12 Practical Tips for Getting Around Portugal

Portugal is compact. Lisbon to Porto is about three hours by road, Lisbon to the Algarve about two and a half. What complicates travel is not distance, it is parking, tolls and old town access.

## Twelve tips 1. Motorways are good and mostly tolled. Some, particularly in the north, are electronic only, with no toll booth. 2. Rental cars need a toll device fitted, otherwise the electronic sections become an administrative problem later. 3. Parking in Lisbon, Porto and Sintra old towns is genuinely difficult. Plan for it or avoid it. 4. Many historic centres have restricted access zones monitored by camera. 5. The Lisbon to Porto train is fast, comfortable and often better than driving if you are going city to city with no stops. 6. Regional trains do not reach most of the places visitors want to see, including the best of the Douro and the Alentejo. 7. Fuel is expensive by North American standards. Diesel is common in rental fleets. 8. Rural roads in the Douro and the interior are narrow and winding. Journey times are longer than the map suggests. 9. Taxis and ride apps work well in cities, less so between regions or in the countryside. 10. Airport pickups are simple. Lisbon airport is fifteen minutes from the centre, Porto around thirty. 11. Cobbled streets, luggage and hills do not mix. Choose hotels with vehicle access if you have heavy bags. 12. Allow a buffer before flights. Lisbon airport queues are unpredictable at peak hours.

## When a private driver makes sense Wine days, multi-day routes with several stops, families with children and anyone who would rather look out of the window than watch the satnav. It removes parking, tolls and navigation from the trip entirely.

## When it does not Staying in one city for three days. Lisbon and Porto are walkable, with metro and trams, and a vehicle sits unused. We say so when someone asks.