Transportation
Getting to Porto is relatively easy, depending on your departure point. The fastest way is by plane, but if you live in Europe then you can also choose to travel by train, bus or own car.
Getting there
Porto stretches along the last 5km of the river Douro and is the hub of northern Portugal’s communication network. The quickest and easiest way to get there is by plane. Flights arrive at the Aeroporto Francisco de Sá Carneiro. From the airport you can get to the city by either taxi or bus. If you are traveling in a group of 3-4 it would be much faster and cheaper to take the taxi. Otherwise you should stick to the bus.
The city is served by two major train stations, the São Bento station, and the Campanhã station. São Bento is in the city center and connects Porto to the Douro Valley and destinations in the north. East of the center, but connected to São Bento by rail, is the Campanhã station, which serves the south, including Lisbon.
There are at least five daily departures from Lisbon. The trip takes 3 to 4 hours and costs 14€ one-way. It ends at the bus station, Rua Alexandre Herculano 366. Service is provided by the national bus company, Rodoviária Nacional. There are also 10 buses per day from Coimbra; the trip takes 1 1/2 hours and costs 10€ one-way.
The city is served by five major highways which connect Porto to major cities in the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of Europe. The Lisbon-Porto superhighway cuts driving time between Portugal’s two leading cities to just over 3 hours. For motorists, Porto is the center of the universe, as all major roads in the north fan out from here. From Spain, the nearest border crossing is at Tuy-Valença do Minho. After that, you can head south for some 125km to Porto on N13.
Getting around
You can take a walk around Porto and enjoy the scenery, but you can’t really cover all of Porto on foot. The best way to see Porto is by public transportation.
The Porto Metro is an incredibly advanced, state of the art light rail / subway system. Although still under construction, it has 5 lines that run across the center of Porto, and down to some suburban areas. It is quick, and probably the most efficient way to get around Porto, though some major areas of the city are not that well served.
Porto has many lines and buses, which are modern and comfortable. However, they are not very reliable in terms of timetable, and the bus drivers tend to go on strike from time to time, which can leave you waiting for a bus up to an hour!. However, the lines serve every alley in the city, so you can be sure that wherever you are, there is a bus stop.
Not exactly a public transportation, but its a wonderful way to see the city from above. Near the Douro there is a heliport with a helicopter available for people to use to get to know the city as a whole. Traveling accompanied will make the flight cheaper.
This is a cable railway system which goes up the steep streets of Porto. This system connects the Ribeira to the Batalha square, in the city centre, and has a panoramic view of the River Duoro.
