Lagos - Young family entertainment

Easter Monday is not a public holiday in Portugal.

In Lagos, try the Lagos zoo. http://www.zoolagos.com/entrada.html

A bit out of town, 25kms distant there is a water park "Slide & Splash", http://www.slidesplash.com/ and of course, Zoomarine. http://www.zoomarine.pt/

Pamplona, Spain to Lagos, Portugal

There is no direct bus service from Pamplona to Lagos.

Rail

There is a train leaving Pamplona at 19.40 arriving Vitoria-Gastiez at 20.45

There is a daily overnight train (Sud Express) leaving Vitoria-Gastiez at 00.15 arriving at Gare Oriente, Lisbon, Portugal the next day at 10:54.

There is a train at 13:20 from Gare Oriente, Lisbon, Portugal arriving Tunes Junction at 16:49. There is a connecting train arriving Lagos at 17:01.

Bus

This would involve a Bus or Train from Pamplona to Madrid Est. Sur, then a bus/train to Seville and then the twice daily DAMAS/EVA bus from Seville to Lagos.

For train times see the site of Spanish railways www.renfe.es and Portuguese railways www.cp.pt.

For bus from Seville to Lagos see:

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

You may find some of the links on the right hand side of my blog useful.

See:

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com/

Albufeira to Marbella

By public transport, the best and fastest way will be by long distant coach via Seville.

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

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

Get the 07:35 from Albufeira Bus Station arriving Seville Plaza da Armas at 13:00 Spanish Time.

From Seville you can get buses to Marbella direct operated by the bus company "Los Amarillos".

There is a departure from Seville at 16:00 arriving Marbella at 19:00.

It makes a long day but it is the most direct and fastest.

Motorway Toll Penalty

Unfortunately the answer is no!

All Toll exits on Portuguese Toll Motorways always have at least one toll booth manned, with a green arrow indicating it.

Many people have been in the situation that you have described and have pass through the electronic Via Verde toll booths. The toll operators show no mercy, on the basis that if you are driving in a country you are not familiar with, it is up to the driver to familiarise themselves with the rules of the road in that country before driving.

Lagos - September Festival?

I'm a bit bemused by this one and would like to know your source.

According to the List of Portuguese Public Holidays for 2009, there is no national holiday on this date.

The only annual local holiday I am aware of is the

"Dia do Município e Feriado Municipal celebra-se a 27 de Outubro" or local muncipal holiday - 27th October, 2009.

I have confirmed this on the Council's website here:

http://www.cm-lagos.pt/portal_autarquico/lagos/v_pt-PT/menu_turista/turismo/festas_feiras_romarias/

Anyway, apart from when the council closing down the main Avenida for sports rallies, or as of this morning, for trying accidentally totally gridlock Lagos by allowing the new river front works to accidentally block the road on a busy Friday morning, we are usually in business 24/7, 365 days a year.

There are all sorts of small fairs and bits and pieces year round, but prices do not go up and we are usually fairly laid back.

The busy season usually starts to tail off around the last week in August. There will plenty of beach space for you.

Be aware that you will have at least a 1km walk or a bus trip from the Marina Club to the nearest beach..however, there will be plenty of space.

The building works around the Marina Club are all finished for now, with the exception of the desultory snail-pace interior kitting out of the Encosta da Marina complex on the other side of the roundabout. However, there is very little visible work ongoing at present.

I would warn, however, that despite the current economic crisis, the Council and local developers are still pushing on with various developments. No telling what mischief they are going to get up to until it starts, and you find a dirty great dozer trundling along your road.

Lisbon to Vigo

The only daily connecting bus service is one that leaves Lisbon Gare Oriente Bus Station at 09:15 arriving Vigo 17:30.

However, it is possible to do the trip by train:

There is an Alpha-Pendular Express train that leaves Lisbon Gare Oriente at 14:09 arriving at Porto Campanha Station at 16:46. There is a train leaving Porto Campanha Station at 17:55 arriving Vigo at 22:12 Spanish Time.

You can get a the Carris Aeroshuttle bus to Gare Oriente just outside the airport arrivals level. This leaves every 30 minutes between 07:00 and 23:00 and goes directly to the airport for a cost of +- € 3.00

Alternatively, take a taxi to Gare Oriente. Its only 10 minutes away.

You should try to get to the station as earl as possible to get a ticket.

Travel from San Sebastian to Lagos

Train travel within Spain and Portugal is quite good, reasonable and useful. However, train links between the two countries are, at present, not good.

Bus Travel, however, is probably the best way to travel between the two countries. It is unlikely that you can get from San Sebastian, Spain to Lagos, Portugal in one day. It can be done driving - a very long day! According to Google Maps the distance is 1,181 km or about 11 hours 13 mins drive.

There are no direct bus services between San Sebastian and Lagos. You will probably need to route via Lisbon.

www.alsa.es have two daily departures from San Sebastian to Lisbon Sete Rios bus station changing in Madrid:

Dept. Arr:
S.SEBASTIAN 00:30 LISBON S.R 17:00 Price: 74,54
S.SEBASTIAN 09:00 LISBON S.R 23:00 Price: 74,54

From Lisbon Sete Rios bus station there are regular bus services to Lagos throughout the day. Price one way around € 17:00 each.

You can find an extract of the timetable here on my blog:

http://barlaventostravelblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/lagos-to-lisbon-buses-rede-expressoseva.html

Faro to Huelva, Spain

1) There is no train service between Faro, Faro Airport and Huelva.

2) In summer, there may be a privately operated bus service between Faro and the Costa de Luz/Huelva but at present details are not clear.

See: http://www.transfershuelva.com

3) Depending on what time you are arriving, there are three bus services per day by bus from Faro Bus Station. You would need to take a taxi from Faro Airport to Faro Bus Station. (10 minutes) € 10.00 & bags.

Have a look at the following page on Cubsur's site which will give you more info on the bus times.

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

One way ticket presently in the order of € 12.00

4) Transfer/Limo Service

This would cost in the order of € 130.00

One company that offers this service is:

See: http://www.low-cost-transfers.com/faro-airport

5) Taxis

Faro Airport 2008/2009 winter guide is quoting between € 113.00 and € 140 for a 4 person cab - Faro Airport to Huelva. Be aware there are likely to be extras.

Lisbon Airport to Batalha

There are several daily bus services between Lisbon Sete Rios Bus Station and Batalha operated by the company Rede Expressos.

I have posted copy of the current timetable and prices on ScribD here:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/13626683/lisboabatalha

According to Google Maps, Lisbon Sete Rios Bus Station is 8.4 kms. from Lisbon Airport.

In late afternoon one should allow up to 30 minutes to make the trip from the Airport to Sete Rios Bus Station allowing for traffic.

There are taxis outside Lisbon Airport Arrivals. There may be a bit of a queue depending on the time of day but you should be able to get a cab within 15 minutes.

There are no taxi companies as such. All taxis are either owned by a private individual or a co-operative. There should be no problem getting a receipt. (Ask for a "factura"). However, the taxi drivers may take time to write them out.

Private taxis are usually not licensed to operate outside the greater Lisbon Area. They will take you but if you do not speak Portuguese you are more than likely to be charge a higher price. Prices are difficult to assess. However, according to the online simulator at www.antral.pt (Portuguese Taxi Association), the cost of a taxi for one person from Lisbon Airport to Batalha, (136km according to Google Maps) should be in the order of € 150.00.

A better bet in my opinion would be to book a private transfer.

These are more expensive but probably give you more security.

For example, see

http://www.low-cost-transfers.com/lisbon-airport

Portugal - Tide Tables

The Instituto Hidrográfico do Portugal has online real-time tide-tables for major ports, including Lagos here:

http://www.hidrografico.pt/previsao-mares.php

Make sure you have javascript activated and click on the name of the Port for which tables you require.

Portuguese Lesson:

Preia-mar = High Tide
Baixa-mar = Low Tide

Using the calendar feature above the map you can track back online until 1999.