Car Hire in Faro - Getting to Faro

The city of Faro lies on Portugal’s Algarve coast and is the main transport hub for the region, with an international airport nearby and good road and rail connections from the capital, Lisbon.

Faro Airport is located about eight kilometres to the west of the city centre and receives regular traffic from Lisbon, London and many other European capitals. Most visitors arrive on package holidays with a transfer included. Alternatively, the Rodoviaria Nacional bus runs to and from the city centre, taking between 20 and 40 minutes.

Aerobus shuttle service operates between the airport and the city centre, except on Tuesday and only in the high season. Taxis depart from outside the terminal building and run to central Faro and other locations along the coast.

By car from Lisbon, the best route is to exit the city on the A2 motorway leading on to the IP1 all the way to the N125 east-west Algarve road. From here, take the N125 east to the city centre. The distance is about 250kms and can take between 3 hours, 30 minutes and 4 hours. Coming from Spain in the south, you enter Portugal on the IP1 from the E1. Take the N2 highway south to the city from north of Faro.

There are two inter-regional trains a day to Faro from Lisbon’s Barreiro Station. From the Terreiro do Paço station on Lisbon's waterfront, take a ferry across the Tagus River to Barreiro. The first train, number 871, leaves at 08:55, arriving in Faro at 13:25; the latter, number 873, leaves at 19:55, also taking 4 hours, 30 minutes.

The train station in Faro is just outside the city centre to the west. In the other direction, trains number 870 and 872 leave Faro at 09:00 and 17:38, arriving in Barreiro at 13:30 and 22:13 respectively. Many private coach companies offer daily services from Lisbon to Faro.