Porto is a cosmopolitan city, an eclectic mix of things ancient and modern. A UNESCO world Heritage site with medieval townhouses, gothic palaces and baroque churches adorned with exquisitely handcrafted “azulejo” tiles. A city where the wine and gastronomy culture embrace its inhabitant’s lifestyle and creates lifelong memories for those who visit.

One of the greatest advantages of Porto is its size which many consider perfect – not too small, not too big. Small enough to be walked about on foot and still have the main attractions and services nearby; yet not so small that all points of interest can be seen in one day. But don’t let its size fool you, it has all the services and amenities that a big city offers.

The accommodation and food scene in Porto gets better day by day. The city is continuously reinventing itself with new restaurants and hotel openings. It can be stated that their food is delicious with unique and remarkable restaurant interiors, cool atmosphere and an innovative approach that combines the traditional Portuguese with innovative tendencies.

Perhaps the key reason why people keep Porto in their hearts is the authenticity, hospitality and friendliness of its people making it an unforgettable stamp of the city nicknamed “Invicta”.

In the most recent editon of the World Travel Awards Porto was elected the World's Leading City Break destination 2022.

Useful Information

Getting to Porto by plane
Porto is easily reachable by plane. Porto airport Francisco Sá Carneiro airport is a very well-connected international airport with daily flights to the major European cities and a few intercontinental direct connections. Therefore, getting to Porto is generally at most a two hops flight.

 

Arrival Information
The Porto international airport is also known as Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport and was elected one of the five best European Airports. It is located about 10 km, a quick 20 minutes’ drive, from the Porto city centre where most of the hotels are located. The airport is served by Porto Metro. The service links the airport to Porto city center. Public transport buses and dedicated shuttle buses also link the airport and the city.

 

By Public Transports (Metro and Bus)
At the airport take the purple line (E), destination Estádio do Dragão, until you reach the Trindade station (duration: 24 min.), where you should switch the yellow line (D), destination Santo Ovidio and stop at São Bento station (duration: 4 min.) For the whole trip you need a Z4 title that you can buy from the machines; buying it first time you also get a ANDANTE AZUL card; keep it for the way back or other trips that you wish to do in Porto.

 

By taxi or UBER-like services
The city is served by 700 taxis. Taxis generally take about 25 minutes. A taxi from the airport directly to Alfândega do Porto costs around 20 – 30€.

Taxis Invicta: +351 225 076 400 / +351 912 301 251

Taxis Porto +351 22 099 7336

Taxis do Porto +351 911 907 533

In comparison to taxi fares in other countries, the Porto taxis are still to be considered a rather inexpensive means of transportation. Uber, Bolt, Free Now are also available.

 

Getting to Porto by rail
In north Portugal, Porto is the most important railway hub of all the cities. There are two main train stations:

Estação de São Bento (São Bento Train Station) which is in central Porto, in Praça Almeida Garrett. This is the terminal of regional trains which operate between Porto and other northern destinations such as Braga and Régua.

Estação de Campanhã (Campanhã Train Station) is the terminal operating between Porto and the south of the country (including Lisbon). Travelling to Lisbon by train takes about 3 hours. Campanhã Train Station is also establishing international railway connections.

Accessibility from train stations to the city center

To travel to the Alfândega Porto Congress Centre by train, there are two possible train stations:

Campanhã Train Station

Catch the train/metro to São Bento city center (duration: 4 min)

 

Getting to Porto by road
Porto is favorably connected via numerous motorways, making it easily accessible from all parts of the country and abroad. The motorways A1 links Porto to Lisbon, A4 provides the connection to Tras-os-Montes, whereas A3 reaches all the way to Braga (Minho region). Aveiro, Viana do Castelo are also linked via excellent motorway connection to Porto.

For detailed travel information by coach, please have a look at: www.internorte.pt and www.eurolines.com – both operate international routes to and from Portugal.

There are regular coach services between Portugal’s main towns and cities. For details of routes, timetables and fares visit www.rede-expressos.pt, the website of Rede Nacional de Expressos.

 

Getting Around
To get to and from the conference venue to other parts of town the most convenient way is by taxi. Downtown can be reached in a 5 to 10 minutes-trip. From downtown, then metro and bus are the best alternatives.

A nice option to get around along the Douro river, from Alfândega do Porto, Ribeira, Foz do Douro including the neighboring cities of Matosinhos and Gaia, is to rent a bike. Several rental shops can be found around the area of Ribeira.

 

Arrival Information to Conference venue
From Porto city center catch the metro – Line D Destination Hospital S.Joao – Exit at IPO (duration: 10 minutes). A journey planner is available in the Metro website.

A journey planner is available here.

From the recommended hotels to conference venue, it is very easy and simply, most of them are well located and if you use taxi or UBER services it will take around 10 minutes, depending on traffic.