Coimbra to Lisbon airport

The fastest and most direct way from Coimbra to Lisbon Airport is by train. There are no direct buses from Coimbra to Lisbon Airport.

By Train:

1) Take a train from Coimbra-B to Lisboa Gare Oriente station.
2) Descend to the ground floor and head towards the bus station.
3) Find the bus stop for the Aeroshuttle (Line 96). (See: http://www.carris.pt/pt/autocarro/96/descendente)
(It was by the taxi rank last time I was there.)
4) This will get you direct to the Airport.

If you prefer a bus you would then have to get a Rede Expressos bus (http://www.rede-expressos.pt/) from Coimbra to Lisbon Sete Rios Bus Station and then the Aeroshuttle in the other direction back to the airport.

Hotels in Algarve and Weather

Some observations:

Aqua Pedras dos bicos Hotel

Situated in Urb. Quinta Pedra dos Bicos, Lote 24,Albufeira, Algarve

Have a look at these comments here:

http://www.travelrepublic.co.uk/Pedra%20dos%20Bicos%20Hotel_All_Reviews.html#sectionHotDeta

Hotel da Rocha

Situated in Praia da Rocha, near Portimão.
Very urbanised. An Algarve version of Brighton.
Beach is nice. Plenty of Bars, Tourist and Kiss me Quick type shops.
No golf course nearby. Nearest at Alvor 10km distant.

Have a look at these comments here:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g652081-d657293-Reviews-Santa_Catarina-Praia_da_Rocha_Algarve.html

Hotel Globo

Situated in the centre of Portimão. Nearest Beach is at Praia da Rocha 3km away.
The location would put me off as a holiday destination as downtown Portimão does not exactly thrill me.

Have a look at these comments here:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g189120-d253614-Reviews-Hotel_Globo-Portimao_Algarve.html

Mareta Beach Boutique

This is situated in Sagres, located 3km from Cape St. Vincent at the most south westerly point of the Algarve.

Some great beaches nearby. However, by September, Sagres is beginning to get windy. The nearest Golf Course is at Parque de Floresta, 20km distant. You would need to have hire car. A great place to explore the wild west coast of the Algarve. There are some wind protected beaches in the area. Finally, not a great selction of restaurants in Sagres.

http://www.maretabeachhotel.com/hotel-directions.html

Vila Galé Meia Praia

Another hotel that might be more suitable for you requirements is the new Vila Galé Meia Praia in Lagos. It is close to where I live in front of the 5km long sandy Meia Praia Beach. The Palmares Golf Course is 3km away along Meia Praia. Boa Vista Golf Course is 5km away. Lagos is a great place for restaurants and wandering around. It is also somewhat shielded from the wind in September until 16:00.

See:

http://www.vilagale.pt/pages/hoteis/index.php?lang=2

and

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g189117-d1389862-Reviews-Vila_Gale_Lagos-Lagos_Algarve.html

Seville via Madrid Barajas

I would strongly recommend booking all the way through from Dulles to Sevilla via Barajas.

The Metro system in Madrid is quite Byzantine and I think from memory that you would have to change at least once en route to the AVE Station.

One caution though! Barajas Airport is enormous! Three hours should be enough to switch gates etc but be warned.

I have checked the Seville Airport Site and can confirm that Iberia is currently the only operator on the Madrid - Seville route following the demise of a couple of low-costs. Hence the price!

I used the Seville-Barajas route a couple of years ago en route to Johannesburg. All went sweetly both ways.

If you are flying Aer Lingus, you will probably be stopping en route in Dublin. I would suggest that, after a flight to Madrid including a stopover, the last thing you want to do is to have to fight with the Madrid Metro.

For the little extra, fly straight to Seville from Madrid Barajas.

Lisbon Metro - Opening of Extension to the Linha Vermelha

It has been announced today that as from tomorrow, Saturday, 28th August 2009, the extension of the Linha Vermelha Metro line will be open for public use.

This will extend this line from its current terminus at Alameda, to Saldanha and São Sebastião (El Corte Ingles.) This will facilitate particularly those want to get quickly from Gare Oriente to for example the long-distance bus station at Sete Rios.

Article in portuguese here:

http://www.correiomanha.pt/noticia.aspx?contentid=2A9B6420-9C06-4FE1-B145-5CDEF7EBF353&channelid=00000021-0000-0000-0000-000000000021

Variante de Aljezur - Aljezur Bypass - EN 120

There is an article in today's Correio da Manha reporting that yesterday in the Diario da Republica, (Portuguese Government Gazette) Estradas de Portugal, the agency responsible for national roads, published a call for initial tenders for the design and construction of certain aspects of the long awaited Aljezur by-pass (The access roads and fitting). It looks like the project is beginning to move.

http://dre.pt/sug/2s/cp/gettxt.asp?s=diacp&iddip=402233083

Lisbon to Lagos- Train or Bus?

The main differences are as follows:

1) The train route is, in my opinion, more photogenic.

There is a great, if brief, crossing of the 25 de Abril Bridge which allows a wonderful view, in the day time down along the Tejo from Lisbon to Cascais.

There is then a lovely run through the Alentejo, which gives one a real taste of rural southern Portugal.

Be aware that you have to change trains at Tunes junction to a local rattler that wanders its way through the Western Algarve to Lagos. Again you get to see more than you would in the bus.

2) The trains from Lisbon to Tunes and onward to Faro have buffet cars onboard so that you can get up, wander around, have a coffee or a glass of wine, and thus is less restricting than a bus.

3) The two main bus routes follow the A2 tool main motorway from Lisbon the Algarve and then the A22 Via de Infante Algarve Arterial Motorway to Lagos.

4) The EVA buses from Lisbon Sete Rios only take 3hrs45 mins but are non-stop to Lagoa and then stop only in Portimão, Praia da Rocha, and then Lagos. They have pokey onboard toilets.

5) Renex buses from Lisbon Gare Oriente follow the same route to then end of the A2 motorway but then have more stops along the Western Algarve. They do stop for 15 minutes en route for Coffee etc. They can take up to +4 hours.

6) There are also a couple of daily Rede Expressos buses from Lisbon Sete Rios that follow rural routes through via Messines or via Odemira and Aljezur to Lagos. Again these take +4 hours.

For trains, you can by tickets/make reservations at most self-respecting CP(Portuguese Railways) stations in Lisbon. I would recommend Entrecampos,Gare Oriente,Stª.Apolonia, and I think from memory, Restauradores Station (Sintra Line).

For the buses:

1) EVA/Rede Expressos - Lisbon Sete Rios Bus Station Ticket Office (Metro/CP Station Sete Rios)
2) RENEX - Lisbon Gare Oriente Bus Station Ticket Office (Metro/CP Station Sete Rios)

As regards purchasing tickets at the tourist office at Lisbon Airport or Restauradores/Liberdade not sure, Maybe someone can advise?

Sorry there's too much information. It's the first time we've had that complaint as far as I know.

Lisbon - Porto - Vigo - La Coruna - Internorte Timetable

The following is an extract of the current timetable for the long distance coach services operated by http://www.internorte.pt/ between Lisbon - Porto - Vigo - La Coruna - Santiago da Compostela. Internorte do not have an online interactive timetable. This is an extract from the downloadable pdf.

(Click on the image to enlarge:)



Important Addendum:

Many thanks to Cubsur of www.algarvebus.info for pointing out that the Spanish bus company www.autna.es also operate four daily services (Monday to Saturday) between Porto,Porto Airport and Vigo and v/v. On their website main page, click on Servicios then Lineas Regulares for the timetable.

Porto - Bragança by Bus!

The nearest Rede Expressos coach station is in the centre of Porto.

The Renex Depot in Porto is situated at:

Campo Mártires Pátria 37,
Porto.

You would have to get a Metro from the Airport to Porto São Bento and then walk/cab the 400 or so metres to the above address.

For more information, see the section on buses/coaches on this page on tripadvisor:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g189180-s301/Porto:Portugal:Arriving.And.Departing.html

Note should arrive at the Bus Station at least 30 minutes before departure to buy your ticket. Tickets cannot be bought online.

The current Rede Expressos schedule for Porto to Bragança is as follows:

PORTO BRAGANCA (227 Kms)
Depart Arrive Frequency
09:15 12:40 Daily except Sundays
12:45 16:15 Daily
14:30 18:00 Daily
16:00 19:25 Daily
17:45 20:30 Sundays
17:45 21:15 Daily
19:30 22:55 Daily
20:30 23:55 Thursday, Friday and Sunday
23:00 02:25 Fridays

Winter Day Trips from Praia da Luz/Lagos

To be totally honest, December is mid-winter here in the Algarve and many activities of interest to teenagers will not be operating.

However, some ideas (Most of these will require a car):

1) History:

The extreme south-west of the Algarve region of Portugal/Iberian Peninsula was critical to the Portuguese Voyages of discovery that opened up the route around the Cape for Europeans. You should visit the Fort at Sagres built by Prince Henry the Navigator as well as the lighthouse at nearby Cape St. Vincent, the most South Westerly point in Europe.

In Praia da Luz, itself, there are still some small ruins visible of a villa dating back to Roman Times.

8km from Praia da Luz is the town of Lagos where I live. In my opinion it is one of the few towns in the Algarve that retains its Portuguese ambiance and has not yet been taken over totally by tourism, It is a historic city. Recent archaeological findings suggest the the town was settled by the Phoenicians.

See the following entry in wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagos,_Portugal

Another historic place to visit is Silves, which was a key center during the period of Moorsih rule.

See the following entry in wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silves

2) Geographic

1) Explore the beaches up the West Coast of the Algarve between Vila de Bispo/Sagres and Aljezur. A spectacular coastline with hidden beaches and many that are world-renowned surfing beaches.

2) Visit Monchique mountain, the town of Monchique and Caldas de Monchique. This dominates the region geographically and there are great views.

3) Entertainment

For something different and if they are open...(their site is not very clear.) Zoomarine about 40kms from Luz maybe worth a visit, They offer interactive sessions with Dolphins.

See: http://www.zoomarine.pt

If you want to go further afield, Tavira, Castro Marim and Alcoutim in the East Algarve, about 75-120 minutes drive from Luz may be worth visiting from a historic point of view.

Seville to Granada and return by bus.

I really wouldn't do Seville to Granada return in a day by bus.

The buses are generally fine, but the heat (except late Oct to March) and 3 hrs each way would do it for me. Also there are other things to see in Granada such as the Cathedral with the tombs of Ferdinand and Isabella and the Manuel Lorca Museum.

From memory, Granada bus station is a ways from the Alhambra, which in itself is a 400m stiff climb up from the old centre.

Furthermore, if you go at a busy time of year, you should book tickets in advance and you are allotted a time when you can go in.

You should check this out more on the Granada forum.

You can see the relevant page on the Granada City official tourism website here.

http://www.granadatur.com/en/city-guide/monuments/alhambra/how-to-get-tickets/

Weather in September in Lagos & Marina Park

The Marina Park, Lagos website has a page here with distances and a map:

http://www.marinapark.net/eng/localization.htm

Be aware the times quoted are based on having a car.

The is a fairly steep hill up from the Marina Roundabout to the Marina Park.

Most Restaurants and bars should be still open in tehh first week of September.

Weather Underground showing a long range forecast for cooler weather for Lagos next week:

http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=Lagos,%20Portugal&wuSelect=WEATHER

Average Mean max. daytime temp. for Lagos for 1st week of September is 24 °C. (Source: Weather Underground.)

Lisbon Oriente - Evora - Train

The following is the current timetable for trains from Lisbon Gare Oriente Station to Evora.(Click to enlarge!)



Portuguese Railways web site: http://www.cp.pt

Lagos - Pharmacies / Chemists

The following is a list of pharmacies/chemists in the town of Lagos, Algarve, Portugal (August 2009):

Farmácia Silva
Rua 25 de Abril, 9
8600-763 Lagos (São Sebastião)
Tel. 282762859

Farmácia Neves
Rua da Porta Pequena, 3
8600-727 Lagos (São Sebastião)
Tel. 282769966

Farmácia A Lacobrigense
Rua Prof. Joaquim Alberto Taquim, 8
8600-760 Lagos (São Sebastião)
Tel. 282762901

Farmácia Telo
Rua Henrique Correia da Silva, 1 - 3
8600-597 Lagos (Santa Maria)
Tel. 282760556

Farmácia Ribeiro Lopes
Rua Garrett, 22
8600-740 Lagos (São Sebastião)
Tel. 282762830

The following is a link to the list of duty pharmacies on the website of the Camara Municipal de Lagos:

http://www.cm-lagos.pt/portal_autarquico/lagos/v_pt-PT/farmacias_servico/

Porto - Cabo Verde - Ryanair

An interesting article about development of low-cost airlines serving Portugal here:

http://www.centreforaviation.com/news/2009/08/24/low-cost-carrier-revolution-transforms-portugal/page1


Off particular interest is the following quote:

"One interesting development is that Ryanair is known to have sounded out the potential for operating from Porto to Cabo Verde (Cape Verde), the West African island nation that was a Portuguese dependency until the mid-1970s and which has become very popular with European tourists during the last five years."

Given Ryanair's increase in operations to the Canaries Islands this would make sense as Cape Verde is only a further 60 minutes flight and has much more potential for growth than the Canaries.

My thanks as always to Sergio Bastos at http://www.lowcostportugal.net for this information.

Boarding Point for Portimão to Canaries

The Navera Armas vessel docks at the Porto Comercial de Portimão. There is no street address.

Google Maps reference here (Marker J):

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Porto,&sll=37.130829,-8.536377&sspn=0.030588,0.077162&ie=UTF8&radius=2.13&rq=1&ev=p&ll=37.135756,-8.536291&spn=0.030586,0.077162&t=h&z=14&iwloc=J

You may have to zoom in to see the exact spot (Marker J).

Airport transfer from Lisbon to Evora.

Lisbon to Evora is 132km.

Transfer companies have to send a driver to Evora with the pax and usually run back empty.(2hr40mins not 1hr10mins)

To do the run in the time stated they have to use Toll Motorways which add to the cost.

The price of fuel is climbing again. 95 is now approaching €1.35 here in Portugal.

Unfortunately, prices are what they are!

There are no direct buses to Evora from Lisbon Airport.

Your best bet would be to:

1) Take the Aeroshuttle a/k/a Route No. 96 Carris Bus from the Lisbon Airport Arrivals Concourse to the Sete Rios bus station. (Every 20 minutes or so.)

2) Then take a Rede Expressos bus from there to Evora. There are in the order of 15+ buses a day to Evora with a transit time of +. 1hr 45min.

Timetable here: http://www.rede-expressos.pt

Earthquakes in Portugal - Comments

Usually, quakes have to be over 5 on the Richter scale to really be noticeable. I was in Estoril in 1969 when the last big earthquake hit Portugal and that was very noticeable at 7,9 on the Richter scale. Our poor new little Portuguese Podengo puppy, (fox terrier size), got the blame from my father, who woke up thinking the puppy was shaking the bed.

Luckily, the epicenter was deep down in the earth's mantle, so although there was a lot of superficial damage and unfortunately, a few deaths, it was nothing like the 1755 quake.

The following page from the Portuguese Met. Institute shows how frequent small tremors are, particularly in the Southern half of Portugal. However, most are of low impact so we don't feel them.

http://www.meteo.pt/pt/sismologia/actividade/

Seismic activity is high in this region because the southern part of Portugal lies just to the North of the boundary between the Eurasian Tectonic Plate and the African Tectonic Plate.

As regards according blame for last week's cliff face collapses near Albufeira, I don't think anyone can be blamed except people who ignore warnings. Apparently, according to press reports, Albufeira Camara had sealed the area with red "Police Type" tape and warning signs making it clear the area was dangerous. Unfortunately, if that was the case, and people ignored the warnings, you can't blame anyone except themselves.

The coastline worldwide is a dynamic feature and needs to be treated with respect. Cliffs collapse with or without earthquakes, tides rise quickly in areas such as the Bristol Channel and off Newfoundland and people get cut off.

Scooter Rentals - Lagos

There are at least two:

Luis

Sidecar 32

Side Car 32 - Motociclos de Aluguer, Lda.

R. St Casa Misericórdia

8600-621 LAGOS

email: filipe_bolota@hotmail.com

Tel: 282798383

He usually has scooters available at Luzcar just behind the Repsol Service Station on the Avenida.

Motorent

Lagos

Rua Victor Costa Silva

Ed. Vasco da Gama

Loja 8/B

8600-764 Lagos

Just behind Adega da Marina

(+351)282769716

Cliff Tragedy - Albufeira

It is with great regret that I have to report that as a result of a cliff fall. at least 5 people have been killed today at the popular beach at Praia Maria Luísa in Albufeira.

According to local TV news and papers there were signs up warning people to keep clear of the area.

The President of Portugal, S.E. Dr. Anibal Cavaco Silva and the Portuguese Prime Minister, Eng. José Socrates both visit the area during the day.

Further new reports can be found here:

Correio da Manha (in Portuguese)

BBC News

France 24 (en Français)

Welt Online (ab deutsch)

El Pais (en Español)

If you are holidaying with us here please pay attention to warning signs and have a safe vacation.

Portimão to Lisbon by road (No Tolls)

I would recommend that your brother take the following itinerary which runs via the old IC1 national road to Lisbon and has no tolls except in crossing the Tagus at Lisbon. (Provided by google maps:)
Note there is a 90km speed limit on much of this route.

Link to map here:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Acesso+ao+Porto+Comercial+de+Portim%C3%A3o&daddr=A22+to:Lisboa,+Portugal&geocode=FaJ_NgIdVNR9_w%3BFVCzNgIdfCSB_w%3B&hl=en&mra=ls&via=1&dirflg=t&doflg=ptk&sll=37.926868,-9.030762&sspn=2.045127,4.938354&ie=UTF8&ll=37.918201,-8.695679&spn=2.045367,4.938354&z=8

Driving directions to Lisbon, Portugal - 300 km – about 4 hours 34 mins Via A22 -

1. Head southeast on Acesso ao Porto Comercial de Portimão 0.3 km
2. At the roundabout, take the 1st exit 0.4 km
3. Turn left at Av. Rio Arade 0.2 km
4. At the roundabout, take the 1st exit onto Av. das Comunidades Lusíadas 0.3 km
5. Slight right at Av. Eng. Francisco Bívar 0.1 km
6. Turn right to stay on Av. Eng. Francisco Bívar 0.4 km
7. At the roundabout, take the 1st exit 0.3 km
8. At the roundabout, take the 3rd exit onto R. Jaime Pahinha 0.4 km
9. Take the ramp onto Av. V6 Go through 1 roundabout 1.5 km
10. Slight right to merge onto Av. Paul Harris 0.2 km
11. Slight left to stay on Av. Paul Harris 25 m
12. Slight right to stay on Av. Paul Harris 0.6 km
13. Slight right to stay on Av. Paul Harris 0.1 km
14. At the roundabout, take the 2nd exit onto Estr. EN124 0.8 km
15. At the roundabout, take the 2nd exit and stay on Estr. EN124 0.5 km
16. Continue on Estr. Nacional 124/N124 Continue to follow N124 Go through 2 roundabouts 2.1 km
17. At the roundabout, take the 2nd exit onto A22 Acessos 0.3 km
18. Merge onto A22 via the ramp to Faro/A2/Lisboa 26.4 km
19. Take exit 9 toward Lisboa/Ourique 0.2 km
20. Merge onto IC1 Go through 1 roundabout 197 km
21. Continue on N10/N5 Continue to follow N10 18.4 km
22. Slight right at Av. Antero de Quental/N10 (signs for Setùbal) 1.0 km
23. Turn left at Estr. de Palmela/N10/N252 0.3 km
24. Slight right at Variante da Várzea Go through 1 roundabout 1.5 km
25. At the roundabout, take the 1st exit onto Estr. São Luís da Serra/N10 Continue to follow N10 22.9 km
26. Take the ramp onto N10 2.9 km
27. Continue on Av. Primeiro de Dezembro de 1640 0.4 km
28. Take the ramp on the left to Lisboa/Sesimbra/Almada/Setúbal 0.5 km
29. Keep left at the fork, follow signs for Sesimbra/N378 0.3 km
30. Keep left at the fork, follow signs for Lisboa/A2/Almada and merge onto A2 9.1 km
31. Continue on IP7 Toll road 4.6 km
32. Take the exit toward Praça Comércio/Belém/Alcântara 1.0 km
33. Slight right at Praça Gen. Domingos de Oliveira 0.2 km
34. Turn right at R. João de Oliveira Miguéns 0.2 km
35. Turn left at Av. 24 de Julho 0.3 km
36. Turn left at Av. 24 de Julho/N6 Continue to follow Av. 24 de Julho 2.4 km
37. Slight left at Cais do Sodré 0.2 km
38. Continue on Av. da Ribeira das Naus 0.6 km
39. Turn left at Praça do Comércio 12 m



View Larger Map

Aeroshuttle Lisbon Airport Campo Grande

I have just checked the Carris (Lisbon Bus Company) website:

The Aeroshuttle a/k/a Route No. 96 does not serve Campo Grande according to the route map. From memory when I used it last November it did not route via Campo Grande. The Aerobus a/k/a Route No. 91 also does not stop at Campo Grande.

However, the route map does not show it stopping at the Sete Rios Bus Station which it does because I was there a few weeks ago and saw with my own eyes the new stop that has been put there.

I have checked the Carris Site and there appears to be no other service leaving from the Airport forecourt that serves Campo Grande.

Google StreetView now active for Lisbon and Porto

The availability of Google Streetview in Lisbon and Porto as from today was announced in the following article: (in Portuguese)

http://economico.sapo.pt/noticias/ruas-de-lisboa-e-porto-vistas-ao-pormenor-no-google-maps_67728.html

I have run a test on Google Maps with simple queries such as "Rossio" and "Marques de Pombal" it appears to be working.

Faro to Lagos

It also depends where you are going to stay in Lagos.

Although we have a much improved local bus service, it does not operate at night after 31st August.

If you stay anywhere outside say a 1 km radius from the city centre, you may find doing shopping and going to restaurants at night a bit of a pain, especially as Lagos is quite hilly.

In October, car hire prices are likely to be down, and the price of hiring a small Group A car for your stay and petrol may offset the cost of a private transfer each way from Faro Airport and give you extra flexibility to do things such as visit the West Coast.

Porto Airport to Porto Campanha to Lisbon Entrecampos - Summer 2009 Timetable.

You need to get the Light Rail Metro from Porto Airport to Porto - Campanha Station via Line E.

See:

http://www.metrodoporto.pt/pagegen.asp?SYS_PAGE_ID=871913&id=154

and

http://www.metrodoporto.pt/document/827457/874411.pdf

You then have the choice of rail and two bus services to Lisbon. In my opinion rail is faster.

Rail:

You can find a link to the High Speed Porto to Lisbon rail timetable on my blog here:

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com/

Scroll down on the right hand side panel till you come to:

»» Algarve & Portugal - Travel Transport Links

»» Continue scrolling down in this section till you come to:

Porto - Lisbon - Porto Train Timetable

If you are travelling in high summer you should book in advance if possible but the Portuguese railway online booking system is not that great.

You can try it here at www.cp.pt.

The price at present for the service in question will be Euro 27.50 but this may go up soon.

I have also published here on my blog the current full Porto Campanha to Lisbon Entrecampos (Change at Gare Oriente:) here:

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/porto-campanha-to-lisbon-entrecampos.html

I do not recommend the bus as the bus stations are nor easily accessible with baggage and if you are in a hurry the train is best.

Porto Campanha to Lisbon Entrecampos - Summer 2009 Timetable.

---

Portuguese Railways – Porto Campanha to Lisbon Entrecampos – Timetable – Summer 2009
Dept. Porto - Campanha	Arrive Lisboa - Entrecampos	Duration
1h23	6h17	4h54
5h47	8h50	3h03
6h47	9h39	2h52
6h52	10h09	3h17
7h45	11h13	3h28
8h52	12h09	3h17
9h47	12h39	2h52
10h52	14h09	3h17
11h47	14h39	2h52
12h52	16h09	3h17
13h47	16h39	2h52
14h52	18h09	3h17
15h47	18h50	3h03
16h47	19h39	2h52
16h52	20h09	3h17
17h45	21h12	3h27
18h47	21h39	2h52
19h52	23h09	3h17
20h47	23h39	2h52

Emirates - Delays Sydney/Auckland

My partner is en route from London to Auckland.

She took an Emirates flight (EK 0412) because it is supposed to be a reputable airline and because she was able to layover in Dubai for an extra £30.00 and so avoid doing the flight non-stop.

Prior to leaving Dubai, she was told that the onward flight from Sydney to Auckland, would be delayed 5 hours. When she arrived in Sydney, she was given a boarding pass for the flight, I presume a code-share. She boarded this flight, sat on board for two hours and then was told the flight hand been cancelled and had to disembark.

She is now onboard another flight and hopefully this is going to take-off

What is going on with Emirates and the Sydney-Auckland route?

Lisbon - Obidos

Travelling from Porto to Obidos is not recommended.

By train it takes 5 hours and 4 to 5 changes or trains.

There are no direct buses that I am aware off that run direct from Porto to Obidos.

I would strongly recommend therefore that you go direct from Porto to Lisbon and then make a day/afternoon excursions from Lisbon to Obidos.

I have uploaded an extract from the current timetable here:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/18635023/Lisboa-Obidos-Bus

and return:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/18635385/Obidos-Lisboa-Bus-Timetable

Note that Diariamente means "Daily". The rest are weekend and Bus Schedules.

Buses are operated by http://www.rodotejo.pt and leave from Campo Grande Bus/Metro Station.

Porto airport to Faro Airport/Alvor

Firstly, you do realise that Porto is in the North of Portugal and by road 556 km from Faro. By car its about about 5 hours and public transport between 6 and 10 hours travel.

There are no direct bus or rail services from Porto Airport to Faro Airport. You would need to get the Metro into Porto and from Faro probably take a taxi to the airport as the bus service between Faro town and the airport is infrequent.

As you are staying in Alvor, the coach operator Renex.pt serves the town centre from Lisbon.

The itinerary would be as follows and allowing enough time for you to get the Metro into Porto Centre:

Dep: Renex Depot - Porto 11.00
Arr: Renex Depot - Gare Oriente Lisbon: 14:30
Dept: Renex Depot - Gare Oriente Lisbon: 16:00
Arr: Alvor 19:05

Cost would be Euro 26.00 per person one way, based on current prices,

The are other permutations but the would not be much faster and probably a lot more complicated.

You can find direct links many rail and bus timetables here in Portugal route on my blog:

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com

Scroll down on the right and you will find at panel entitled:

»» Algarve & Portugal - Travel Transport Links

The Renex Depot in Porto is situated at:

Campo Mártires Pátria 37,
Porto.

You would have to get a Metro from the Airport to Porto São Bento and then walk/cab the 400 or so metres to the above address.

Note should arrive at the Bus Station at least 30 minutes before departure to buy your ticket. Tickets cannot be bought online.

Ryanair - New Flight - Faro - Leeds - Bradford

Ryanair have announced the launching of services from Leeds - Bradford to Faro as from Spring 2010.

More information here:

http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/news.php?yr=09&month=aug&story=rte-en-110809

Ryanair - New Porto Base - New Flight - Porto - Faro

Ryanair have just announced that they are to launch the first direct Porto to Faro route 4 days a week as from 26th October 2009.

See:

http://www.ryanair.com/site/PT/news.php?yr=09&month=aug&story=rte-pt-050809

and

http://www.lowcostportugal.net/faro/ryanair-lanca-rota-domestica-porto-faro-e-duas-internacionais/2009/08/

Flights will operate Mondays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

At present according to the Ryanair site, flights will operate as follows:

Porto: 12;00
Faro: 13:00

Faro: 13:25
Porto: 14:30

This flight will certainly change the dynamics of travelling within Portugal as for a long time the South of the country has been remote from the North. Flights operated by the national airline TAP/Air Portugal have meant plane changes in Lisbon and 5 to 6 hour flights.

The only negative aspect of this will be pressure on the existing long distance bus operators and Portuguese Railways who currently provide low cost services on the route.

It will also mean that travellers from the Algarve maybe be able to benefit from links to certain other destinations via Porto such as Las Palmas, Madrid, (albeit with a 6 hour wait.),Paris (Beauvais - 100km from Paris),

The airline has also announced the launch of routes from Porto to Karlsruhe and Dusseldorf (Weeze).

While I am not a great fan of Ryanair, these services provided they are maintained should revolutionise travel between the North and South of Portugal.

Train - Porto to Quinta do Vesuvio

You threw me for a few minutes. The only Vesuvio I knew is in Italy. Just searched here in Portugal on Google maps and found nothing.

However, just done another search on the Portuguese web!

Do you mean:

QUINTA DO VESUVIO??? The famous port wine vineyard on the Douro???

See:

http://www.quintadovesuvio.com/

I have placed a link to the downloadable railway timetable for the Douro Line (in pdf format) on my blog at:

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com

Scroll down on the right and you will find at panel entitled:

»» Algarve & Portugal - Travel Transport Links

In this panel look for and click the link entitled:

>> Linha do Douro - Porto/ Régua / Pocinho

Algarve - Tuscany

Tuscany is in Italy, is it not!?

Travelling to France and Italy from the Algarve and Lisbon is a real bore.

Ryanair.com operate 3 times a week Pisa to Seville.

Seville - Albufeira time by car is about 2 hours, (Barlaventoexpert time). By DAMAS/EVA or alsa bus it takes a little longer, as you have take the airport bus to the Prado Bus Station and then:

1) Either the alsa.es bus Seville to Lisbon bus via to Ferreiras/Vale Paraiso

2) or a further local bus to the Plaza das Armas bus station and then the Damas/EVA bus to Albufeira. (See Cubsur's site for more info.)

Iberotel - Meia Praia

Project Plans here:

http://www.planassociados.pt/en/projects/project.php?id=2

Spain and Portugal - Summer 2009 - Car Hire Shortage.

Interesting Article here:

http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/simon-calder-no-iberian-cheap-seats-on-the-road-this-summer-1768901.html

How can I travel from Valencia to Covilhã?

This is a very long trip and not an easy one.

Apart from driving directly by car via Madrid, which will take in the order of 9 hours driving according to Google Maps, the other options would be:

1) Long distance Bus

- Valencia to Madrid
- Madrid to Lisbon or Guarda
- Lisbon or Guarda to Covilha

2) Train

- Valencia to Madrid
- Madrid to Lisbon
- Lisbon to Covilha

3) Plane

- Valencia to Lisbon/Porto
- Train/Bus from Lisbon/Porto to Covilha

If you could indicate which of the options above interests you, I would be pleased to try provide more information.

Google Streetview - Algarve,Portugal

This morning while en route to Lagos town I noticed a car parked neaer Dunas Douradas just off the Meia Praia Road with a camera mounted on top that looked suspiciously like a Google Streetview vehicle.

I stopped the driver and he confirmed that Google are now taking photos throughout Portugal to set up Google Streeview on Google Maps. He was no aware of how long it will take to go live on-line.

Click here for the wikipedia artice on Streetview:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Street_View

Photo of vehicle here (Click to enlarge):



Update:(03/09/2009)

Interesting article (in portuguese) on the perambulations of the Google Streetview Red Opel Corsa around Portugal...Watch the video..Its one of the best I've seen of images of daily life throughout Portugal!
Enjoy!

http://twitterportugal.com/blog/google-street-view-pelos-caminhos-de-portugal/

Algarve and Spain - Car Hire Shortages

Interesting Article here:

http://www.pr.com/press-release/169423

PORTO - SANTIAGO DA COMPOSTELA

Alsa.es operates bus services between Porto, Portugal and Santiago da Compostela, Spain as follows:

Click on image below to enlarge:


Alsa.es operates bus services between Porto, Portugal and Santiago da Compostela, Spain as follows: