ÉVORA - how to get there by train or bus and how to get around

PLEASE CHECK AT THE OFFICIAL WEBSITES FOR THE TIMES ON THE EXACT DATE YOU PLAN TO TRAVEL
LONG DISTANCE BUS (COACH) TICKETS MAY BE AVAILABLE ONLY 30 DAYS IN ADVANCE

I have no easy means to check or update so please confirm through sources given below. PLEASE CHECK AT THE OFFICIAL WEBSITES.

Évora (pop 57,000) is a very historic city of central Portugal. It is not in the Algarve - I was visiting! It stands about 226km /140 miles north of Albufeira in the Algarve and about 136km / 85 miles east of Lisbon.

From Lisbon Airport and City to Évora by train 

If you are not planning to spend time in Lisbon, you will need to get from the Airport to LISBOA ORIENTE station. Obviously, taxis are available. However, 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, ticket price €2,15. 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 Évora start from LISBON ORIENTE station. They also stop at Lisbon Entrecampos and Lisbon Sete Rios before heading over the bridge and towards Évora. Check which station is most convenient. All are on the Lisbon metro and have many bus connections. Check timetables and buy tickets at www.cp.pt - seat reservations are required for all trains.

There are currently five trains each weekday, leaving Lisbon Oriente at 0702, 0902, 1332, 1702 and 1902. At weekends and on public holidays there are only THREE trains, at 0952, 1702 and 1902. These trains also call at Entrecampos and Sete Rios stations in Lisbon, which are nearer the city centre.

Journey time to Évora is about 1 hour 30 minutes. One way ticket (full price) €16,65 first class, €12,50 second class.

Return trains leave Évora on weekdays at 0706, 0906, 1135, 1657 and 1906, on weekends and holidays at 0906, 1657 and 1906.

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.

Lisbon - Évora by bus (coach) - operated by Rede Expressos

You will probably 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 metro Red 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 €2,15.

The direct Aerobus service between the Airport and Sete Rios is no longer operating. 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 - Évora times, remember it's LISBOA on the timetable search. One-way fare is currently €12,50 (discounted fares are sometimes available at €8) and the journey takes about 1hr 45 minutes. There are about 15 journeys every day - click here for more detail.

In addition to the main service from Sete Rios, there are two direct journeys every day from Lisbon Oriente bus station, which is much closer to the airport. Currently these leave at 1500 and 1600hrs. Same website for tickets.

Rede Expressos also has service to Évora from many towns and cities through Portugal. There are a few direct services from some Algarve towns eg Faro and Albufeira. Tickets can be bought on line up to 30 days in advance at the Rede Expressos website www.rede-expressos.pt. Reservation is strongly advised if planning to travel in either direction on Friday afternoons and Sunday evenings during the University and college terms, also around major holidays.

Arriving in Évora

Évora railway station is 10 - 15 minutes walk to the city centre and hotels. Taxis are available. There are local buses on weekdays and on Saturdays until about 1400h, but service on Saturday afternoons, Sundays and Holidays. On the city bus website below find routes Azul Sul and number 23. The stop at the railway station is called Praça Giraldo. Linha Azul also runs from the bus station into the city centre.

The bus station (terminal) is a closer to the city centre, in Avenida Túlio Espanca almost opposite the Vila Galé hotel. Taxis are available, as well as a number of local bus connections for which see below. The tourist office is right in the city centre, at Praça do Giraldo, number 73.

Getting around in Évora

Évora is a walkable city, but some parts are a little hilly! If you need local buses around the city and immediate suburbs, consult the local bus company website at http://www.trevo.com.pt/pt/default.html which is only in Portuguese, or consult my additional information here.  Bus stops and the times buses stop are also marked on Google Maps.

Further afield from Évora - trains, local and regional buses

Évora is at the end of the railway line, so the train does not give any options apart from getting back to Lisbon. You can, with a change of train at Pinhal Novo, travel from and back to various towns in the Algarve, but the number of trains is obviously very limited.

City buses in Évora

The city bus network includes two routes from the main bus station through the centre and which may be value to visitors. These are Linha Azul Norte and Linha Azul Sud. These run every 15 minutes from 0800 to 2000 on weekdays, from 0800 to 1400 on Saturdays. There is no service on Saturday afternoons nor all day Sundays and Holidays.  Other routes operate fairly frequently on weekdays but not at regular times after each hour. There is a very limited weekend and holiday service.

The city bus website for all timetables is www.trevo.com.pt - it is only in Portuguese.

A single trip ticket is €1,30 except on Linha Azul (both) where the fare is €1 all day! If staying a while or using the buses more than five times, a ten trip pre pay ticket is  €5,20 and a 20 trip ticket  €10,40. These are available at the bus station, but not on board.

Comments and updates

If you have any comments or updates for this page, I will be pleased to receive them by email. For more about Évora as a city, please see this Wikipedia article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Évora

Additional information about buses in the area

THESE BUS TIMES MAY ALTERED AT VERY SHORT NOTICE.
PLEASE CHECK AT THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE FOR THE TIMES ON THE DATE YOU PLAN TO TRAVEL.

Évora - buses useful to visitors for day trips out. There are no buses I know of that go to anywhere near the megaliths.

Many routes around Évora operate only once a day, into the city in the morning and returning in the afternoon. I have not included these as they are of no value to a visitor based in the city.

All regional buses are operated by Rodoviária do Alentejo - website www.rodalentejo.pt only in  Portuguese. There is neither a map nor list of routes. You can search for point to point services between any two places but if there are none direct, nothing is shown.

For timetables click the link. Buses DO NOT RUN at weekends and public holidays unless specifically stated. Some routes have extra buses or run at different times on SCHOOLDAYS (Periodo Escolar). Check for times around local holidays as some routes do not operate on Carnaval day (Shrove Tuesday, which is an unofficial holiday but widely observed) also some do not run on the Monday after Easter Sunday.

Route numbers are not shown on the buses, only the destination as below. Timetables are on display at the bus station.

For a simple map showing these routes, click here.

Azaruja for the cork factory (Azaruja is about 10 miles / 16km from Évora) there are buses from Évora only at 1025 and 1715 on all weekdays (weekdays), also 1400 (Schooldays) and 1545 (on school holidays). Buses return from Azuraja at 1230, 1435 and 1805 on weekdays when schools are closed or at 1230 and 1830 on schooldays.

8076 to Arraiolos and Sabugueiro - two buses each way. Timetable here. For Arraiolos see also 8913 below.

8102 to Reguengos Monsarraz via Montoito - Three buses each way plus a very early journey on schooldays from Évora http://www.rodalentejo.pt/XlsHtml/e102.pdf (see also 8902 below). For a day out to Monsaraz, take the 1025 from Évora and return on the 1815.

8104 to Estremoz via Vale Pereiro - three buses each way times here see also 8553 below. Also the Rede Expressos long distance bus company has two journeys a day between Évora and Estremoz. These are faster but much more expensive. Times and tickets up to 30 days in advance at www.rede-expressos.pt

8558 to Badajoz- discontinued. See below for limited alternatives.

8902A to Reguengos Monsarraz and Mourão via Vendinha - four or five buses each way, but from Évora there are none before 1300hrs! Service reduced when schools are closed.  http://www.rodalentejo.pt/XlsHtml/e902A.pdf

8902 to Montemor o Novo - Vendas Novas - Setubal from Évora six times each weekday with extra journeys between Évora and Montemôr-o-Novo. Timetable here. There are other buses on weekdays between Évora and Montemôr-o-Novo via various villages. These take longer.

8913 to Arraiolos and Mora - on schooldays three buses each way Évora <> Arraiolos, two to and from Mora. During School Holidays two buses and from Arraiolos, one to and from Mora. Timetable here.

8976 to Elvas via Redondo, Benacatel, Borba and Vila Boim. One bus each weekday at 18.15hrs. From Êlvas to Évora there are buses at 07.10, 13.30 (schoolholiday) 13.45 (Schooldays).An extra bus runs on Fridays Évora to Elvas at 0900 via Redondo, Benacatel, Vila Viçosa and Borba. Return journey is at 1600. There are one or two other buses each weekdays between Évora and Vila Voçosa. Timetable here.

Rede-Expressos also operates four or five daily journeys between Évora and Elvas, but there are no journeys from Évora to Elvas between 0015 and 1345.

ÉVORA TO BEJA by bus

Operated by Rede-Expressos http://www.rede-expressos.pt tickets must be obtained before boarding. Journey time is 1 hour 15 minutes. One way standard fare is €7,60. Discounted tickets may be available. There are about seven journeys each way every day, but at irregular intervals

Rede Expressos also has services to other towns, some not served by Rodoalentejo. Check their website for times and do so carefully as some require a change en route and some are very infrequent.

LOCAL TRAINS AROUND ÉVORA

ÉVORA TO BEJA by train

There are three trains each way on weekdays, one each way at weekends. Journey time is about 1 hour 15 minutes. Complete timetable - https://www.cp.pt/StaticFiles/horarios/longo-curso/comboios-lisboa-evora-beja.pdf

Although no doubt primarily for operational purposes, this represents an almost doubling of the weekday train service at Évora!

CONNECTIONS FROM ÉVORA TO BADAJOZ (SPAIN) VIA ELVAS

THE LOCAL CROSS BORDER BUS SERVICE WAS CANCELLED WHEN THE 'CRISIS' BEGAN AND HAS NOT BEEN RESTORED.
THERE ARE NO TRAINS FROM ÉVORA INTO SPAIN AND FEW BUSES
PLEASE CHECK AT THE OFFICIAL WEBSITES FOR THE TIMES ON THE EXACT DATE YOU PLAN TO TRAVEL.

FLIXBUS - www.flixbus.com - have a daily direct journey Évora to Badajoz at 1210hrs. Arrival at Badajoz is at 1430hrs Spanish time. Also, they do not use Évora bus station as their stop. Times in detail and ticket purchase at their website. The return journey from Badajoz to Évora is at 1440 with arrival in Évora at 1505 Portuguese time. This is a service between Lisbon and Madrid and is often full.

REDE EXPRESSOS ( www.rede-expressos.pt ) has two daytime direct journeys between Évora and Badajoz, plus a night-time journey at 23.15.Tickets are available at their website or at Évora bus station. NB tickets for the night journey must be purchased in advance.

There about three other direct services between Elvas and Lisbon every day. A taxi from Badajoz to Elvas bus station can be used to connect with these. Check times and buy tickets at www.rede-expressos.pt

In addition, one train each day crosses the border between Elvas, Portugal and the Spanish town of Badajoz. Problem is that Elvas is a long way from Évora, there are no trains and there are very few buses. Connections are now almost non-existent.

There are no local buses between Évora and Elvas at weekends or on public holidays.THERE IS NO LONGER A LOCAL CROSS BORDER BUS SERVICE BETWEEN

The bus and rail stations at Elvas are 3.6km apart. There are no buses and no taxis at Elvas railway station