelva@aurigacrown.com
Manager: Juan Carlos Moreno

You might be able to contact them and they may be able to meet you in Ayamonte.

To get to Ayamonte from Faro, you can take the train to Vila Real Stª. Antonio and then the ferry to Ayamonte or Bus from Faro to Ayamonte.

See these posts on my blog for more info:

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com/search?q=Faro+Malaga

and

cubsur's excellent site at:

http://thomasallen.home.sapo.pt/travel/001.htm

Getting from Algarve/Albufeira Portugal to Marbella, Spain

1) Ferry - No.

There are no regular ferry or passenger maritime services running from the Algarve along the Spanish Med Coast.

2) Rail - Possible

There is no direct rail link from the Algarve into Spain. One would have first go to Lisbon, then Madrid and then Malaga, then Fuengirola and then take a bus or taxi from there to Marbella.

3) Coach

There are twice daily direct coach services from Albufeira to Seville. See the following sites for more information:

www.algarvebus.info
www.solpraiaferias.com/index.php?content=cheg_en

From Seville you can get buses to Marbella direct.

See the following posting by CadizLover on the Tripadvisor forums last year:

"There is a bus service from Marbella via Ronda that proceeds to Seville. Leaves daily at 9am (Portillo bus) and 4pm (Los Amarillos bus) . At least by taking the bus you can stay on one form of public transport and also see the more hilly parts of Andalucia ! Of course some of the roads especially the one leading up to Ronda, are winding. The bus takes about 1 hour and a half to get to Ronda, then about 2 hours to get from Ronda to Seville. Cost is €15 one way.

The two companies that advertise the route are PORTILLO bus company and LOS AMARILLOS bus company.
You can see the details at:

http://www.ctsa-portillo.com/ima/pdf/marbella.pdf

and

http://www.losamarillos.es/

Taking the bus to Malaga bus station then another bus or train from Malaga to Seville is certainly an option if you want to avoid "them thar hills". "

4) Air

From Albufeira taxi or shuttle to Faro Airport.

You could then take the daily low-cost Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) flight from Faro to Madrid. Then a low-cost flight to Malaga and then local train to Fuengirola and then take a bus or taxi from there to Marbella.

This last would probably be the most efficient although you probably would get in quite late.

The Ryanair flight leaves Faro at:13:35 arriving Madrid Barajas at 15:55.

Spanair (www.spanair.com or www.spanair.es) then has (at present) a flight at 17:40 from Madrid arriving Malaga at 18:45

There are trains then to Feungirola every thirty minutes at 44 and 14 past the hour until 22:44. Transit time 35 minutes. From there a taxi.

Alternatively there is a direct coach service from Málaga airport to Marbella bus station, every 45 minutes.

The first bus start at 06.15 and the last one at 23.00

See the following Malaga Airport page for more info.

http://www.aena.es/csee/Satellite?cid=1048858947329&pagename=Estandar%2FPage%2FAeropuerto&SMO=1&SiteName=AGP&p=1048858947201&c=Page&MO=1

The folowing site may be also of interest:

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com/

Lisbon to Algarve

Firstly, the Algarve is a region and not a single place. Consequently, I cannot answer this question specifically without knowing your exact destination.

However, there are three main means of public transport linking Algarve towns with Lisbon. Rail and two long distance bus services.

If you visit my blog:

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com/

»» Scroll down on the right hand side until you come to the panel entitled "Algarve & Portugal - Travel Transport Links"

»» Click on:

- Porto - Lisbon - Faro Train Timetable for the return train timetable.
- Algarve Regional Line Train Timetable for connections along the Algarve.
- RENEX Bus Service - Lisbon to Algarve timetable
- Rede-Expressos - National Bus Timetable - Updated. (National Coach Operator) - Portuguese only.

There are no direct train services between Malaga and the Algarve.

www.alsa.es operate a direct service between Malaga and Faro daily as follows:

Dept. MALAGA 21:00
Arr. Faro 01:45

I strongly recommend booking a hostel or pension near Faro bus Station if you arrive on this bus as downtown Faro is no a good place to be at that time.

There are other daily buses that run between Seville and the Algarve operated by DAMAS/EVA.

Checkout Cubsur's site here for more info:

http://thomasallen.home.sapo.pt/travel/001.htm

Faro to Marbella by bus

Unfortunately, there is no direct bus service between Faro Airport, Faro, and Marbella. However, all buses between the Algarve and Spain have to transit via Sevilla.

Consequently, you should be able to get a bus from Faro Bus Station to Sevilla Plaza das Armas Bus Station, take a local Tussam C4 bus to Sevilla Est. Prado Bus Station and then another bus from there to Marbella.

From Faro Bus Station there are departures daily to Sevilla Estacion Plaza das Armas Bus Station by DAMAS/EVA TRANSPORTES ( http://www.eva-bus.com/ ) as follows:

0740 (summer only - 2014 to be confirmed) arrive: 1130
0820 (year round) arrive: 1300
1355 (summer only - 2014 to be confirmed) arrive: 1745
1535 (year round) arrive: 2015

From Faro Bus Station there are departures daily to Sevilla Estacion Plaza das Armas Bus Station by Alsa.es as follows:

01:45 arrive 05:45 (This bus also continues to Est. Plaza das Armas Bus Station )

 This service does offer a connection onwards to Malaga and then Marbella BUT it is a circuitous roundabout route!

There are three departures per day from Sevilla Est. Prado Bus Station to Marbella.

 The Bus Company is AUTOBÚS DE LOS AMARILLOS. 

The link for the timetable is here: http://goo.gl/AD4DV

There are daily departures to Marbella from Sevilla Est. Prado Bus Station at:

10:00
15:30
18:00

 Transit time is 3hrs 30 minutes

Bear in mind, that Spain is on Central European Time and is an hour ahead of Portugal.

All times shown above are based on local time.

In summary, therefore, it would appear that the 08:20 DAMAS/EVA bus from Faro to Seville Est. Plaza das Armas, and the 15:30 from Sevilla Est. Prado Bus Station would offer the best connection.
Be aware that in busy periods buses may be busy.

Go to www.eva-bus.com for the Faro to Sevilla Segment. It does not appear possible to purchase the tickets from Sevilla to Marbella on-line.

Barcelona to Faro

Question posted to me on allexperts.com:

"What options do we have from Barcelona to Faro? We will have 2 large suitcases, at this stage we are thinking about driving the Coast road. Is it an easy route? We are Australian and drive on the wrong side of the road!!"

My Answer:

"Firstly, I drive on the wrong side of the road all the time. I've driven right-hand drive cars on one side of the road and left hand drive cars on the other, vice versa and backwards in my time. Never had a problem! Here in Portugal, I'me driving a right hand drive car on the right - No Probs.

I don't accept the excuse "We are Australians" - a couple of "tinnies" and most Aussies can do everything....or so they believe!....Look at Corey Delaney and the masses of Aussies who head here to Lagos each July after running with the Bulls in Pamplona!

If you take the motorway from Barcelona to Faro you will have no problem...except avoid transitting Seville during the morning rush hour, lunchtime and evening rush hour as the ring road gets chockers.

If you are driving suitcases, I suggest that you wear helmets! Spanish truck drivers can be manic. You will need to make sure that each suitcase is equipped with two warning triangles in case of breakdown.

You have two options on the road route - inland via Granada which is beautiful with its Alhambra Palace or the coastal route via Almeira, Malaga, Torremolinos, etc to Cadiz, Jerez and then Seville.

There are no direct flights between Barcelona and Faro.

Your other options include:

- Long Distance bus from Barcelona to Seville and then Faro.
- Low-Coast Flights from Barcelona to Lisbon and then bus or train to Faro."

You may find more info of interest and links by browsing my blog at

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com/

Faro to Malaga

The Summer 2007 Alsa.es timetable shows a travel time of 5:30 minutes between Faro and Malaga via Seville on the night service leaving Faro at 02:00 a.m and arriving at 08:45 (Spanish Time). You would need to get a train in the evening to Faro which would take about 105 mins.

So you are looking at +- 8 hrs travel and a few hours sitting around.

There ain't any other quicker way I'm afraid as even by air via Madrid it would take this long.

See the following sites for more info:

thomasallen.home.sapo.pt/travel/001.htm
www.alsa.es
http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com

Faro to Marbella

Unfortunately, Ryanair have recently reduced their daily service to Madrid from Faro to 4 days a week and so the option of flying low cost Faro - Madrid and then low - cost Madrid - Malaga with Spanair is not an option on 14th July 2007.

Your best bet will be therefore to get the 08:20 DAMAS/EVA bus from Faro to Seville arriving Seville Plaza das Armas at 13:00.

Form my research there appears to be a departure from Seville at 16:00 for Marbella. Transit time 3:30 mins - so arriving Marbella 19:30. The operator is AUTOBÚS DE LOS AMARILLOS. They do not appear to have a website.

My reference to this is here:

www.ctsa-portillo.com/ima/pdf/marbella.pdf

This appears to be the best option.
.

travel from Faro portugal to Malaga spain.

These guys may be able to assist:

http://www.iberiacarhire.com/

Also Ryanair now fly from Faro to Madrid a few times a week. You might be able to get a connecting low cost to Malaga.

Malaga to Faro

Prices and bookings for bus tickets and train tickets in Portugal and Spain are usually only available a few weeks before the date of travel.

I am afraid it is unrealistic to expect to confirm prices now for buses or trains on 1st September 2010.

The following company may be able to assist you with regards to car hire in Spain and drop off in Fao.

http://www.iberiacarhire.com/

Bus from Malaga tp Seville and then onto Faro is the only realistic public transport option for this route.

There are no trains that serve this route.

Cheapest way to get to Spain/Portugal from Copenhagen

I would try by air with Ryanair from Billund to Faro, Alicante, Malaga or Girona or from Aarhus to Alicante, Malaga or Girona

Lagos to Almeira

1) Frao Airport is about 8km from Faro Station. You will either need to get a bus (infrequent) or a cab to Faro Station.

2) The easiest route from Lagos to Almeira would be as follows:

a) DAMAS/EVA bus from Lagos to Seville

http://thomasallen.home.sapo.pt/travel/001.htm

b) Seville to Almeira - I have uploaded the alsa.es timetable here:

http://www.scribd.com/share/upload/10765936/eicrue3bioiiujw30o1

Some buses route via Malaga so you might want to lay over.

Going by car from Lisbon to Costa del Sol

Lisbon to Marbella is 700km. ViaMichelin show a transit time of 7 hours on the shortest motorway route via Faro, Huelva, Seville, Jerez, Cadiz and Malaga . Consequently one has to accept that one will effectively lose one day en route and one day on return.

Also be aware that if travelling through the Alentejo and Andalucia between late May and early October it will be very hot with temperatures up to +-40ºC. One should therefore hire a car with aircon or else plan to leave early circa 04:00. and try to finish driving for the day by 11:00.

Note also that many car hire firms in Portugal charge extra for taking a rental vehicle into Spain. This should be verified when booking.

From personal experience I believe that this itinerary is very tight for one week of travel. More time will be spent in the car than elsewhere.

Seville itself really needs a minimum of 2 days to properly visit the Alcazar, the Cathedral and enjoy its ambiance. Lisbon probably needs at least 3 full days if one is going to do the basics of Castelo São Jorge, Belem, Jeronimos, Linha da Cascais (Estoril/Cascais) & Sintra.

For a week's trip I would counsel

a) Lisbon and Seville only

or

b) Seville or Granada and Marbella only.