Faro Transportation

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The train station is well located in the city centre, close to the bus station, just to the north of the Marina. There are two Alpha Pendular services - a high-speed train, to and from Lisbon that takes about 2,5 hours, €20 one way, €25 on first class. There are also 3 slower survives (about 3.5hrs) to Lisbon. As well as this there are services along the coast - east to Tavira and Vila Real de Santo Antonio; and west to Lagos. For timetables just click on Regional on the left of the website below.

This is a tip for people taking a flight out of Faro, who are looking for a hotel near the airport.

The nearest hotel is Hospedaria Frangaria (http://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/hospedaria-frangaria.en.html). It’s actually within walking distance of the airport, about 1.5 km. I presume the bus that goes to the airport also stops somewhere close to the hotel.

Faro airport is located between the city centre and the beach, so another hotel that’s not too far from the airport and with easy transport is the one right on the beach: the Aeromar (http://www.aeromar.net/en). It’s also well-connected to the airport by bus.

Here’s the bus timetable between the beach (Praia de Faro or P.Faro), the Airport and the city centre (the stop in the centre is “Avenida”: just opposite the bus station, and also close to the train station). The main bus is the nº 16 (first link below) and the nº 14 (2nd link) also goes there.

http://www.eva-bus.com/novo/horarios_tabelas_u16.php
http://www.eva-bus.com/novo/horarios_tabelas_u14.php

Other good hotels quite close to the airport are the Hotel Mónaco and the Hotel Ibis, but Frangaria’s the closest. All 4 can be booked through booking.com.

Faro's city centre isn't too big, therefore all sights are always within reach of a 20 minute walk.

Especially the Old Town with its narrow alleyways is best explored on foot. Just make sure that you wear proper shoes for cobbled streets.

When walking around Faro keep your eyes open for the details; you often see nice azulejos (colourful tiles) at the buildings. Please read my "Local custom" tip for more information about azulejos.

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I left Faro by bus to Sevilla in Spain. The trip was 13 Euro (2006) and took about 3:40 h.

Keep in mind that there is a 1 hour time difference between Portugal and Spain.

The main bus company which serves Faro is "Eva buses".

They run buses along the Algarve coast, to most major Portuguese cities and to the bordering Spainish cities.

Faro's bus station is located just between the train station and the Marina.

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I arrived in Faro by train from Lisbon. There are about 4 daily direct trains serving the Lisbon to Faro route. Trains leave from both Oriente and Entrecampos station in Lisbon.

The trip takes about 3:30 h and my ticket was 17,50 Euro (2006).

The price varies depending on the type of train.

Faro's train station is centrally located, just next to the sea and northwest of the Marina.

I find it quite convenient travelling by bus from Faro to various villages or town in the Algarve. There are direct buses from Faro bus stations to the main places in that region such as Albufeira, Tavira, Loulè and Lagos.

The bus station in Faro is located near the harbour.

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Faro's train station is about 200metres from the bus station, further along Avenida da Republica, at Largo da Estacao. It's a traditional station building with the name decoratively tiled ( photo 2) and the sea right behind it. From here you can catch intercity trains to Lisbon and beyond or the Lagos/Vila Real de Sto. Antonio line. This brings you from one side of The Algarve to the other and from Faro to the Spanish border the track runs right along the coast.

We took this line from Faro to Lagos, hoping for a trip past all the coastal resorts. It didn't work out quite like that as the track runs parallel with the coast but too far inland for any sea views. We did see a lot of the countryside though and enjoyed the endless orange groves and almond blossoms.

The trip from Faro to Lagos takes about 1 hour 35 minutes and costs around EUR 13.

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One of the joys of a trip to Faro is the sheer convenience of everything. The airport bus runs until 9.17 p.m on weekdays and 8.07p.m. on weekends. We walked out of the Arrivals area , found the Eva Aeropuerto bus stop and could not believe our eyes when a bus turned up five minutes later. Service with a smile, no hassle and the cost ? EUR 1.63 each .

The Bus Station in Faro is situated on Avenida da Republica, right behind the Eva Hotel and quite close to the harbour. From the bus station, most places in town are a 5-10 minute walk.
Buses run from here to all the towns and villages in the Algarve, as well as inter-city buses to Lisbon and Porto.

The airport is only about 6km outside town and the bus trip takes about 15 minutes. This is a huge advantage in terms of not having to waste all of your last day getting to the airport.

Buses 16 or 18 are the ones to catch.The second photo is a copy of the timetable to and from the airport