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An Alfa Pendular at Porto Campanhã.
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The best way to travel between Lisbon & Faro is by train. Fast trains link Lisbon Oriente station with Faro in just 3 hours, city centre to city centre, and they serve other stations in the Algarve such as Lagos and Albufeira, too. Choose between a front-rank tilting 200 km/h Alfa Pendular, or a slightly slower Intercity train.
Lisbon Oriente to Faro by train is 302 km (188 miles).
What are Alfa Pendular trains
like?
What are Intercity trains
like?
Station guides:
Lisbon S.
Apolonia, Lisbon
Oriente
Lisbon ► Faro & Algarve
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Trains leave Lisbon Oriente for Faro around 5 times per day, two are 200 km/h Alfa Pendulars taking 3h00, the other three are Intercity trains taking around 3h30. The two Alfa Pendular departures are direct trains from Porto to Faro via Lisbon.
After Lisbon Oriente, trains call at Lisbon Entrecampos, they cross the huge 25 Abril suspension bridge over the Tagus, then call at Pinhal Novo, Tunes, Albufeira - Ferreiras, Loule & Faro. Change at Tunes for a local train to Portimão & Lagos.
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Check times at the Portuguese Railways (CP) website www.cp.pt or at Omio.com.
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Lisbon Oriente is 8 km northeast of the city centre, next to the Parque da Nações, the former Expo '98 site. You can either take the Lisbon metro red line from the city centre to Oriente (www.metrolisboa.pt) or you can take an Urbano (suburban) train from Lisbon Santa Apolonia (walking distance from the old town) to Lisbon Oriente free of charge in the hour before your train leaves, these run every 30-60 minutes taking 8 minutes.
Faro & Algarve ► Lisbon
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Trains leave Faro around 5 times per day, 2 departures are 200 km/h Alfa Pendulars taking 3h05, others are Intercity trains taking around 3h40.
After leaving Faro, trains call at Loule, Albufeira - Ferreiras, Tunes, Pinhal Novo, they then cross the huge 25 Abril suspension bridge over the Tagus, then call at Entrecampos & Lisbon Oriente. From Lagos or Portimão, take a local train to Tunes and pick up the express to Lisbon. The two Alfa Pendular departures from Faro continue beyond Lisbon all the way to Porto.
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Check times at the official CP (Portuguese Railways) website www.cp.pt or at Omio.com.
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Lisbon Oriente is 8 km northeast of Lisbon city centre, next to the Parque da Nações, the former Expo '98 site. Either take the Lisbon metro red line from Oriente to the city centre (www.metrolisboa.pt) or you can take an Urbano (suburban) train from Lisbon Oriente to Lisbon Santa Apolonia (walking distance from Lisbon's old town) free of charge in the hour after your train arrives. Suburban trains link Oriente to Santa Apolonia every 30-60 minutes taking 8 minutes.
How much does it cost?
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Advance-purchase fares between Lisbon & Faro start at just €8 in 2nd class or €19 in 1st class.
Promo fares vary like air fares, book at least 5 days in advance to see Promo fares, maximum 60 days.
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The full-flex fare is around €22 by Intercity or €24 by Alfa Pendular in 2nd class, €29 by Intercity or €31 by Alfa Pendular in 1st class.
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Children under 4 travel free. Children under 12 get 50% off the full-price. There's no discount on Promo fares, which might be cheaper.
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Youths under 25 get 25% off the full-price. Seniors over 65 get 50% off the full-price. Just show proof of age, for example your passport. There's no discount on Promo fares, which might be cheaper.
How to buy tickets
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Buy tickets at the Portuguese Railways (CP) website www.cp.pt (in €) or at Omio.com (in €, £ or $).
Booking opens 60 days ahead. You print your own ticket or can show it on your laptop or phone, including in the CP app.
Omio.com is easy to use, overseas credit cards welcome, small booking fee. Cp.pt is more fiddly, but has an English version ands works with most overseas payment cards.
Rail Ninja is not an official CP reseller and should be avoided. Omio (who also own Rome2Rio) and CP are currently the only sites authorised to sell Portuguese train tickets, no other retailer connects to CP's system.
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Booking tips
For Lisbon city centre select Lisboa - Santa Apolonia, or select Lisboa - Oriente for the east of the city & Parque da Nações.
AP = Alfa Pendular. IC = Intercity. IR = Inter-Regional. R = Regional. U = Urban (suburban train). AP or IC on their own indicates a direct train. A combo, for example AP|U means Alfa Pendular with 1 change onto a suburban train (it'll show you details if you click the + sign).
When registering on www.cp.pt, it won't accept UK-style postcodes with letters in, so enter your postcode as 123456, it makes no difference.
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You can buy tickets at the station, there are almost always places available.
Route map
Alfa Pendular (AP) trains
These are CP's premier trains, and very classy indeed. They're fully air-conditioned 6-car electric trains which reach 220 km/h (136 mph) on some sections of the Lisbon-Porto route, though they won't do that on the line to Faro. Built by FIAT, they tilt into the curves, enabling them to go faster than conventional trains. They have 1st & 2nd class and a cafe-bar. There's free WiFi & power sockets at all seats. They are shown in the booking system as AP. See Alfa Pendular seat map.
An Alfa Pendular train at Porto Campanhã.
An Alfa Pendular at Lisbon Santa Apolonia. The large numbers on the side of each car are car numbers, not class!
Intercity trains
These are CP's second-rank express trains, fully air-conditioned 1st & 2nd class, also with cafe-bar. You'll find power sockets at some 1st class seats, but not in 2nd class. The cars are showing their age now on the outside, but are very comfortable inside. They're shown in the booking system as IC. Typical Intercity train seat map.
An Intercity train about to leave Lisbon Oriente for Faro.
Suburban trains in Lisbon
Trains to Faro leave from Lisbon Oriente, 8 km northeast of the city centre. If you have a ticket for an Alfa Pendular or Intercity train to or from Lisbon Oriente, you can transfer free of charge between Lisbon Santa Apolonia and Lisbon Oriente by Urbano (suburban) train) in the hour after your train arrives or in the hour before it leaves. These suburban trains run every 20-60 minutes taking 8 minutes. You can look up times at www.cp.pt or the CP app on your phone.
Travel tips
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Alfa Pendular or Intercity? The Alfa Pendular is as good as anything in western Europe, clean, modern, comfortable, with power sockets & WiFi. CP's Intercity trains are showing their age on the outside, they're still very spacious and comfortable on the inside, but the windows are often not as clean as they could be (unlike the immaculate Alfa Pendulars) and not all seats have power outlets. I like both, but it's your call!
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Seat reservation is compulsory on Alfa Pendular & Intercity trains, all tickets come with a specified reserved seat automatically included. For a seating plan of an Alfa Pendular and of typical Intercity cars, see the seat numbering page.
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Boarding your train: There's no check-in, you just walk into the station, glance at the departure indicator to see which platform your train is on, walk over to it and get on, any time before departure. Unlike in Spain, in Portugal there are no security scans, no ticket checks & no ticket gates, just free & easy access to the platforms - tickets are checked on board. Train doors may close a minute beforehand.
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Luggage: You take your luggage onto the train with you and stick it on any suitable rack near your seat. Suitcases and backpacks are fine, nobody weighs it, measures it, if you can manage it yourself and it'll go on a normal train luggage rack, it's fine.
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Children under 4 go free: Babies and infants under 4 years old travel for free if you're happy to have them on your lap, just bring them along without a ticket. If you want to them to have their own seat, book them a ticket, either child rate or a Promo fare.
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Children, Youth, Senior fares: Children under 12 get 50% off full-price fares, Youths under 25 get 25% off, Seniors over 65 get 50% off, but there's no discount on Promo fares. When booking, change the Discount box from Full-Price to Children, Youth or Senior after you've selected your train. Important tip, check that selecting Full-Price and Promo Ticket (in other words, buying an adult-rate Promo fare) doesn't make it cheaper! If it is, buy that.
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Food & drink: Alfa Pendulars have a cafe-bar in car 3. Most Intercity trains on the Lisbon-Porto route also have a cafe-bar. You can buy beer, wine, tea, coffee, soft drinks, sandwiches and snacks, with a menu in both Portuguese & English. They even sell small bottles of delicious port (well, this is Portugal!).
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WiFi & power outlets: Alfa Pendular trains have free WiFi & power sockets at all seats in both 1st & 2nd class.
Intercity trains have free WiFi, but only a few seats have power sockets, mainly in 1st class. Seats with a socket are indicated with a plug symbol in the seating plan when you book an intercity train online at www.cp.pt.
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First class lounge at Lisbon Oriente (temporarily closed): If you have a 1st class ticket for an Alfa Pendular, you can use the 1st class CP Lounge at Lisbon Oriente with free WiFi & complimentary tea & coffee. It's badly signed, but is reportedly on the mezzanine level. However, it's been closed since the pandemic, it may reopen at some point.
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Interrail & Eurail passes: These trains are all covered by Interrail & Eurail, but you'll need a compulsory seat reservation which costs a few euros. Make this at any CP station, it cannot be done online, and cannot be done at any station outside Portugal as no other operator or retailer has a connection to CP's ticketing system.
What's the journey like?
Until 1999, trains to Faro left from Barreiro, a terminus on the southern bank of the river Tagus - the journey from Lisbon to Faro began with a ferry! In 1999 a train deck was added to the Ponte de 25 Abril, the vast red 2.3km-long suspension bridge that has carried road traffic across the Tagus since 1966, and which bears a striking resemblance to San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge. Trains now run direct from Lisbon Oriente to Faro over this dramatic bridge with no need for a ferry. If you're sitting on the right hand side of the train you'll get views towards the Monument to the Discoveries and Belém Tower when heading south to Faro.
Lisbon's Monument to the Discoveries with the Ponte de 25 Abril in the background, which the trains to Faro cross.
Crossing the Ponte de 25 Abril with the Monument to the Discoveries visible in the distance. Courtesy of www.youtube.com/c/nonstopeurotrip.
Faro's pretty railway station.
