Bus and train timetables for the Algarve - an unofficial website

YOU ARE STRONGLY ADVISED TO READ THE GUIDANCE NOTES first as, at first sight, the operations here can seem a bit complicated.
For example, most buses in the Algarve do not have route / line numbers as they do in many countries.

IMPORTANT - WEARING A MASK IS STILL COMPULSORY BY LAW ON ALL FORMS OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT WITH BIG FINES IF YOU DO NOT. THIS INCLUDES TAXIS AND FERRIES.

NEW WEBSITE FOR ALGARVE REGIONAL BUSES - EVA AND FROTA AZUL ROUTES

The regional bus service in the Algarve is soon to be operating under a new name - VAMUS.
Some buses are already in the new colour scheme.
Click a picture to see it full size. I will try to get some better ones!

There will be a new website vamusalgarve.pt and an 'app' for your mobile available in Portuguese, Spanish and (American) English. I have not explored it completely, but have already seen that it includes interactive maps of all routes including the stops, an A to B journey planner and a calculator for season ticket fares. It also seems that there will be a pre paid ticket card available which can be renewed on line rather than having to go to a bus station as at present.

MANY CHANGES TO REGIONAL BUS SERVICE FROM 1st DECEMBER

Announced at two day's notice! I am updating as quickly as I can. The complicated pages for the main coastal routes will require a lot of work and may not be ready until the weekend. May timetables are unchanged but I am finding minor changes. Every page must be checked. There are two completely new bus routes for the Mar Shopping / IKEA complex between Faro and Loulé. One bus runs six times daily between Quarteira, Almancil and Mar Shopping while another runs five times daily from Olhão via the Faro ring road (and not via the main bus station) to Mar Shopping and Loulé. I have included them already. Much work remains!

PUBLIC HOLIDAYS 1st AND 8th DECEMBER

Wednesdays 1st and 8th December are a public holidays in Portugal. Trains and buses will therefore run to Sunday / Holiday timetables.

ALGARVE REGIONAL BUS SERVICE - SITUATION STILL POOR

HOLDERS OF REDE-EXPRESSOS TICKETS MAY NOW USE EVA OR FROTA AZUL BUSES FREE OF CHARGE WHEN TRAVELLING TO OR FROM A BUS STATION TO MAKE A CONNECTION

Bus service is still very much reduced from what it was, especially at weekends even on main routes with gaps of 3 - 4 hours between buses. All Algarve timetables have been recently checked and updated. However, minor changes are being made all the time and often with no warning. The 'non Algarve' pages have all recently been checked and updated.

If planning for a future trip please check your times closer to the actual date.

Bus service within the main towns of Albufeira, Faro, Lagos, Portimão and Tavira operates normally. Long distance bus (coach) service between the Algarve towns and Lisbon is operating almost all the 'normal' service. Regional and long distance rail service operates normally.

I have removed the printable timetables from the site. There are so many changes to timetables it has become an almost impossible task to keep them updated. They will be re-instated as and when a reasonable level of service is restored and there is some stability. Now that buses are often showing the route number on the front of the bus, I have added these to the map. I have already included them in the timetable pages.

REDE- EXPRESSOS CROSS BORDER COACH / LONG DISTANCE BUS SERVICE TO SPAIN

The cross border coach / long distance bus service to and from Seville is operating, but with a limited service. There are currently only two journeys each day in each direction Lagos - Seville, calling at Portimão, Albufeira, Faro Airport, Faro and Tavira in Portugal, also in Huelva in Spain. (By comparison, there were eight journeys each way in winter 2019.) There is no longer a night-time service on this route. Times here.

Flixbus is operating between Lisbon and Seville, with calls in Albufeira, Faro, Faro Airport and Huelva. They currently have one or two journeys every day in each direction, plus an overnight journey on some nights. CHECK THE TIMES AT THEIR WEBSITE!

Bus Station ticket office hours

Most bus station ticket offices are open but with limited hours. There is an updated list here. Remember that passes and tickets for local journeys cannot be purchased at any website. If you need a ticket for a long distance journey go to www.rede-expressos.pt

Paying for the bus - local buses in the Algarve region

Buses in the Algarve do not take contactless debit or credit cards. The crisis situation did not push them towards it. Unless you have a pre paid pass or season ticket, for local journeys it's cash only on board. Change is given, but bus drivers will not thank you for a €20 note. You can pay for a pre paid pass or season ticket at a bus station using a debit card.

Bus stops on Google Maps

EVA and Frota Azul stops in the Algarve region are now marked on Google Maps! Major breakthrough! Click on a bus stop symbol and you will see the times of the buses and their destination. The route numbers on the departure board may not be shown on the front of the bus, just the destination. Some stops do not show up on the map unless you zoom right in. Warning - because of short notice changes to bus times, I recommend you check bus times at the official websites if your journey is important. The information on Google is not necessarily going to be correct.

Also shown on Google Maps are the Albufeira local GIRO system bus stops, routes and times - but a warning!

Many of the times shown on Google are WRONG by up to 10 minutes. Also, last buses are up to 30 MINUTES EARLIER than Google states. There is NO officially published timetable. The times here and on linked pages are correct and based on almost daily use of the system.

TRAINS - TICKETS AND RESERVATIONS

Remember that reservation is COMPULSORY on all long distance trains. Tickets are sold up to 60 days in advance. Timetable changes may be made at short notice. You should check times FOR THE EXACT DATE OF TRAVEL at the official website www.cp.pt

Reserved seats are not available on regional trains.

Tickets for regional trains can be bought from the CP website or using their 'app'. You must either print your ticket or keep it on your mobile device. There is no 'collection' option, if only because most stations have no ticket office and there are no ticket machines. Payment on board the train is cash only.

TAXIS INCLUDING UBER ETC

Taxis, Uber, BOLT etc are available almost everywhere. Most municipal taxis do NOT accept card payments. All taxi companies have English speaking staff. In most areas, they operate as co-operatives with a central contact point by phone or app. A simple internet search 'taxi + (name of town)' will find this information. Permitted capacity remains slightly limited. Passengers are not permitted to sit next to the driver. Therefore a 'normal' size vehicle can carry a maximum of three passengers.

FURTHER DISCOUNTS TO 'SEASON TICKETS' ON REGIONAL BUSES

A promotional drive has further reduced the cost of monthly passes to 50% of the base fare and with a maximum price per month of €40 ie equivalent to €2 each working day. Might be useful to long term visitors staying outside towns or in places not served by the purely urban networks. Details at http://eva-bus.com/pdf/tarifas_inter_2020.pdf

TOURIST PASSES FOR ALGARVE BUSES

These are available as three day versions at €30,50 and seven days for €38,20. Days must be consecutive. They can be bought at any bus station ticket office and the EVA ticket office in Largo do Dique, Portimão. They are valid on ALL buses operated by EVA or Frota Azul listed in timetables on this site. They are NOT VALID on EVA Mundial Turismo (MT), Rede-Expressos or other long distance services, international services, the so called 'airport shuttle' between the airport, Albufeira, Portimão and Lagos, nor on the local urban buses in Lagos, Portimão, Albufeira, Loulé, Vilamoura, Quarteira, Faro and Tavira. The local buses in those towns have their own day passes, multi-ride tickets and season tickets for frequent or regular users.

TOURIST PASS FOR ALGARVE LINE REGIONAL TRAINS

Available from STAFFED stations only. (Lagos, Portimao, Tunes, Albufeira, Loulé, Faro, Olhao, Tavira and Vila Real de Santo António) and are NOT VALID ON ALFA PENDULAR OR INTERCITY TRAINS. Do the maths first. A return (round-trip) ticket from Faro to Lagos is only €14,80.

Two days for €20,90 and three days for €31,90. Reduced fares for children. Days must be consecutive. The seven day pass is not being advertised, that I can find.

Discounts for long distance train travel!

If you book more than 8 days in advance there are some really cheap fares available on trains, eg between the Algarve stations and Lisbon. These fares can be cheaper than coaches (buses). These tickets might not be refunded if you do not use them. Go to www.cp.pt for all you need to know.

OTHER DISCOUNTS ON TRAIN TICKETS

If you are aged 25 or under, CP is offering a 25% discount on all Alfa Pendular, Intercidades, InterRegional and Regional train tickets. You can use this discount in any class, any day of the week. Just show official ID with proof of your age such as a Citizen card, ID card, driving licence or passport. You can buy your tickets from long-distance ticket offices, netTICKET travel agents. These tickets can be reissued or refunded.

Young people aged 26 or over can still enjoy the Cartão Jovem discount for individual journeys.

In addition, a 40% or higher discount is available to all travellers on long distance Intercity and Alfa Pendular trains who make reservations on line eight days or more in advance. Reservations open 60 days before travel. On some trains the number of these discounted tickets is limited. These tickets can be exchanged for a different train, but are not refunded if you don't make the trip. You can buy your print at home tickets at www.cp.pt and in English. DO NOT buy tickets from RailEurope or any other site as they cannot offer the discount and cannot provide you with the mandatory seat reservations. These you would have to obtain locally and pay an additional fee for them. Anyone over 65 can travel half fare on local trains so long they have ID eg passport.

STEP FREE ACCESS TO TRAINS - NOT POSSIBLE

I must emphasise that there is NO STEP FREE ACCESS at any Algarve station to any train while it is in the platform. All trains in use have steps up into the carriage. Some platforms are very low, making it difficult for some. I have added an item to the 'disabled page' with details of the various stations.

BUS DELAYS

Traffic congestion and unrealistic timetables mean that many buses cannot be relied upon to run to time, especially on the longer journeys. The 1800 bus from Lagos to Albufeira was ALWAYS at least 10 minutes late by the time it reached Albufeira, a 20 minute delay in summer was not unusual. I regularly experienced similar delays returning from Lagos or Portimão to Albufeira in the late afternoon and early evening. However, I have very little recent bus travel beyond Albufeira to report on!

On the longer routes eg Lagos - Faro and Albufeira - Lagos, delays of 10 - 15 minutes towards the end of the journey are commonplace, on any day of the week. Delays are even more likely in summer.

TIMETABLES AT BUS STATIONS ETC

Timetables may not be currently posted at bus stations and were never seen at Faro and Loulé. They are never seen at most bus stops. Copies of the official timetables can be downloaded from the various websites, but finding which one(s) you need can be a problem. For example between Albufeira and Portimão there are four different bus routes each with its own timetable. Copies can be obtained from bus station ticket offices. The official timetables have information in English as to which days buses do or do not run.

DISABLED OR FIND IT HARD TO GET AROUND? DEFICIENTE? BEHINDERTE? HANDICAPÉ?

Please click here for some observations on this issue. You will have problems using the buses and trains in the Algarve. I am able-bodied by the way!

Why the site exists

I have built this site of local bus, train and ferry information here in the Algarve in response to many queries raised through various forums.

The main idea is to allow visitors and potential visitors to plan ahead by getting an understanding of the local public transport operations and the places they serve and don’t! I recommend that wherever possible you check times locally. Updates are made here whenever changes are found on official websites or through personal experience!. Whenever I go somewhere, I check the information. Each timetable bears the date on which I was last able to verify it as being correct.Schedule changes often introduced with little or no advance warning.

I live in the Algarve and use these buses and trains as I do not drive. Not all routes and services are included. I have left out those unlikely to be of use to visitors, for example some short schooldays only runs.

I have not included full details of some of the local 'city' bus type operations. They have websites to which I can redirect. You can make enquiries at the local bus station or tourist information offices if required. Please note that tickets are NOT interchangeable between these purely urban buses and the other buses.

As much as possible has been checked on the ground eg by using the buses concerned and/or obtaining the printed timetables.

Official websites

The official website of the major local operator, EVA, can be found at www.eva-bus.com ; the other, smaller, company Frota Azul also has a website. They have 'search' functions enabling you to find which buses run between two places, but do not list buses to and from all destinations nor all the fares. The official timetables are available for download and printing. As neither site has a map of routes, it can be difficult to discover which route serves which place. There are often differences between the information on the websites and the timetables at the bus stations etc. I use the printed information.

The urban operators around the larger towns also have websites, with varying degrees of information.That for Albufeira is the worst. Some information is out of date. No official timetables are published! Each local site is mentioned on relevant pages, with links to them.

I would be pleased to receive any additional information you think would be useful. If you can scan or photo timetables, leaflets etc, please email them to me. I can then include the data in these pages.

www.algarvebus.info An unofficial website for buses and trains in the Algarve Owned and maintained by a local resident	Questions about Albufeira? Visit the forum
Albufeira on Facebook - lots of pictures!	My own picture blog of the Algarve and more http://cubsur51.wordpress.com

www.algarvebus.info

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The Algarve region of Portugal - information on bus and train services

Contents - summary

News and updates - latest - Tuesday 30th November 2021