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Deciding train vs rental car

Posted by on

Hi, my husband and I are taking our four adult children to Portugal over the Christmas/NYE holiday this year and we are coming to realize that 6 adults in a rental car + all of our luggage miiiight be an issue.

We're well versed in train travel in Europe, so that's not an issue - however, we have planned for 4 days in the Algarve region, with a drive up to Nazare/Obidos/Alcobara areas for a 2 day stint before landing back in Lisbon for the New Year celebrations.

Is it feasible to train DOWN to Lagos and then UP to Nazare region? Or should we consider two cars, perhaps?

Thanks in advance!
Mary

Posted by
374 posts

Hi

You can definitely use the train to travel from Lisbon to the Algarve and back.

The train is my preferred mode of transportation in Portugal and usually avoid renting a car.
However consider this, the train to the Algarve and back is about €30 per person one way (6x€60=€360) and from Lisbon (6x€20=€120) the train goes to Famalicão da Nazaré not Nazaré itself, so you need to add bus or taxis costs.
That's €480 before bus and taxis costs.

In your case if you can rent a van or 2 small cars for 1 week at reasonable prices it would be my first choice.

Happy travels

Posted by
1072 posts

Hi

You should also consider the long distance buses which give much better flexibility about destinations. The main Portugal bus company is Rede Expressos. Their website is really easy to use - see rede-expressos. Just change the language to English by selecting the Union Jack (British flag) in the top right hand corner.

Posted by
1826 posts

It is very easy to train down to the Algarve and back up to Lisbon. When it becomes less so, is going on north to Nazaré and the Silver Coast region. Touring the Algarve without a car is also problematic. In both these areas, you really do need a car as the public transport is scarce.

The idea of a van might be workable.

Posted by
6113 posts

Unless you have a long trip, I would opt for Lisbon plus either the Algarve or the Alcobaca area (I am not a Nazare fan).

You really need your own transport in the Algarve and some smaller towns will be closed for the winter. Taking a train to Lisbon is ok from the Algarve, but it will take you most of the daylight hours to get to Nazare. Personally, I wouldn’t want to lose a day of my trip in transit.

There maybe engineering work on the train lines, as they use the quieter time to undertake projects.

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