Page checked and updated 10th May 2017.
I have no easy means to check or update so please confirm through sources given below.
COVILHÃ (pop.37,000, urban area 55,000) is a city of Northeastern Portugal. It is not in the Algarve - I was visiting! The city is about 175 miles / 278 km by road from Lisbon and 132 miles /212 km from Porto.
If you are not planning to spend time in Lisbon, you will need to
get from the Airport to LISBOA ORIENTE station. This is now very
simple using the Lisbon metro (subway) - 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, all trains to Covilhã
start from the city centre SANTA APOLÓNIA station. Check all
details and buy your intercity tickets at www.cp.pt
From Lisbon Santa Apolónia there are three direct Intercity trains
each day. Departures at 0815, 1315 and 1915. One way ticket
without discount €17,20 second class, €24,20 1st class. Return
journeys at 0731, 1431 and 1831.
These also stop at Lisbon Oriente (much closer to the airport) 9
minutes after leaving Santa Apolónia. Journey time to Covilhã
approx 3hrs 40 minutes.
Reservation is required. You can buy a ticket at the last minute,
but if the train is full you will have to wait until the next one.
There are also up to three connections daily using regional
trains, changing en route at Entroncamento. These trains take one
or even two hours longer than the Intercity trains but are
cheaper. Regional train tickets cannot be bought on line or in
advance. Allow plenty of time to purchase a ticket as the ticket
machines for regional trains are no longer in service. You have to
wait in line at the staffed ticket office.
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 every 40
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 - Covilhã times, remember it's LISBOA on the timetable
search. One-way fare is currently €16.00 and the journey takes
about 3 hrs 45 minutes. There are six journeys each way on
weekdays, three on Saturdays and four on Sundays. Extra journeys
operate in both directions on Friday and Sunday evenings during
University terms.
There is no direct route by train. Travel by IC train from Porto
Campanhã to Entroncamento and change there. Shortest journey time
is 5 hours 4 minutes, most other journeys around 6 hours. That
does compare badly with the coach (bus) times which take a more
direct route.
One way 2nd class ticket €27,60. Details and ticket purchase at www.cp.pt
There is a direct metro connection between Porto Airport and
Campanhã station, takes 35 minutes and costs €2,45.
Please note that reservations for train trips in Portugal can only be made up to a MAXIMUM of 60 days in advance. You can reserve on line and print your own ticket. big A 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.
Citiexpress Route 1 from Porto (Campo 24 Agosto Bus Station)
journey 3hrs 30 minutes. Mondays to Thursdays five journeys each
way, Fridays seven journeys each way during University terms, five
otherwise, Saturdays three journeys each way. Sundays three
journeys each way, extras during University terms. Many Sunday
journeys DO NOT RUN if the MONDAY following is a holiday; they run
on the Monday instead.
One way ticket is €17,50 and a return / round trip €31,60. Tickets
can be bought on line up to 30 days in advance at the Rede
Expressos website www.rede-expressos.pt
Rede-Expressos has a daily direct trip from Porto (same bus
station) to Covilha at 0830 with a return trip at 1715. Additional
journeys (most not direct) run on Fridays from Porto and Sundays
from Covilha. See their website as above.
The Campo 24 de Agosto bus terminal is a short distance outside
Porto city centre, about two minutes walk from the Campo 24 de
Agosto metro station and is served by numerous city bus routes.
The old city and some of the University campus is on top of a
tall hill. The railway and bus stations are 1.5km away down in
valley below. It is a VERY steep hill.
The Bus Station in Covilha is signposted and marked on timetables
and maps as the Central de Camionagem. It is located in the
'Alameda de Europa' down below the old city and University. It is
about 500 metres from the railway station.
Map link http://www.citiexpress.eu/agente/covilha
Once you are up in the old city it is walkable. You cannot drive around there anyway! The city and suburbs have a network of eleven bus routes operated under the banner Covibus. Website www.covibus.com only in Portuguese. These stop outside the main bus station and also go up to the old city on the hill.
Click HORÁRIOS for timetables - INV = winter VER = summer where
these are different for certain routes. P. Lectivos = University
and school term times only. Exact dates vary each year so check.
One route (27) does stop at the railway station but at such
irregular times it is probably not worth bothering about. Several
routes stop at the 'Tribunal' about 150 metres from the station,
but it is a steep uphill walk from the station. (Everywhere in
Covilha is up!)
The main routes run about every 30 - 60 minutes on weekdays until
about 2000hrs.
Most routes do not operate after about 2000 hrs on weekdays, after
1400hrs on Saturdays nor at all on Sundays and Holidays. Outside
these times, three routes do operate about once each hour until
around midnight however.
For weekday evening, Saturday afternoon and evening, also Sunday and Holiday service on those three routes, see the NOCTURNOS e FINS-DE-SEMANA/FERIADOS section.
On Sunday evenings during term time, there is a special shuttle
service between the main bus station and the University Campus on
route 14 every 30 minutes until midnight.
There is a zonal fare system with cash fares between €1,30 and
€1,45 according to distance. Various weekly, monthly and
multi-ride tickets are available offering discounts of up to 50%
on those fares.
The stadium of SC Covilhã (the Complexo Desportivo de Covilhã is
within walking distance of the city centre. Only one bus route
passes by and not at times convenient for most matches. SC Covilhã
currently play in the Second Division of the Portuguese League in
front of 400 - 500 fans at best.
If you have any comments or updates for this page, I will be
pleased to receive them by email.
For more about Covilhã as a city, please see this article in
Wikipedia.
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!