Page updated 8th August 2018 - train times updated
I have no easy means to check or update so please confirm through sources given below.
Aveiro (pop.78,000, urban area 120,000) is a city of Northern Portugal. It is not in the Algarve - I was visiting! It stands about 75km (47 miles) south of the major city of Porto. It is just over 260km (160 miles) north of Lisbon. It is about 85km from PORTO airport.
There are no direct buses between Porto Airport and Aveiro.
By metro and train it is fairly frequent, straightforward and
inexpensive, but slow Take the METRO DO PORTO Line E from the
Airport to Campanhã station. Trains run 
about every 20 minutes for most of the day on
weekdays, every 30 minutes at other times including weekends and
holidays, from around 0600 until 0034 (last train, every night).
That will take about 33 minutes and costs €2.60 - a Z4 (four zone)
ticket. More details at the METRO DO PORTO website.
By the way, don't throw away your 'ANDANTE' ticket if you are
coming back to Porto. It is rechargeable. You can use it until it
wears out and saves you €0.60 on each subsequent ticket of the
same type. Tickets are sold at the Airport tourist office, but if
it's not open you will need some coins for the ticket machines.
At Campanhã walk from the Metro station round to the main railway
station of CP, Portuguese Railways. That takes only a couple of
minutes.
From there, local electric trains of the Porto Urbanos network run
to Aveiro about once every hour every days with extra, faster,
trains in weekday rush hours. The normal journey takes about 1
hour and will cost €3.50 plus the cost of the rechargeable SIGA
ticket card. There are simple to use ticket machines in the hall;
there were long lines at the ticket office all three times I was
there. The machines take notes as well as coins. NB these 'SIGA'
tickets are NOT VALID on Alfa Pendular or Intercity trains.
Urbanos trains are (mostly) bright yellow! If you do use one
of the Alfa Pendular fast trains the trip to Aveiro will cost you
a whopping €14,50 to save about 25 minutes.
First train from Porto Campanhã to Aveiro is at 0459 on weekdays,
0549 at weekends and holidays. The last trains are at 2305
and 0005 daily, then a later train on some days at 0055. These
almost all start from Porto São Bento (city centre) station about
10 minutes earlier. Be sure to check timetables at the Portugal
Railways Official website. Trains from Aveiro to Porto run
daily from 0440 to 2325 , then at 2356 except on Saturdays.
If you plan to spend some time in Porto before moving on, most
of the trains to Aveiro start at the city centre São Bento
station. This historic building is in the heart of the city (it
has a Metro station also) and is worth a visit in its own right!
The national long distance bus (coach) network Rede-Expressos has
no direct service between Porto and Aveiro. There are no direct
buses I know of.
If you are not planning to spend time in Lisbon, you will need to
get from the Airport to LISBOA ORIENTE station. This is very
simple using the Lisbon metro (subway) from the airport station.
Trains run to Oriente station every few minutes from 0630 until
0100 every night. The journey takes about 5 minutes. There is also
city bus 744 to Oriente. City bus details at http://www.carris.pt/
If you are planning to spend time in Lisbon, trains to Aveiro
start from the city centre SANTA APOLÓNIA station. Check
timetables and buy tickets at www.cp.pt
One way 'normal' tourist (2nd) class fare is €26,70 on Alfa
Pendular trains, €20,60 on others. Discounts are available for
advance booking - see below.
There is a mix of fast Alfa Pendular and Intercity trains about
once each hour on weekdays, slightly less frequent at weekends.
The first train is at 0709 and the last train is at 2139 hrs
daily. The journey takes about 2 hours on the Alfa Pendular
trains, 2hrs 20 minutes on the Intercity trains
All but two of the trains start from the city centre Santa
Apolónia station nine minutes before calling at Oriente. These
other two call at Lisbon Entrecampos station before Oriente on
their way up from the south.
Reservations for train trips in Portugal can only be made up to a MAXIMUM of 60 days in advance. You can reserve on line at www.cp.pt and print your own ticket. A big discount is available on many trains for tickets purchased more than 8 days in advance. DO NOT use RailEurope etc as they cannot issue the required seat reservation for which you will pay extra.
You will need to make your way from the airport to the SETE RIOS
bus terminal. This is about 3 miles/5km from the airport and is
linked to it by the underground metro line. Take any train to the
end of the line at São Sebastião then change to the Blue Line for
a two stop ride to Jardim Zoológico station, which is adjacent to
Sete Rios. Trains run every few minutes from 0630 daily. The
journey will take around 25 minutes and cost €1,95.
There is also a direct special bus, Aerobus 2, running about
every 20 minutes. Consult the Aerobus website for details. For your bus
options from elsewhere in the city check the city bus website at http://www.carris.pt/
Consult the long distance bus website www.rede-expressos.pt for Lisbon - Aveiro times, remember it's LISBOA SETE RIOS on the timetable search. One-way fare is currently €15,70 and the journey takes about 3hrs 15 minutes. There are about 6 journeys every day, from 0830 to 1930. Rede Expressos website also covers journeys to Aveiro from many towns and cities through Portugal. Tickets can be bought on line up to 30 days in advance at the Rede Expressos website www.rede-expressos.pt
The railway station in Aveiro is on the eastern edge of the city
centre, about 10 minutes walk from the centre. There is a taxi
rank outside, to the left as you exit the station. Numerous city
buses stop outside the railway station across the road from the
taxi rank.
Aveiro has a new regional and long distance bus station at Rua de
Artur Almeida Eça on the east side of the railway station. This is
therefore a 10 minute walk from the city centre. A tunnel under
the railway tracks connects this facility with stops for city
buses - see below.
The tourist office is located at Rua João Mendonça, 8 which is
beside the canal, in the city centre.Map here.
Aveiro is a walkable city, and mostly flat. If you
need local buses around the city and immediate suburbs, consult
the city bus company website at
www.aveirobus.pt this is however only available in
Portuguese. Timetables can be downloaded and there is a diagram of
routes. Timetables for most routes are irregular in nature, some
are infrequent and very little service is provided on most routes
at weekends and also public holidays.
Cash fare is €2,05. A pre paid ten journey ticket reduces that
considerably. Various monthly passes are also available.
Aveiro is flat and bike hire is readily available. Buga Aveiro
Rent-a-Bike has its main shop outside the Mercado Manuel Firmino
in the centre with bike stations in various locations.
Aveiro well connected to the north and south by the railway.
There is also the narrow gauge line inland, to Oliveira de
Azaméis, part of the Linha da Vouga. This is a proper railway, not
a heritage or tourist line. It is a pleasant ride into wooded
countryside and is operated as part of the national railway
system. Timetables at www.cp.pt
The website www.aveirobus.pt
also has details of the buses to outlying suburbs - click 'Rede
Interurbana'. These buses leave from stops on the Avenida Dr
Lourenço Peixinho close to the war memorial soldier statue
by the canals. Map
here. Some routes also call at the railway station.
Regional buses, operated by Transdev, leave from the new bus station at Rua de Artur Almeida Eça, next to the railway station and thus a little way from the centre.
Aveiro is not quite on the coast. In summer a ferry runs out to
the main beaches, details will also be on the Aveirobus website.
The stadium of SC Beira Mar Aveiro is the Estádio Mário Duarte, Rua do Sport Clube Beira-Mar, 3810-193 Aveiro.
Capacity is 12,000. This is to the south of the city centre but
not far. The club currently plays in the third tier of
Portuguese football, where attendances are numbered in hundreds.
Club website for fixtures is http://www.beiramar.pt/
The large stadium built outside the town for
the Euro 2004 championships is no longer in use. It remains the
only stadium I have ever been to, anywhere, which was impossible
to get to except by car! One could not even walk there.
If you have any comments or updates for this page, I will be pleased to receive them by email. For more about Aveiro as a city, please see this article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aveiro
I take no responsibility for any inconvenience caused as a result of later changes to times etc. This page is for general guidance only and you must check details before making commitments and decisions!