|
The national rail company is Caminhos de Ferro Portugueses (CP) T 21 343 3748, http://www.cp.pt There are four railway stations in the capital: Santa Apolónia for long-distance and international routes and north- and west-bound suburban destinations. Cais do Sodré serves the Atlantic beaches of Cascais and Estoril, and Sintra, Mafra and Queluz, there are frequent services from Rossio. The Barreiro station, on the south bank of the River Tagus, serves the Algarve and the south. Commuter ferries link Barreiro, included in the price of the ticket, with the ferry terminal at Cais do Sodré, Estação Fluvial, without doubt the most stunning panoramic initiation to the city. Eurostar, T 870 6000 0796, http://www.eurostar.com is the quickest and most pleasurable surface route to Lisbon. Trains depart Waterloo at 1023, arriving Paris Gare du Nord, at 1417. The TGV service leaves Paris Gare Montparnasse at 1515, and shuttles down to the Spanish border at Irún, arriving 2132. From there a comfortable a/c sleeper, Portuguese Sud Expresso, leaves at 2200 and takes you onto Lisbon, arriving at Santa Apolónia station next morning at 1053. In total the fare will probably exceed £260 making this a considerably more expensive and time consuming option. Intercity trains (intercidade) connect all of Portugal’s major cities to either Lisbon or Porto. For routes north to Porto, the fastest, most comfortable, and most expensive (still very cheap by UK standards) service is run by Alfa. Intercity services to Faro take between 3½ and four hours. Overnight trains operate from Madrid (10 hours) and Paris (18½ hours). You should book train tickets in advance (internet bookings accepted) or arrive at least 30 minutes before the journey. Weekend services are usually jammed.
|
